About 1,000 make it to Rose Ponds for Sister Hazel
Alternative rock group Sister Hazel worked to make students feel like part of the band Sunday night.
Near the end of its performance during MAINstage at Rose Ponds, one of the band members picked up a microphone and held it out to the audience, letting the crowd sing the chorus to the hit song, “All For You.”
More than 1,000 audience members sang along to the song, waiving their hands in the air.
“Colleges have always been kind of the lifeblood of the band,” said lead singer Ken Block.
He referred to the band as “campus virgins” to CMU, having never played here previously.
That fact didn’t seem to make a difference though, as the crowd stayed on its feet, clapping along from the beginning to the end of the show.
The band sang popular hits, such as “All For You,” “Champagne High” and “Change Your Mind,” along with songs from its new album, “Absolutely,” set to be released Oct. 10.
“I really liked how they interacted with the crowd,” said Flint junior Stacey Ringwelski.
Opener John McLaughlin warmed up the audience, but as soon as Sister Hazel went on stage, the crowd surged to its feet.
“I had never heard of him (John McLaughlin) until today,” said East Lansing junior Joe Hamilton. “He had a little bit of a slower sound at first, but then he got the crowd pumped up.”
Although many students appeared to be fans of Sister Hazel, some were not so familiar with them. The band’s enthusiasm, however, won some people over.
“I knew of the band but never knew their name,” said Flint junior Will Calhoun, who had never seen Sister Hazel before. “It’s amazing to be that close to them.”
Timmy Foster, On the Fly Productions music chairman and Warren sophomore, said he was pleased with McLaughlin and Sister Hazel.
“They (Sister Hazel) were a great band to work with — very laid-back and down to earth,” Foster said.
