Music: Sparse crowds turn out for Jump, Little Children in WEL quad

For some reason, people are more likely to see a band if it costs them money. While Cameron Indoor Stadium doesn't have enough seats to satisfy demand for $20 tickets to see dubiously talented Ludacris, the WEL quad (with room for thousands) saw 250-ish students arriving to hear North Carolina natives Jump, Little Children, who a few days earlier played to a capacity crowd at Cat's Cradle.

 As a result, the concert was nowhere near as fun as it should have been. At any given concert, the closer the crowd comes to capacity, the more energy and life there is in the performance. When there's more grass than people visible, the mob mentality just isn't there--any Jump fan who has seen them play a sold-out venue must have felt the slightest pang of guilt as the group tried unsuccessfully to work the pseudo-crowd. J,LC is a band best enjoyed in the company of good friends, dancing and jumping with the grass under your feet. Such gyrations, sadly, were not made until the final song, "My Guitar," and it is little wonder the band, without hesitation, committed the concert abortion of refusing "one more song."

 As far as the music goes, even if you have no idea who Jump is, you still know their songs--trust me on this one. Best described as the perverse five-headed love-child of Weezer, Radiohead and Cake, Jump, Little Children plays a lively and innovative breed of music and makes good use of instruments somewhat unique to rock groups--electric cellos, an upright bass, accordion, etc. If you go to "that music guy" down the hall and borrow Vertigo, you'll wish you had seen them live.

 Jump aside, do yourself and everybody else you know a favor. Next time a big act comes to Duke, listen to their work a week in advance. If you like what you hear, go to the concert, especially if it's free. We're going to see fewer and fewer live bands if it becomes known that Duke is a terrible place to play--and nobody wants that.