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At last year’s Walnutpalooza, the student-run music festival’s headliners were predominantly male artists. Many female indie groups who focus on live performances were overlooked, said performer Grace Ferguson, one half of the musical duo Luna and The Carpets. At this year’s festival, many female artists like Ferguson took the stage.

“We’re seeing a resurgence, like Froggies, Luna and The Carpets, Nancy Dunkle, XO, the list goes on and on and on and on,” said the other half of Luna and The Carpets, Anjali Engstrom. “Even seeing the difference in the lineup this year versus last year demonstrates that change in the house show scene.”

Phi Kappa Theta Fraternity and Redgate, a live music venue, co-hosted its second-ever Walnutpalooza on Friday. The event included Syracuse University student bands and musicians along with various clothing and food vendors. All proceeds were donated to the Children’s Miracle Network, which supports children’s hospitals and families of children with medical issues.

Food trucks like Bob Barkers, which serves hot dogs and burgers, and Callé Tropical, which serves empanadas, parked outside of Phi Kappa Theta to serve eventgoers throughout the afternoon. Other vendors included different vintage stores, like The Vintage Yard, who returned to the event. It usually sells a variety of thrifted clothing and SU merch in front of a house on Madison Street.

“We did so well. The student body showed up so much last year that we were like, ‘We’ll definitely come back,’” Andrew Rainbow, who runs the clothing shop, said.

Last year, a member of Phi Kappa Theta reached out to Rainbow because he had seen Rainbow’s lawn filled with clothing and thought it would be a great addition to Walnutpalooza. Rainbow spent all day alongside racks of clothing with other vintage vendors.

Student group Crossroads Collective tabled at the event to raise awareness about food insecurity. The organization aims to educate students about the need to increase supermarkets in the Southside neighborhood, which is classified as a food desert because of a lack of accessible grocery stores. At Friday’s event, it offered a donut to each person who signed their petition for the addition of a grocery store.

“It was really simple, but that educates them about the issue and allows them to take subtle action without doing anything,” Engstrom said.

Crossroads Collective members like Engstrom enjoyed Nancy Dunkle’s performance as they spoke with attendees. Dunkle performed songs from The Strokes as well as her own originals.

Reed Granger | Contributing Photographer

Sophomores Ella Delucia, Julia Snoonian, Megan Halsey, Polly Hoffman and Talya Clopton (left to right) dance to music while The Gritty Jawns prepare for their set at Walnutpalooza.

While Dunkle performed, she highlighted one of her band members, Ben Webster, calling Walnutpalooza his “Senior Night.” Webster is graduating in May and this was his last time performing with Dunkle and the band. He performed in last year’s Walnutpalooza and was happy to come back since he said the Phi Kappa Theta and Redgate organized the festival well.

“It’s bittersweet. I’m excited for my life to come. I’m gonna miss Nancy,” Webster said. “I’m gonna miss that whole band so much, and this is one of the strongest experiences I’ve had here.”

After Engstrom and Ferguson helped table at Crossroads Collective, they took the stage following Dunkle’s performance. The pair hadn’t performed together since Mudpit’s Valentine’s Day show.

Luna and The Carpets prepared two new covers they had never performed before — “Silver Springs” by Fleetwood Mac and “Red Wine Supernova” by Chappell Roan — along with some of their original songs. The crowd sang along and jumped with The Carpets as the Roan bop completed their set.

“We’ve been doing a lot of stuff, like, more acoustically in the past two months, and also we’re just so busy but it’s so nice to just have a nice venue, like a good sound system, which is fun,” Ferguson said.

For Rainbow, Walnutpalooza offers something for vendors to enjoy too, distinguishing it from other events he usually tables at. Ferguson and Rainbow agree that Walnutpalooza was well-run and professional.

“The live music is amazing,” Rainbow said. “I do events all the time, and it’s just a lot of sitting around chatting. It’s nice to have live music.”

Disclaimer: Anish Vasudevan is the editor-in-chief for The Daily Orange and a member of FEƎM. Chris Ern is the Advertising Manager for The Daily Orange and a member of Phi Kappa Theta. They did not influence the editorial content of this story.

Published on April 21, 2024 at 9:58 pm

Contact Rosina: rlboehm@syr.edu