Despite not being able to stream on the air, KDUP has made its presence known on campus. Whether it’s through their social media presence, their fall concert “Bash the Bluff”, open mic nights, or in this case, their annual concert Smash the Bluff (STB), the student-run organization is excited to share more of Portland’s iconic music culture.
An “indie-rock parody” of Rock the Bluff, STB is another opportunity for students to attend a free concert on campus on April 15 from 5-9 p.m. in the St. Mary’s lounge.
STB brings a more local taste of music, featuring Portland bands as well as hosting some vintage vendors. With four hours of music and four bands, there’s something for everyone. Whether you stay for one set or the entire show, all students are encouraged to come hangout and support KDUP, as well as the bands that are performing. Most importantly, it’s an event for students to get dancing.
“Be ready to groove, get off your feet,” music director of KDUP Jacob Ortiz said. “… I want people to know that it's a safe space to come and dance.”
The lineup this year features Death Boogie, Gata Galáctica, Cereal PDX, and Silvertongue. Together, these four bands bring an array of genres to The Bluff, from funk to indie pop to grunge.
“When I was looking for bands, I was just thinking, I really wanted to break out of what our Smash the Bluff lineups have been,” Ortiz said.
The main goal of this year's concert is to create an inclusive lineup that more fully encapsulates the variety of music tastes at UP. The list of artists this year reflects these goals and KDUP wants students to know that this concert is for them.
“Our team has done a really good job this year, of bringing a wide array of music that's danceable and really good and I just want the student body to know that this is a free concert that they can show up to,” Ortiz said.
Get to know the bands below:
Death Boogie
Death Boogie is opening for Smash the Bluff this year and brings a new meaning to “local” with one of the members being Zack Shoote, the assistant hall director in Corrado Hall.
Death Boogie is the newest of the four groups and is the wildcard of the night. Since they have limited music out at this point, their set will have a surprise element to it. UP students will have the honor of experiencing one of Death Boogie’s earliest performances by showing up this Saturday.
“I think it's gonna be a lot of covers, a lot of dancey funk pop type music, which I'm excited for, to get the crowd warmed up.” Ortiz said.
Gata Galáctica
Second on the lineup is Gata Galactica. Many of their songs are in spanish and in their music you’ll find cumbia and psychedelic influence. Ortiz is especially excited about Gata Galáctica’s set and expanding the music genres represented on campus.
“I think Portland is synonymous with metal or grunge and Indie music, which is great,” Ortiz said. “I love that, but there's a huge Latino population here at UP and Latino artists playing their spin on Latino music in Portland. And so when I found their Instagram I thought they'd be like a perfect fit.”
Cereal PDX
Cereal PDX is third in Saturday’s lineup. They are a younger band and their sound can be described as grunge indie rock.
Compared to the first two bands, Cereal PDX’s music will be more bass heavy, loud, with metal influence. You might want to bring earplugs for this one — and be ready for dancing and moshing.
Silvertongue
The final band of the night is indie rock band Silvertongue. Another great set for dancing, you can expect that classic upbeat indie pop sound that is often associated with Portland’s music scene.
“I think we have a good spectrum of indie,” Ortiz said. “I think all the bands that are gonna be playing are good dancing music in their own realm.”
Saturday’s four-band lineup will get people moving. Show up and bring friends, even if they have different music tastes, because there’s going to be a variety of sounds to share.
KDUP is excited to share these sounds and wants more engagement with the UP community. The student-run organization has faced some challenges in the past couple of years with the decommissioning of their shack, licensing issues, building up their visibility on campus without being able to stream and Ortiz hopes that students will show up for more of their events.
“Be ready to dance, bring some earplugs, bring your wallets for vendors, and support,” Ortiz said. “I think we're a student organization and people don't realize that … this is the call to action where the board of KDUP has done a lot and our people have put in the work and have done a lot but we just need more. We’re [stronger] in numbers and I think we need that for this event to really be like ‘Look we're a cool organization doing cool things on campus, and we're worth paying attention to.’”
Maria Wanzek is a reporter for The Beacon. She can be reached at wanzek22@up.edu.
