After surviving land mines and a 12-hour flight, Weekend Excursion returns from performing for American military personnel around the world to play at the Great Hall tonight at 10 p.m.
The concert, hosted by Campus Council, marks the first stateside show for the local band in over two months.
"I think that their trip [was] a neat opportunity and I hope they talk about it during their set," said Campus Council President Anthony Vitarelli.
Weekend Excursion played at exotic locales such as Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bahrain, Hawaii, Korea and Japan. Averaging five shows a week for the U.S. troops, the band relished the opportunity to help raise morale.
"This experience changed me," said lead singer Sam Fisher. "We went over with the idea that we would give them a piece of home and just to shake their hands and to thank them for what they did for us. It was amazing."
The band members, who returned to the States Monday, said they are still "recuperating" from their life-altering tour of U.S. military bases around the world.
"Our favorite show was in Kandahar, Afghanistan," Fisher said. "We were in front of about 500 troops on the Fourth of July. I've never seen so much energy in my life.... It was surreal."
The tour, however, was also a humbling experience.
"For one show we went to Bagram, Afghanistan, which is the most land-mined city in the world. That day, in 140-degree weather, we went off the military base to meet a minesweeper," Fisher said. "The people on the base didn't know who this man was. This guy's job is infinitely more important and he didn't sign autographs--hell, he didn't even get a hot meal."
After tonight's show, Weekend Excursion will slow its touring schedule to focus on writing new tracks for an upcoming album. For their North Carolina fans, however, they play at Greenville in two weeks and later at Cat's Cradle, Oct. 24.
"Weekend Excursion is a band that we think has some wide appeal and is one that Duke students know relatively well," Vitarelli said. Sophomore Bill Truelove recalled Weekend Excursion's performance at Duke last year and is considering attending their show tonight. "I remember having fun [at their concert last year]," Truelove said.
"It was a good show and a good time."
Campus Council has also booked the band Urban Sophisticates to join Weekend Excursion for tonight's concert, which, in a change of policy for sponsor Residential Life and Housing Services, will serve beer and wine on points.
"We want the Duke kids to come out in full force. Duke students like to pretend they're smart, but they party hard. [They] can't fool us," Fisher said. "And it's a Friday night--no excuses. It will be great."
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