Fingers of colored light reached out across the crowd. They seemed to strive for the heavens, but were trapped by a stadium ceiling.
Thousands of students stood beneath that ceiling. They were cheering and watching a stage. Four performers were on that stage, but in that movement, only one made a sound.
Ben Harper cried out to the crowd. His melodious version of its raw screams echoed in the confined space.
Harper and his new band, the Relentless Seven, gave a free concert at the Coliseum at 7:30 last night. They were joined by Citizen Cope and students looking for their favorite band, a study break or a little of both.
Alex McClellan, a junior in nursing, said he came to the show because he is a big Ben Harper fan. "I had no classes today, and I've been studying all day," McClellan said. "I came here for a study break."
Other students said they were not fans, but decided to come anyway to enjoy the free music.
"I knew a couple of [Ben Harper] songs, so I came to hear them," said Lauren Meredith, a junior in early childhood education.
Meredith seemed surprised that she didn't hear these songs.
Chappel McCollister, UPC's director of major entertainment, said Harper played mostly songs from his new album "White Lies for Dark Times," which comes out May 5. The novelty of his music became apparent when Harper, shaking his head in embarrassment, forgot the words to one of his songs mid-performance.
About 30 seconds later, he recalled the lyrics and finished the song without any trouble.
The Relentless Seven also played a few of Harper's older songs and did a memorable cover of Queen's "Under Pressure."
Even though some of the songs were less familiar, students on the Coliseum floor were dancing and even singing along as the Relentless Seven did its thing.
One highlight of the event was the drummer, Jordan Richardson, whose performance can only be described as reminiscent of Animal from the Muppets. Richardson's energy and enthusiasm seemed to drive the rest of the band, just as his beat kept pace for the music.
The event began at 6:30 p.m. when two lines of students stretched from the main Coliseum entrances past the eagle. A steady trickle of students continued to fill seats in the stadium for the next hour and throughout the more relaxing opening sets of Citizen Cope.
"We probably gave out 5,500, maybe 6,000 tickets, and the attendance was less," McCollister said. "It usually is, but I think it was comparable to OAR."
McCollister said the UPC immediately started searching for a spring performer after the OAR concert.
"Ben was a guy that we've been looking at for a long time," McCollister said. "He's a higher-tiered performer and he's been around for a long time"
UPC saw that Harper was going to be in the South for Jazzfest, so they made him an offer, McCollister said.
"It was a long shot, because he usually gets more money than we have, but we just threw an offer out there to see if he'd take it, and he did," McCollister said.
McCollister greeted the band Tuesday night, and spent Wednesday driving them around and helping prepare for the concert.
During the concert, Harper thanked McCollister for all his help and patience.
"They don't make nicer musicians than Ben Harper," said McCollister. "He makes you feel like you're his brother."
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