Magical night at SLP with Magic Man
Photo Courtesy of Show Imaging Inc.
by Tayler Reviere Verninas | Arts & Culture Editor
Friday Sept. 4 was not the usual come and go commute to the Student Life Pavilion. Some students may say the night was pretty magical, having the opportunity to rock out to a free concert performance by Magic Man on the amphitheater steps of the SLP.
Cassie Demara, Torero Program Board concert coordinator and USD senior, explains how the selection was made to feature such a talented band.
“There were a couple of options I was choosing between,” Demara said. “We usually host a DJ for the first week back but I wanted to do something different this year. Magic Man set a good vibe for the beginning of the year; their music is so upbeat and a great match for the USD crowd.”
Throughout the week before the concert, Demara was anxious about getting the word out to the community in such a short amount of time.
“We were hoping for 200 students to show up, but the crowd number exceeded our expectations,” Demara said. “My favorite part was seeing the band interact with the crowd and vice versa. Even if everyone did not know all the lyrics they still danced around and had a great time!”
The lead singer of Magic Man, Alex Caplow, reflects on the enthusiastic Torero crowd minutes after his musical performance at USD.
“Tonight was unbelievably the best night we have ever had in San Diego,” Caplow said. “We had some technical difficulties but the crowd kept the energy up and it was all love; it was great.”
Caplow was very excited that so many Toreros were at the concert. There were around 300 members of the student body in attendance.
“I did not know much about USD but I definitely want to come back,” Caplow said. “My favorite part of the night was performing a cover of The Middle by Jimmy Eat World. It was one of those covers that everyone can jump around to.”
Not only was there an excellent performance from Magic Man, but a solo act from senior Eliza Rose Vera, followed by a performance from Gi-riff-raffe. USD seniors Miles Mitchell, Travis Williams, Julian Carmichael and Andrew Irwin, make up the band and covered hit songs such as “Electric Feel” and “Billie Jean”.
Senior Eliza Rose Vera, who opened up for Gi-riff-raffe, was excited to perform her original song, God Only Knows.
“I was amazed at how many people showed up,” Vera said. “I was so happy to see everyone was getting involved especially during the first week of school.”
Sophomore Julia Torgerson attended Friday night’s festivities and thoroughly enjoyed her evening with close friends.
“Going crazy and dancing with my friends that I haven’t seen all summer was a highlight,” Torgerson said. “Even though I did not know the band I really liked the vibe that the lead singer set for the crowd. No one even realized there were technical difficulties because the band played it off in a fun and quirky way!”
While Magic Man left a remarkable impression on Toreros’ Friday night, the community also left the band feeling enthusiastic about what’s to come. Caplow explains his excitement for the band and their upcoming successes.
“We are going to be releasing an album hopefully early next year,” Caplow said. “Keep an eye out and follow us on social media because we will be back in San Diego real soon!”
With such excitement already occurring at the beginning of the semester, Toreros can look forward to even more thrilling performances.