Alumni band Ra Ra Riot plans return to Syracuse
Ra Ra Riot will return to Syracuse University perform its classical influenced indie-rock music at the Westcott Theater on March 28.
The concert, which includes three other bands, is being produced by Marshall Street Records in conjunction with Syracuse University Recordings, two record companies operated by SU.
The six-piece band was formed at SU in 2006. It is composed of five SU alumni, and drummer Gabriel Duquette, who replaced SU alumnus John Pike after he died in June 2007.
Kelly Bertog, a senior marketing and entrepreneurship major, is the general manager of Marshall Street Records, the student-run record label coordinating the event.
Bertog said he had a conversation with Ra Ra Riot’s manager and discovered the band was hoping to make it back to Syracuse sometime in the spring, so he jumped at the chance.
‘We thought it’d be a good idea to team up and bring them in, and bring some attention to their new release,’ he said.
Ra Ra Riot’s debut album, ‘The Rhumb Line,’ was released Aug. 19, 2008, in the United States and Canada.
Since the band was founded three years ago, Ra Ra Riot has gained popularity, appearing on late night shows like Conan O’Brien and David Letterman last year. Bertog said two weeks after appearing at the Westcott, the band will go on tour with Death Cab for Cutie.
The three other bands to play at the concert will be Sophistafunk, a New Zealand band called Cut Off Your Hand and one named Passion Pit, which Bertog said is becoming popular.
‘They’re selling out decent sized venues in NYC,’ Bertog said. ‘They’re like a younger Ra Ra Riot right on the cusp of getting a big break, so hopefully we’ll catch them right as that happens.’
Tickets for the concert are $12 and available on thewestcotttheater.com and in person at Funk ‘n’ Waffles, Soundgarden and Sabastinos grocery and convenient mart.
-Asst. News Editor Steve Doane contributed reporting to this story.
Published on February 10, 2009 at 12:00 pm
