Walking through the booths at Juice Jam, Ian Solomon is bombarded by all the groups recruiting new members. He is drowning in flyers and magazines handed out from every direction.

Pride Union and Planned Parenthood provide information on sexually transmitted infections and birth control. Verbal Seduction and Jerk distribute copies of last semester’s issues. Rabbi Yaakov Rapoport blows his Shofar across the grass. VPA Printmakers draw in a crowd, and sororities hand out T-shirts.

The festivities are almost overwhelming for him.

‘It looks like there’s a lot of stuff to do other than listen to music,’ said Solomon, a senior television, radio and film major. ‘But, weather permitting; it should be an awesome day.’

Unlike last year’s Juice Jam festival, there was no skydiving simulator or rock wall for students. Instead, band paraphernalia, caricature drawings and spray-painted hats took up the space once occupied by those attractions.

Last year’s show achieved a then-record high turnout, but this year’s crowd for Bloc Party, Talib Kweli and Ra Ra Riot managed to outshine that performance, bringing in more than 4,000 people.

Although attendance increased, the cutbacks on activities stood out at this year’s event.

‘We’re trying to accommodate as many people as possible,’ said Brian Greene, the director of production at University Union.

‘Last year, the bands complained that the engine for the sky-tank was making too much noise,’ Greene said. ‘It was interfering with the sound, and the music is supposed to be the main attraction.’

Last year’s fourth annual Juice Jam brought in Third Eye Blind, White Rabbits and Max Bemis of Say Anything.

Greene said UU wanted to make the concert more grass-roots style, incorporating more summer-time activities like volleyball and Frisbee.

‘People were waiting in line for an hour, hour and a half last year,’ Greene said. ‘It ate up the budget. People were missing the music; it just wasn’t worth it.’

For new student organizations and Jam veterans, the diverted attention meant more recruits for their associations.

‘We’ve seen a lot of interest from first year students,’ said Steve Klimek, a junior architecture major who worked at the American Institute of Architecture booth.

Klimek said he was surprised by how many people were interested in his organization.

New groups like Sexually-Conscious Youthful, Mature, Black and Latino Students known by its acronym ‘Sex Symbal,’ used the opportunity to get the word out about the new organization.

‘Our goal is to empower students of color to make healthy sexual decisions,’ said Francis Carrero, a junior communications and rhetorical studies major involved in Sex Symbal. ‘We’ve been doing pretty well so far today with recruiting new people. I think we will get a lot of new members.’

Students took advantage of the breaks between band sets, as signing up for multiple list-servs was more convenient then waiting 30 minutes in the hat line.

Alexandra Greiner, a freshman fashion design major, came for the music, but quickly became interested in the sororities represented.

‘I know that I’m going to rush,’ Greiner said. ‘But today gave me a better idea of what sororities I’m interested in.’

Other students like freshman communications and rhetorical studies major Courtney Yeh, enjoyed the ‘fair-like’ experience of Juice Jam.

‘I’m from Hong Kong, and we never have these kinds of things,’ Yeh said. ‘I really like being able to just walk around with the music in the background, get souvenirs and learn about the clubs.’

Juice Jam wasn’t just for freshmen, though. Neil Hueber, a fifth year architecture student, stood next to the VPA printmaking stand, watching other students enjoy the art work in front of them.

‘It’s always good to see all the groups out for the freshmen,’ Hueber said. ‘This day is for everyone, though. You can be a senior and just learn about groups on campus, and there’s always a new group to see.’

rdjone03@syr.edu

Published on September 7, 2008 at 12:00 pm