As the quarter winds down to a close and students everywhere are anxious and worried about finals, ASPB held its last concert of 2019. Bonfire is a beloved pep rally tradition, with the latest rendition finally returning the namesake of the event to its fullest glory. While the amenities and side attractions are passable distractions for those interested, the music gave the event the much needed hype and excitement. Thankfully this year, Bonfire was able to get people’s attention with its lit concert and fire.
Frontrunning the event was SoCal local, Schade. Keeping it fresh with clean mixes and appeasing the crowd, he was able to maintain the energy of the audience for the right amount of time. He gave the crowd some early energy to maintain good vibes to ride into the pep rally for our basketball teams. While brief, the rally intermission raised the spirits of students and the respective teams that led the men’s team to win 73 to 49 this past weekend! This all led to the burning of the Denver Pioneer’s effigy.
Of course the main draw of the event was clearly the return of the massive fire. Students missed out last year due to the wildfires across Southern California. This year, ASPB pulled out all the stops with their blazing column of flames. The tower was ablaze in mere seconds and was warming students everywhere. The best part of the event was most certainly the amazing fireworks display. As the blaze raged on, fireworks fired off one after the other to make for an extravagant spectacle of color. Students gawked at the raw amount of firework rockets blasting off as it appeared endless.
With vibrations in our chests, the music changed pace to headliner Medasin’s smooth musical prowess. Opening with the empowering Halo theme, attendees were in for a great show. As the event’s closer, he was able to utilize his chill and mellow side to rival the fierce EDM that had come before him. Despite this, Medasin attracted the crowd’s full attention with some great remixes and hype-inducing DJ skills.
Any great ASPB event always has food on their radar and this was no exception. Returning vendor, In-N-Out Burger, was packed by the time the event had fully begun. The line far surpassed last year’s record and continuously grew longer as the event moved on. Unfortunately, not every student was able to get a free hamburger like last year. Almost two hours had gone by and the In-N-Out truck was empty, turning away many eager students. ‘Despite not being able to serve everyone, the event was host to more food vendors than ever. New vendor, Better Booch, provided a wide variety of kombucha drinks for students to indulge in. While it was not my favorite drink, it was a nice change of pace from all the various sugary treats and greasy food. Shaking it up with El Ojo De Agua Taqueria, students were treated to great tacos and delicious Horchata drinks. Even Mom’s Mini Donuts, another classic vendor, attracted quite a few hungry students with their tasty buckets of sugar. Overall, the variety of food for a smaller concert was a welcomed addition to keep students fed and enjoying the event.
While the attractions are never really anything to write home about, they provide a fun, calming distraction from the hype and commotion of the concert. The Rock-O-Plane had students laughing and screaming the whole night. This souped-up ferris wheel in particular always had people lined up throughout the night. ASPB also provided a slide as a more tame attraction for students who were scared of heights. The fan favorite photo booths returned as well giving students a great way to remember the night. While there was nothing absolutely necessary to visit, the side additions were great distractions for students wanting a change of pace.
While not as crowded or over the top as Block Party, Bonfire provided a fun Friday event to wind down the quarter. Because it is a smaller event, I can make amends with little attractions and only two food options. The music was a great balance of high energy EDM and relaxing vibes. Of course the fire’s reappearance was enough to get students to go to the event, and it was well worth the wait. ASPB did well to deliver a fun distraction for students heading into finals. It was definitely one of the better Bonfires in recent memory and one I was glad to be there for.
