It rained, but Mayfest was still lit.  The girls in their rubber high-top sneakers — totally brilliant idea, by the way — the sea of adorable rain slickers and the much-needed umbrellas were all proof that the Syracuse community came out, made it work and partied with a vengeance despite the weather.

Opening band PUBLIC sounded like a more rock ‘n roll version of indie-darling Walk The Moon, who they’ve opened for in the past. Their set consisted of loud upbeat poppy songs, and more funky arrangements that had the whole crowd dancing and grooving.

In an interview before the show, lead singer John Vaughn discussed the challenges of being the opening act.

“It’s kind of your duty to open the show and do it well,” Vaughn said. “So, I just kind of feel like we’re going to go up there and we’re going to be loud, and try to be entertaining, and make people want to come over from the beer and the bouncy castle and watch us.”

And they did just that, playing their hit tune “Heartbeating,” as well as covering Britney Spear’s “Toxic.”

Next up to bat were electronic duo Louis The Child. While missing Robby Hauldren, Freddy Kennett lead the show with a dreamy mix of electronic jams smoothed over with melodic singing and sick beats. Crowd favorites included the remix Kennett did of Miike Snow’s “Ghengis Kahn,” their song “It’s Strange,” featuring K. Flay and their remix of Oh Wonder’s “Body Gold.”

Kennett loved throwing a new song into the mix.

“I threw in like a random song, and everyone like loved it. It’s called ‘123,’ everyone was like, ‘Woo!’” Kennett said. “That was my favorite part.”

Closing the show was rapper Vince Staples. While Louis the Child had the whole crowd dancing, Staples ended the show by having everyone jump. Unlike other artists, Staples bantered with crowd, joking about how many oranges Syracuse students ate and offering tips on how to survive in prison. He wasn’t too fond of the cold, though.

“It is very cold outside, based off my standards,” Staples said.

He also played his hits including “Blue Suede,” and  “Lift Me Up,” as students jumped and waved their arms to the beat. He closed the show with a single piece of advice.

“Stay in school. Don’t do drugs. Make your mother proud and love you,” Staples said.

Published on April 29, 2016 at 7:24 pm