Weber Stock 2023 @ Weber State University Gig | Recap
By DJ Cam Reeve W/Reeverb Entertainment
Here at Reeverb Entertainment we have now been working regularly with Weber State University for over 5 years, starting back in 2017. We are involved in a number of events for the school including well-known celebrations like “Freshman Orientation Late Night”, lighting of the W, homecoming DJ dances, and various other dances featuring live DJs. For the last two years, we have also been a part of “WeberStock,” a live music event followed by the highly anticipated “Last Night at Weber.”
This year, WeberStock was held on Friday, April 14, 2023 at the Weber State University Shepherd Union Building in Ogden from 9:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. The featured bands were made up of current students, alumni, and an assortment of local groups. The genres ranged from indie to rock and even a piano soloist!
The fun thing about Weber Stock? Not only is there live entertainment, but the event organizers line the ballroom with vendors and student organizations for students to interact with. If our memory serves us well, last year there were at least 50+. This year, they had well over 100 student organizations and vendors along with a fantastic turnout by the students themselves.
For my crew, the physical work started well before the event. This isn’t unusual for an event of this size. When it comes to big crowds and bands, the amount of equipment and production hours that are required behind the scenes often surprises people. Our day started early Thursday morning with an inventory of the gear needed and loading the truck.
To give you a little insight into the Gear we provided, we’ve included a list below:
Sound Reinforcement:
4 x dual 18’’ subs
10 x 10’’ line array speakers
5 monitors with amps and cables
1 front of house mixing council with snake
1 monitor mixing console with router and iPad
1 split snake
1 box of assorted drum mics
1 box of assorted vocal mics
1 box of DI boxes & instrument cables
2 boxes of microphone stands & clips
50+ XLR sound cables
Assortment of power distro and extension cords
Lighting Production:
16 glow tubes with wireless transmitter
12 glow tube stands
20 RGBAW+ UV wireless uplights with transmitter
16 RGBA front stage wash pars
2 T-Bar light stands
1 lighting console
Assortment of DMX cables, clamps and power cables
For this event, we needed a crew of 6 people for the load in and 5 for the load out. Our team arrived on site at 4:00 p.m. to start unloading equipment from the loading dock up to the 3rd floor at the union building. Even with the 6 person team, it took us almost four and a half hours to load in, get everything looking nice, and sound check for the following early morning. This highlights the immense amount of work required to bring an event of this scale to reality. While attendees only see the final result for a few hours during the event, the behind-the-scenes process is often much more extensive.
Our team was on site at 8:00 a.m. for a 9:00 a.m. doors open - 9:30 was go time! Adams Coles, who started the show, came out strong with some piano and vocals. He was followed by Shelly Slaughter, a 70s style classic rock band influenced by Queen, Van Halen, and more. The lineup consisted of a lead singer, lead guitar, keyboards, bass, and drums. Front of house kept the audio mix clear and loud while the monitor mix ensured the band could hear themselves on stage.
After Shelly Slaughter the band ‘If and When’ took over the stage. They were followed by ‘Swerved by Blondes.’ This groups was both unique and fun, and they had competed in Weber’s Battle of the Bands in order to play in this slot. It was obvious they had won the competition! They absolutely killed it on stage, bringing the punk rock energy to WeberStock. After they rounded out the lineup, WeberStock officially ended at 2:00 p.m.
After WeberStock came to an end, the team cleaned up and transitioned the room for “Last Night at Weber.” This event is an extension of Weber Stock in our eyes because, as a company, we end up using the same production rig. However, during Last Night at Weber the ballroom is cut down in half and the lighting rig is altered slightly, turning the ballroom into a concert venue.
Weber’s team spent the late afternoon doing the room change and, at about 4:00 p.m., the bands for the late night event arrived to load in. This year the openers were Cardinal Bloom and the main act was local legends Dad Bod. Our team did a sound check for Cardinal Blooms first followed by a sound check for Dad Bod. Once the sound check was complete with both bands, my team was able to snag a quick hour-long break to grab food before doors opened at 7:00 p.m.
Now it was show time! Cardinal Bloom is a band out of Salt Lake City, Utah that plays indie/alternative music influenced by bands such as Cage the Elephant, The Black Keys, Grouplove, the Arctic Monkeys, and many more. It was a fun indie sound that kept the crowd really engaged and vibed really with Weber's audience. This was our team’s favorite group of the night, by far.
Dad Bod, formed in 2018 by three brothers Michael, Marcus, and Matthew Marinos, gained popularity with their early releases. They later added Russ Allphin, Jonny Seegmiller, and Michael Morgan to the group. They recently released their second album in the fall of 2021, which received critical acclaim for its range of emotions and blend of pop and folk with a modern twist. They have performed with multiple notable artists and continue to appeal to indie music listeners. The late night event ended at 9:50 p.m. and, once teardown was completed, our team took off to the shop around midnight.
I personally love working with Weber’s team to make these events happen and look forward to many more events like this. If you are looking to collaborate on something similar to a festival, with bands all day or a concert, don’t hesitate to reach out to me at Info@reeverbent.net or through my website contact form.
