With only two weeks of classes left before it's time to start cracking down on the books, students looking for something to do this weekend will want to check out Party in the Park, hosted by WSUM.
\[Party in the Park] is one of Madison's biggest community-based, free music events,"" Keith Kelley, an organizer of Party in the Park says.
Started in 1999 by Brad Larson, Party in the Park is in its fifth year and WSUM promises to put on a memorable show with a wide variety of acts. Featured bands will play music covering an array of genres such as indie, metal, punk, folk, hip hop, jazz and reggae. Along with the bands, deejays from both WSUM and Madison will play between each set, with the headlining Deejay Switch Focus, hailing from New York.
""Party in the Park gives us a chance to showcase more non-commercial artists live. It exposes the community to new types of music and lets them see interesting groups that they can listen to and decide if they like and want to hear more,"" said Ryan Meehan, co-director of Party in the Park.
While Party in the Park originated to promote local Madison bands, the organizers plan to implement a system of alternating local and national acts annually.
""Party in the Park was started initially to help the local Madison music scene, so when people complain about the lack of local bands, we are staying true to Madison, we don't want people to feel like we are losing that,"" WSUM Station Manager, Jay Gorgon explained.
Some of the better known national bands playing are ulu, Dan Bern, Psychedelic Breakfast and Wookiefoot. Wookiefoot can be described as multi-media show incorporating into its Sublime-sounding rhythm, jugglers, acrobatics and flame-throwers. For those who want to support the local scene, Madison bands like Bongzilla and Big Fat Ass will take the east stage.
Music isn't the only thing for patrons to do at Party in the Park. Recently appointed Mayor Dave Cieslewicz and District 8 Ald. Austin King are scheduled to speak and a community tent will feature environmental and student organizations. There will also be a pie-eating contest, a vinyl sale by WSUM and a skateboard demonstration.
""Party in the Park has grown progressively every year with this year as the biggest and best event yet. We're upping the ante. We're going to have more side attractions to make it more of a festival,"" said Matt Kaftor, senior and an organizer of Party in the Park.
Though WSUM has been on the air for a year, they have always hosted the Party in the Park. This year, however, it has a secondary agenda.
""I hope for two things: One, that everyone have a good time and enjoy themselves and two, to get people interested in WSUM. We want to really make people aware that Madison has a student station. We hope to get more of a presence on campus,"" Gorgon says.
For band listing and times visit,
