The night of March 21 marked WMCN’s sixth annual Big Gig concert entitled “The Six-iest Big Gig yet.” Taking place in the basement of the DeWitt Wallace Library, with balloons littered across the floor and various posters strewn on bookshelves, the event featured performances by two student bands: She’s In Shambles and Anna Devine’s band — jokingly known as The Devine Fellas — as well as Twin Cities-based band The Shackletons. A special guest was also brought out for an interview during an intermission.
The Big Gig is a musical performance event put on by Macalester’s radio station, WMCN 91.7 fm. Ozzy Osborne ’24, one of the station’s managers, was the main organizer of the event. They hope that the event will continue to get better each year.
“The main goal is that it’s the most accessible way to get music on campus,” Osborne said. “[The] idea is to build a community within the campus of music and arts and media that is free and accessible.”
Station manager, C.C. Servon ’25 and her “loyal henchmen” (Emily Hueser ’26 and Abby McCarroll ’26) said the atmosphere was, “chic, classy.”
She’s In Shambles is a newer band on campus, having just been formed last semester. It features Ariel McGuire ’26, whose stage name is “Ariel Corinne,” on vocals, Claire Kelly ’26 as pianist, Violet McCann ’26 on bass, Matthew Brodsy ’26 on the guitar and Owen Killoran ’27 on drums. McGuire describes their style as leaning towards rock but variable.
During their performance, they played “Sunday Bloody Sunday” by U2, “Zombie” by the Cranberries, “The Chain” by Fleetwood Mac, “Life During Wartime” by Talking Heads and ended with an original song, “Arachnid.”
On what she was most looking forward to that night, McGuire said, “Getting to scream. I like to scream. It’s fun because I get to be loud. Rock is very loud and I like that.”
“I’m really excited to open for such talented groups,” Killoran said.
“It’s been really fun being able to meet a bunch of other bands,” McCann said.
The members of She’s in Shambles showed respect and admiration for the other performers. The crowd was enthusiastic during the performance and was particularly engaged whenever McGuire started dancing.
The Devine Fellas is composed of its obvious namesake, vocalist Anna Devine ’24, Zak Yudhishthu* ’24 on bass and backup vocals, Ben Lund ’24 on the drums, Blake Hotchkiss ’24 on guitar and Lucy Chinn ’24 on the violin.
“My influences are very indie, a little bit of folksy and a little bit of shoegaze,” Devine said.
It was her first show performing her originals. Their setlist consisted of originals “Heaven,” “Year’s End,” “Passenger,” “Warned You” and “Amy.” They also performed covers of “Masterpiece” by Big Thief and “Linger” by The Cranberries.
Devine’s vibrant energy was matched by the crowd. When asked about their plans after graduation, the band said they will see if they will continue to play together.
Between performances, WMCN brought a special guest “out of her cage” for an interview, the rabbit mascot, Gubbitz.
“Gubbitz is sort of like this creature we keep locked up in a cage. She’s our mascot,” Servon said.
“I don’t want to torture the animals, but if C.C. says so…” McCarroll playfully said.
Gubbitz was played by Elliot Pearson ’26, complemented by a pair of rabbit ears and makeup applied by Hueser. One highlight of the conversation included Gubbitz being forced to run on a hamster wheel to power the station.
The show ended with a performance by the Shackletons, whose music blends the genres of punk, indie, rock, blues and more. They are a rock band composed of the three Campbell brothers: Colin on guitar and vocals, Cameron on bass and Evan on drums. They are known for their highly energetic and entertaining live performances and did not disappoint the audience the night of Big Gig.
The night certainly lived up to its tagline, as the six-iest night of the year.
* Zak Yudhishthu is the managing editor of The Mac Weekly.
