By CONOR SHEA
Executive Editor
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Attendees of this year’s Rocktoberfest, held in Jack’s Place, were treated to quite a show- with performances being interrupted by two fire alarms throughout the evening.
The small-scale music festival was held indoors this year in the Hearst Center, and went from 1:15 to 8:30 on Saturday Oct. 25. Hosted and planned by the Music & Entertainment Industry Student Association (MEISA), the event was free but served the dual purpose of a fundraiser via a bake sale and various other paid activities.
A fog machine had been used throughout the beginning of the event in small amounts to provide a “Halloween atmosphere” according to those involved in the planning process.
After approximately two hours of the performances the halls of the Hearst Center had filled with the artificial smoke, reaching down to the TV studio and along the main lounge. At approximately 3:00 p.m. the fire alarm went off, and after a great deal of applause from the attendees, everyone exited the building.
Saint Rose security arrived shortly after to further usher out stragglers, followed by the Albany Fire Department. Firefighters entered the building, checking to ensure that the fog machine was the cause of the alarm, and that it was safe to re-enter the building. After approximately 20 minutes Saint Rose security let students back into The Hearst Center while the Albany Fire Department left.
From there the bands began to set back up and perform again. Aiden Wallace, a University at Albany junior who briefly stopped by to watch the event said the alarm didn’t kill the show’s energy, but rather enhanced it.
“It came out of nowhere, but it kind of added to the excitement,” said Wallace.
“The bands jumped right back into the swing of things; I just wish I could have stayed for longer.”
That would not be the end of the excitement however, as just a few hours later at 8:00 p.m. the alarm would go off a second time. The headlining band for the event, the NGHBRS were performing as this second alarm went off, and continued to play for a few minutes before Saint Rose security requested that they exit the building with the rest of the crowd. Albany Fire did not arrive on scene after the second alarm.
Ian Kenny, the lead singer for NGHBRS, said that the interruption was a “highlight” of the show.
“[It] made things interesting. It was hilarious that the campus security guy thought I was serious when I told him we use pyrotechnics,” said Kenny.
Despite the hectic mid-show pause, Kenny said the band thoroughly enjoyed the students’ energy.
“The crowd was awesome and super friendly, and the show was a fun time. The staff was accommodating and really made things easy for us.”
According to Steven Stella, the Director of Safety and Security for Saint Rose “false alarms” such as these do not result in fees or charges to the College.
After the second alarm the fog machine was unplugged and removed by Saint Rose security to prevent any further false alarms.
Junior Cody Avdek, a member of the stage crew for the event, said that the fog machine wasn’t something the group had anticipated as being a problem.
“It was within the MEISA budget, and they cleared it with Sister Nelson earlier, but I guess they probably just didn’t expect it to set off the alarm,” said Avdek.
“It’s kind of funny, just because they were super proud of getting the smoke machine and we were playing with it all last night. Now they’ve set up this huge thing, and just in the middle of it it’s like ‘oh we goofed.’”
Junior Alan Cabrera, another member of MEISA and a member of the stage crew for Rocktoberfest said that the event took considerable organization and work on their end.
The crew spent most of that Friday setting up Jacks place with all of the decorations, and equipment for the bands.
“It got more intense as the weeks went on, but we’ve been planning it pretty much since the beginning of the year,” said Cabrera.
The event drew in an estimated 30 individuals at its peak, which according to Cabrera was an increase from last year due mostly to the indoor setting.
“Previously we’ve always done it on the quad. It’s ironic because it’s actually a nice day, but it’s always been the worst, and freezing,” said Cabrera.
“Even if there aren’t as many people, it feels like there is,” he continued.
“One thing that definitely helped is that the bake sale was actually a bake sale this year, not just cupcakes from bought from the store,” said Cabrera.
On the potential for the event to raise funds Cabrera said it looked like they were on track for dubbing the event a success.
Kenny of the NGHBRS echoed these comments, and said they would “love to play [at Saint Rose] again.”
“Seriously, just tell us when you’re booking a show.”
