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Before Bandersnatch headliner Tai Verdes took the stage, the lights in Goldstein Auditorium went dark, and the only source of light came from the cellphones of students.

Once the Los Angeles artist came onto the stage, the lights turned back on and the audience greeted Verdes with loud cheers as he sang “Happy til it hurts.” After the song, Verdes made it clear that he wanted the audience to be as excited as possible.

“You gotta pretend this is the biggest concert in the world right now,” he said.

Friday night’s Bandersnatch concert, presented by University Union, featured DJ BenSpence, Maude Latour and Verdes. The event marked the first Bandersnatch in two years — the last iteration of the event, which featured Syracuse University DJ Troyce Pitones, DUCKWRTH and Koffee, was held in 2019.

BenSpence, a sophomore at SU, took the stage first. And though the crowd was initially mild at the start of his set, BenSpence wanted to see his audience turn up.

“Let’s f*cking go, come on!” he said as the beat dropped in the middle of his set. Immediately, the crowd began to jump up and down in unison.

The DJ sampled popular songs, including “Way 2 Sexy” from Drake’s newest album “Certified Lover Boy” and “One More Time” by Daft Punk. The audience jumped and sang in excitement.

BenSpence told The Daily Orange after his set that Avicii is one of his biggest inspirations for the performances he puts on as a DJ.

Columbia University senior Maude Latour maintained the audience’s affection her entire set. Even when she took a sip of water, the crowd applauded her.
Anya Wijeweera | Photo Editor

“Avicii was the one who kind of gave me the confidence to talk to the crowd,” he said. “It’s all about the interaction. I’m here for the people.”

Following the DJ’s set, two UU members took the stage to excite the audience before Maude Latour’s performance by asking trivia questions about her.

Latour, a senior at Columbia University, lived in multiple cities throughout her life, including Hong Kong and London. But the senior told The D.O. that she has a special connection to her native New York City, and it’s inspired her as an artist.

“New York (City) is one of the main reasons I’m doing what I’m doing,” she said. “I had these moments where I got to feel so small and be connected to something larger.”

A few minutes after the trivia, Latour took the stage with her song “Shoot and Run.” She made her arrival in bedazzled jeans, a green crop top and a floral jacket. In an interview before her set, Latour said that her aesthetics and fashion are important to her as an artist.

“I’ve always just worn random stuff,” she said. “I’m just trying to wear everything in my closet.”

Before singing “Superfruit,” she told the crowd this song is one of her favorites and stressed that she wanted them to sing along to the song.

“I’m gonna need your help on this one,” Latour said before throwing her jacket to the floor.

Then the singer-songwriter performed an unreleased song, “Strangers Forever,” set to drop next Friday.

While performing “Furniture,” which has over 5 million streams on Spotify, Latour jumped up and down on stage, tagging students in the front row. As the song went on, students formed small mosh pits with their friends and spun around in circles.

Latour was able to maintain the affection of the audience no matter what she did. As she took a sip of water, the entire audience applauded, with several people screaming “hydrate.”

Before Latour performed “Block Your Number,” she wanted the audience to breathe in and out so they could center themselves. While there were some murmurs during the first and second round of breathing, Latour was able to make the audience completely silent the third time she took a deep breath with them.

To close out her set, Latour performed her most streamed song to date, “One More Weekend.” The crowd continued to jump and dance to her music under the strobing lights. After she thanked the audience and ran off stage, Latour talked to students who came up to her and took selfies with some of them.

SU sophomore and opening act BenSpence sampled Drake and Daft Punk during his set.
Anya Wijeweera | Photo Editor

Verdes took the stage third and early in his set, he performed “i deserve 2 b alone.” The guitarist, who Verdes introduced as Dylan, ended the song with a guitar solo.

When the pop singer sang “Stuck in the Middle,” which is most known from TikTok, he delivered an encore of it. Verdes’ band jumped right into the second rendition and picked up the tempo, performing it even faster as if it was a punk song.

Along with his high-paced songs, Verdes also took time to slow things down with his songs “Solamente” and “rEaL WOrLD.” Both garnered participation from the audience as they put their flashlights and hands in the air and swayed them side to side.

To close the show out, Verdes played his hit song “A-O-K,” which immediately got approval from the audience in the form of screams. And before taking his leave from the stage, Verdes thanked the audience for coming while the song was in the midst of another guitar solo.

“Out of anywhere in the world you’re with me right now, and I appreciate that,” Verdes said.

Published on October 23, 2021 at 9:35 am

Contact Siron: sthoma10@syr.edu | @sironthomas