By now, it is well known around campus that Seattle-based indie band The Head and the Heart will give a show here at Whitman on Sept. 13. With a feel-good sound reminiscent of The Lumineers or Blind Pilot, The Head and the Heart will fill the Reid Campus Center Ballroom with their soft jams.
The band got their start selling self-burnt CDs in hand-sewn denim covers in Seattle record stores and spreading their music by word of mouth. They eventually signed with Sub Pop Records, who re-released their self-titled album in 2011.
What does it take to bring such a band to campus? Whitman Events Board’s music directors, sophomore Nicole Holoboff and junior Andy Martin, had an answer.
Holoboff described the typical process of elimination used to find the prime band for Whitman: First, she compiles a list of bands “[whom] Whitman students just want to see.” From that list, three main factors are taken into consideration.
“[We take into account] the price, and if their days are going to work, and if the spaces are going to work,” Holoboff said.
“It’s just a boatload of emails,” Martin said.
Many students have questioned the decision to hold the concert in Reid Ballroom rather than outside on Reid’s side lawn, like last year’s well-received concert by St. Vincent.
“A lot of people prefer outdoor concerts––as do we––and it would be great to have every person we bring here be outside,” Holoboff said.
However, she cited security issues as the main reason for using the indoor venue.
In the Reid Ballroom, a barrier between the crowd and the band can be easily enforced, providing a greater level of security for the band. Martin also cited issues like weather and auxiliary power as being deciding factors for using the ballroom instead of the side lawn.
Tickets were sold in the Reid Ballroom Sept. 10 from 12 p.m.-1 p.m. and 4 p.m.-5 p.m. The number of tickets was limited to 500 for fire safety reasons. Unlike the Macklemore concert last March, students were allowed to bring one other student’s ID card to acquire a ticket for them in the case of their absence. Due to the band’s popularity on campus and word-of-mouth promotion, all 500 tickets were sold on the first day of sales. Non-ticket-holding students may be able to attend if they show up on the night of the concert, but there are no guarantees.
At this point the question remains, which band will visit Whitman next? Holoboff and Martin are open to suggestions.
