Students at Patten Gym will retire Kanye’s “Workout Plan” to hear indie rock groups My Morning Jacket and The New Pornographers at the A&O Ball on April 22.
The New Pornographers released their newest album, “Twin Cinema,” in 2005. An experimental country-rock group, My Morning Jacket recently was nominated for three Jammy awards, which honor improvisational music scene and live musical performances.
Weinberg senior Doug Singer, the director of concerts, said he is confident the bands will appeal to students.
“They are two of the most popular college and indie rock acts,” Singer said. “It will be a change of pace from Kanye West. They will put on a great show.”
Singer said A&O chose to bring the groups based on the results of their annual survey.
For the past two years, the A&O Ball has been held at Chicago’s Riviera Theatre, which can accommodate more than 2,000 audience members. But Singer said having the concert on campus would be better for students.
“People like being able to walk up the block, buy a ticket and just walk in to the concert,” he said.
Only Northwestern students, faculty and staff will be allowed to buy concert tickets.
Medill senior Erica Futterman, the co-chairwoman of promotions, said this will be the A&O Ball’s 29th year. She said she thinks of the concert as a bookend to the school year.
“We started the year with Kanye West, and we are ending with these artists who are so big in their genre, she said.”
Medill junior Terra Dankowski said she is excited to see The New Pornographers. She said the group’s Chicago shows sold out before she could see them.
“I am surprised that A&O was able to hook them, especially after Guster, which was typical college fare,” Dankowski said.
A&O has yet to finalize a special guest, which will be announced later.
The group will sell about 1,200 tickets for the event, but that number could change if the fire department decides more people can fit into the gym, Futterman said..
Tickets will cost $10 for undergraduates and $15 for faculty, staff and graduate students. Students may get four tickets per WildCARD and may use two WildCARDs per person.
Reach Ketul Patel at [email protected].
