ACRN Date Auction / February 13, 2014 / The Union

By: Garrett Bower, Staff Writer

The Union was true to its name last night. The ACRN Date Auction was fraught with love and alcohol. I couldn’t tell you who sold for what—or who even sold, for that matter—but what I can tell you is that between loud and amazing sets by four awesome bands, I was an inebriated cupid, scrambling to spread the love and hug anyone I had ever met or maybe even heard of once in passing.

On the stacked line-up was Friends In Distraction, Nightstalker, Hundos and Zaleski. It was one of the more well-rounded shows I’ve been to in recent memory, with each band offering up a nice spin on their loud, punk archetype. From Nightstalker’s fabulous, kimono-clad psychedelic set, to Zaleski’s unrelenting fury, everything clicked magnificently.

So it’s the day of sickly sweet mushiness and I’ve got a spectacular headache and a few fuzzy memories of me kissing a distraught Rob Kerr passionately on the cheek to recall Date Auction 2014. If you excuse me, I’ve got a hot date for hella free wings—more spoils of the evening.

ACRN Date Auction / February 14, 2013 / The Union

By: Kyle Rutherford, Staff Writer

The ACRN Date Auction. A time to help raise money for Lobsterfest, listen to great band, and make your drunk friends spend more money than they should. Thursday night was exactly that, with a large crowd happy to dance along to quality music, buy their friends and hopefully get a good little prize out of it. 

People were pretty quick to bid on some lobsters, bidding $12 - $20 before the show had even started. A young man named Steve in a red jacket was constantly outbidding everyone, making him a man of many dates and spent cash. 

The music portion started with the sounds of Columbus' The Saturday Giant. Having played all over the state and even throughout the country, Phil Cogley definitely knows a thing or two about quality performing. Playing with a guitar, looping pedals, a drum machine and a sampler, Cogley used his beatboxing and vocal skills to maintain a smooth, upbeat indie pop performance. Fortunately not separated from the crowd, Cogley worked his way through songs about reincarnation, beating death and even covered a Pixies song, all while spinning around stage and maintaining a strong, full singing voice. He ended up getting auctioned off for $20.

After a few more were auctioned off, on came Columbus' Emily & The Complexes. A favorite for many in attendance, The Complexes brought their blend of indie punk to The Union stage in an energetic, fun manner. The four members played all their songs from their full length, Styrofoam Plate Blues. There was the melancholy, like "Styrofoam Plate Blues" and the ever so hygienic "I Don't Want to Brush My Teeth." Just in time for Valentine's Day, there was also the cutesy "Would You" and "If I Had Money." For the miscellaneous pleasure, there was "Social Skills" and "Two States Away." The road has definitely been good to the boys, giving them stronger stage presence and a more powerful, yet cleaner sound. Hopefully their future tours are just as good on them. 

As the last few lobsters were auctioned off and a few members off Athens' Small Steps were bought for $10, a strong fan base stayed around for the final acts. The three-piece Small Steps was everywhere. Yes, there was structure, but the vocals and instrumentals didn't exactly go that well together. Both entities would have done better in their own, respective genre. But the band knew what their fans liked and had them dancing and moshing throughout their short set. 

ACRN's Date Auction 2011

So this year's ACRN Date Auction was successful, to say the very least.

I made it just in time last night to catch the end of She Bears' set and immediately regretted not having arrived sooner. Because had I come to The Union before 12:30, I might have seen more of the band's delightfully catchy rock performance, which they executed sans shirts. Delicious.

After a couple bottles of liquid courage in the form of PBR (judge on), I was ready to be auctioned off with some Wizard's Guild goodies. During this intermission, the rest of a troupe of ACRN members and other prizes were sold to the highest bidders of the night. Thanks so much to all who participated!

Whale Zombie took the stage after the auction closed and brought their standard level of distorted, surf-y, noisy rock in an appropriately deafening volume. After playing for a while, the trio ended on an extremely heavy noise jam note, allowing outsiders (who I assumed to be friends) to assist in adding to the noise on the various instruments.

Overall, a good time was had by all, and the funds for Lobsterfest were supplemented in a generous and exciting way.

--Courtney Baldasare, Editorial Director



Another Perspective:

Let's just say it's a little bit discouraging being bought for $17 from a girl you don't even know. I would imagine she just wanted a cheaper tattoo, seeing as I came with a Decorative Injections coupon, but still. Come on. I even offered a free slice of Goodfella's of whatever flavor you wanted. There's only cheese and pepperoni, but essentially the possibilities are endless.

Regardless, ACRN's Date Auction was a total blast. There was a really decent turn-out, wonderful music and rambunctious times.

Brothertiger played first, and so we danced, of course, because that's what you do when a delicious slice of electronic pop music is handed to you. And it was his birthday, so happy birthday, Brothertiger.

After that was some bidding. That went well, though it seemed like the only people truly interested in buying people were people in ACRN. At one point, I bought Matt Wesley and a certificate to Fluff for $12. Best $12 I ever spent, but Matt, I expect a band practice from you now. Lord knows is been way too long.

She Bears was next and it's an understatement to say they were well-received. Two girls bought them for $150 and a romantic pizza-party in Columbus. Oh and also for them to take their shirts off. Nice.

The crowd had dwindled a bit by the time Whale Zombie came on, but those left were a raucous bunch. I was forced into a playful mosh pit that had me sliding and falling all over the floor. Dangerous, but fun. Sometimes you just have to live life on the edge.

--Hannah Cook, Managing Editor