Alternative rockers Chevelle and revived popsters Gin Blossoms will join acoustic-pop band Guster to round out the list of performers for the SEE-sponsored Art Attack concert at Byrd Stadium on May 6.
Student Entertainment Events focused on creating a rock-infused atmosphere at Byrd after researching the music tastes of university students through online surveys, Thefacebook.com and verbal suggestions.
“Last year we had scheduled two punk bands with a hip-hop act, and the year before was George Clinton,” said Rebecca Halperin, the concert director for SEE. “So comparatively, this is a really cohesive show because it’s all rock, and I really think the campus community has been wanting a rock show.”
Free tickets will be available to about 10,000 students starting April 19.
Battle of the Bands winner Zanzibar Scuff will open the show at 5:30 p.m. followed by the Gin Blossoms, Chevelle and Guster.
The Gin Blossoms are known for an array of pop songs from the early ’90s including Billboard Top 10 hits “Hey Jealousy,” “Follow You Down” and “Til I Hear it From You.”
The Gin Blossoms, Guster and Chevelle cater better to Art Attack’s $100,000 budget than top rock bands like Linkin Park or Green Day, who charge more than $100,000 for a single performance, SEE officials said.
“Green Day is probably the biggest rock band in the world right now,” said Linah Lubin, public relations director for SEE. “We just wouldn’t be able to afford a band like Green Day since the budget includes paying for the talent and the production costs.”
The announcement of the Art Attack bands came later than in the past 10 years. Last year, The Ataris were scheduled to play before an electrical storm canceled the concert, and the year before that, George Clinton and the P-funk Allstars played at Byrd Stadium.
The Gin Blossoms launched a spring tour in early March in preparation for a new album — the band’s first new music in nine years. They will have played in Georgia, California and Nevada before flying from Louisville, Ky., to the university the day before the concert.
Chevelle is a more a current rock band than the Gin Blossoms and boasts song hits “The Red,” “Send the Pain Below,” “Closure” and the most recent hit “Clincher” that debuted on their 2004 album, This Type of Thinking Could Do Us In.
The Chicago native, three-brother band played on the Late Show with David Letterman and at Ozzfest in summer of 2004 and canceled a show in Fayetteville, N.C., to come play at the university.
The concert is slated to end at 10 p.m., but barring any noise complaints from College Park residents — which shut down the George Clinton concert two years ago — Guster could sing until their voices fade.