Isa Cruz

Noisy New York rock group Been Stellar made its campus debut last Friday, playing music from its short but impressive catalog for a packed crowd in the amphitheater outside of Studzinski Recital Hall and David Saul Smith Union.

The concert, organized by WBOR, marked the first live performance for students on campus since the station welcomed Boston rock band Juice to campus last spring and was the first time the amphitheater has been used for live music on campus since student concerts in the fall of 2021.

Been Stellar played most of its musical output for the Bowdoin crowd, with students bobbing their heads to the band’s guitar-forward sound, feedback blaring over the perfervid vocals.

The band’s debut album, “Scream From New York, NY,” was released in June, and the title encapsulates the defining characteristic of the band’s ethos: angsty, punk-adjacent music created from and for their collective home of New York City.

Been Stellar played at the bottom of the amphitheater, their backs to Studzinski Hall, facing a sizable student crowd who circled the performers on progressively higher steps while looking down and taking in the show.

Been Stellar vocalist and original member Sam Slocum commented on the distinct feeling of the outdoor concert.

“The only [other] times we’ve really played outside has been at festivals, so it was really cool. It was interesting playing below the audience. That was a very new experience. Overall, it was really special,” Slocum said.

Above the amphitheater, the trees were lined with string lights and the band played in front of a set that WBOR management designed, featuring a rug and lamp from the Dudley Coe studio, tinsel to mirror the backdrop of the band’s 2022 concert at The Windmill in Brixton, U.K. and blue lighting to enhance the color’s recurring theme within Been Stellar’s recent album.

“I love how they decorated,” Slocum said. “They had this little lamp that was really ‘Stop Making Sense,’ kind of Talking Heads.”

Abhi Peddada ’27, a member of WBOR management, spoke about how the venue lent itself to support different listening experiences for all types of students.

“I think it created a nice environment for people who just want to sit and listen and enjoy in the back, they’re more than welcome to do so. And then people who want to be up close and personal and enjoy the show in a more intimate way, they get a chance to do that. It gives people a space to enjoy the concert how they feel is best for them, which is pretty nice,” Peddada said.

Slocum and the rest of Been Stellar, who had never before visited Maine, enjoyed their time at Bowdoin.

“The school was really cool because all of us went to school in the city, and so we didn’t have a very classic collegiate experience. So it was cool to be at a proper college and kind of see how that feels,” Slocum said.

Slocum also lamented not being able to try a lobster roll restaurant he had been looking forward to due to the brevity of the trip.

After the success of the show, WBOR is looking ahead to future campus concerts, and the group is looking to widen its horizons by bringing bands across different genres and lesser known acts.

“We’re trying to create a larger diversity of the types of concerts that we put on. [Bringing in smaller bands] kind of brings something special to [the concerts], because people come into it with no preconceptions about the band and you just get to have a raw live music experience, which I think is just as special as going to go see your favorite person perform,” Peddada said.

As the winter months approach and the temperatures start to drop, events will start to move indoors. But until then, students and student groups like WBOR are going to keep taking advantage of the fall weather.

“There’s just something special about getting to do outdoor shows. And this one was just great. We’re really happy with the way it turned out,” Peddada said.