The long-awaited arrival of spring weather came to Brown on Friday, just in time for the beginning of Spring Weekend, the annual fete of food, frivolity and music.
On Friday afternoon, Spagfest transformed Wriston Quadrangle into a cafeteria scene from "Animal House," as the annual food fight left the quad and many Brunonians splattered with spaghetti sauce in the best tradition of John Belushi. Meanwhile, in Sayles Hall, the Slavic Festival - three hours of traditional Slavic cuisine and music - attracted those who preferred to keep their food on their plates.
By 7:30 p.m., students headed to Meehan Auditorium for performances by bands Soulive and The Roots.
The raucous crowd enjoyed the "funk-reggae-afro-soul" sound of Soulive. The quirky lyrics and rap music of The Roots were well-received, and the long drum solo of the Roots' drummer, ?uestlove, left the crowd thunderstruck.
At the sold-out Flaming Lips concert on Saturday, the Main Green reverberated with enthusiastic fans. Following openers Stardeath and White Dwarfs, Misson of Burma and Yo La Tengo, the Lips' lead singer Wayne Coyne entered in a large, clear plastic ball reminiscent of a hamster wheel. After crowd surfing, Coyne landed in the middle of the crowd, incorporating the entire green - not just those lucky enough to be in the front row - into the experience, said concert attendee Taylor Friedman '07.
"The Flaming Lips shows are known to be spectacles," said Jillian Baron '07. Saturday's concert was no exception. The stage was filled with dancers costumed as pink robots -a reference to their 2002 album, "Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots."
But as big blue balloons floated through the air and pink robots danced on the stage, Coyne's words to the audience turned political. The lead singer criticized President Bush, seeking to rouse the crowd in response, but encountered little enthusiasm.
After two years of rainy Spring Weekends, beautiful weather made this year's event a success. With outdoor barbecues, street parties and incredible musical performances - concluded Sunday with the iconic stylings of Dave Binder - the Brown campus rang in the beginning of springtime in grand fashion.
