With over 1,750 attendees, the Fall Kickoff concert last Friday was one of the biggest events the Simon Fraser Student Society (SFSS) has ever organized.
The concert was the third event of this kind that the SFSS has put on within the last year. Acts included electronic artists, LuvLyf, DJ Lazy Rich and Paris & Simo, alongside local bands BESTiE and The Faceplants.
The event had been in the works since June, when the SFSS announced that the fall concert would feature both bands and DJs, unlike the previous Fall Kickoff and Spring Sendoff.
As the venue opened up to concert-goers, Shirin Escarcha, SFSS faculty of communications and technology representative, told The Peak, “Set up went really well, prep went really well, and the show is underway.”
At 5:00p.m., the first band, BESTiE, took the stage in front of a small crowd. Following their performance, SFU (and Peak) alumnus Colin Sharp entertained the crowd with moustache jokes and joviality.
“I’m honored to host, and it’s fun to come back and be part of something cool, because when I started the SFSS didn’t throw a lot of big events,” Sharp said. “I’m honestly proud of how far the SFSS has come, so it’s really cool to see this.”
When asked about what he thought of the event so far, Sharp replied, “I’ve been spending a lot of time sitting in the pub drinking whiskey, and so my impressions have been very positive.”
The Faceplants took the stage at 5:45p.m. as more people filed in. Dan Botsch, lead vocalist of the band, spoke with The Peak before performing; “It’s our first time playing [at] any university ever, so this is going to be nuts. We’re so happy to be here.”
Botsch continued. “I think [SFU] is awesome. This is one of our first outdoor shows as well. This is the perfect setting for us.”
The tone of the show shifted when The Faceplants concluded their set and LuvLyf took over. A Vancouverite herself, LuvLyf brought her unique blend of live vocals and electronic music to the stage, transitioning the event from rock show to an electronic dance music (EDM) concert.
Following Luvlyf, Lazy Rich took over for the latter half of the show. A last-minute replacement to the lineup, Lazy Rich was added after Thomas Newson canceled his appearance.
Zied Masmoudi, project lead, assured The Peak that the circumstances were out of the SFSS’ or the artist’s control: “Thomas Newson did send a letter of apology. He [was] really sorry that he [was] not going to be able to play tonight in front of SFU students and he promises he is going to make it up.”
The event concluded with a performance by headliners Paris & Simo, after which concert-goers headed to the Highland Pub’s official after party. DJ competition winner GlideForm kept the party going late into the night alongside DJ Sajjid and Lazy Rich.
Regarding the night as a whole, Masmoudi seemed pleased. “Convo Mall is packed, a lot of people out there are having a lot of fun, sets are going really good so far,” he said. “I have personally seen a lot of talent, which is something that we promised at the beginning of the summer.”
