May 1^st. Day on the Hill. It's an event that has become legendary in eastern Kansas - and having featured such super-star acts as Matthew Sweet, Urge Overkill, Ween, The Flaming Lips, They Might Be Giants, Soul Asylum and Pearl Jam in the past, well, a great show just isn't much of a surprise. In fact, it's to be expected.

This year, the annual event would feature the favorite sons of Champagne, Illinois: Hum. And as expected, the Student Union Activities (SUA) gang had also assembled a great bill of supporting acts from the local scene to rock KU's West Campanile Hill.

But the Day on the Hill is also the crown jewel of the Farmer's Ball Battle of the Band - with the lucky winner kicking off the festivities. The Farmer's Ball participants are chosen by the campus radio station, KJHK, and must go through two rounds of grueling competition. Of the eight bands selected, only one will earn the chance to play the annual outdoor show on the Hill. This year's winner was a bit of a surprise - an unknown act by the name of Starsky.

Also on the bill were local favorites, Frogpond. Panel Donor, Son Venezuela, and one surprise 'special guest' would round out the line-up, bringing the total to six.

The first band to play was the Farmer's Ball winner, Starsky. This act featured a traditional four-piece setup: two guitars, bass and drums; and a style that fits into the punk-pop genre currently popular with much of the local music scene. However, during their Day on the Hill performance, it was pretty obvious that Starsky had not been around very long. Their set was pretty loose, and was missing the tight interaction and musicianship that comes with extensively playing together. In time, practice and frequent shows will probably take care of that. Yet the biggest concern these guys will face is in their song-writing. The songs performed were lacking the catchiness and hooks that typically are required in the pop-punk genre to make the music really grab the audience.

Also something that will hopefully come with time will be a stronger stage presence. To Starsky's credit, there were several sound problems that kept them from being at their peak performance, probably causing a lot of disruption to a band so unfamiliar with performing live. Though showmanship will improve in time, and we do hope to see good things from Starsky in the future, this was probably not the best place to break in a new band with untested material.

The second band of the day was the 'special guest' act - which really added to the quality of this years Day on the Hill. This group also came to Lawrence by way of Champagne, Illinois, and are good friends with the show's headliners, Hum. You may have guessed it, I'm referring to The Poster Children - who had played a headlining spot just the night before at the Bottleneck. Conveniently in town the night before, this 'special guest' spot had been added to the bill. After their early set on the Hill, they'd be headed to Columbia, MO to open for the Urge at the famous Blue Note. Many of you may remember the Poster Children from when they headlined the Day on the Hill two years prior.

The Poster Children have earned a reputation as a true do-it-yourself type of band and have found success in a great deal of touring, in support of their seven albums. This is truly a band that has seen it all - and they show it on stage, playing their 45-60 minute set with an energy that can only come from truly loving what you're doing. Their set consisted of songs from the latest album, New World Record, as well as songs form RTFM and Junior Citizen. The sound techs had also worked out the bugs by this point, and the Poster Children were capitalizing on it. The vocal harmonies between Rick and Rose were solid, and as always Rose was all over the stage while she played those killer bass licks. The interesting use of percussion further added to the band's all-around rocking sound.

While the band got a good reaction from the crowd, they would have done much better had they been able to play later in the evening when the crowd would really be larger and more energetic as the day cooled. Future plans for the Poster Children include more touring, and to work on the band's alter-ego side project, Salaryman. For more info on the Poster Children you can check them out at their very cool website, www.posterchildren.com.

The third band on the line-up was local favorites, Frogpond, who have been riding a huge wave of success lately, and had just pulled off a huge sold-out show at the Bottleneck a couple of weeks prior. Today, on the Hill, they played a short set that featured tunes from both of their albums, Count To Ten and Safe Ride Home. Song highlights included "I Did," "Victim of a Victim," "Be" and "Red Spider." The only visible problems with Frogpond's set were that the band was having some pretty serious on-stage sound problems, resulting in difficulties hearing each other's instruments. They played on through it, and the experience and 'mental connection' that comes from playing together for so long shone through, with the audience probably not even noticing.

Frogpond played a tight set even with sound problems - probably the result of much recent practice and playing in preparation for their big upcoming summer tour with the Goo Goo Dolls, Sugar Ray and Fastball. This Day on the Hill appearance would be the only time fans would have to catch them until July 30th, when they would return on that tour to play Sandstone Amphitheater, and the fans were out in force. If you have not yet seen Frogpond, be sure to check them out soon, because their music promises to get your feet moving. For more information on Frogpond you can stop by the bands web site at www.frogpond.net.

Next on stage was the indie-rock of Panel Donor. This Lawrence band was sadly one that I just could not get into. I thought the music was choppy and spastic, and felt they were off, rhythmically. This may very well have be due to continuing on-stage sound problems, which could have easily contributed to their disjointedness. Hopefully, the next time I see them, sound problems will not interfere with my enjoyment of their music.

Following Panel Donor was truly the odd-band-out on this whole bill - Son Venezuela. But the SUA really knew what they were doing when they booked these guys, because they really got the crowd moving with their brand of salsa and jazz. Son Venezuela features lots of Latin and ethnic percussion and a three-piece horn section, along with guitars and other various instruments picked up as the song warranted. This was only the beginning to a very busy day for these guys, as they also had a gig that night at the Jazzhaus. Although the majority of the lyrics are in Spanish, that did not stop people from dancing non-stop while the band played and encouraged them. Even those who were sitting down couldn't help but move to the beat. Musically, the melodies and harmonies between all the instruments flowed very well, and crossed all barriers of age, musical genre, and race. As such, Son Venezuela is arguably the most popular band in all of Lawrence - and after this display, it's very easy to see why. If you love to dance, make sure you get out and see this great band sometime soon.

It was after a brief set change that the headliners, Hum, took the stage. Once they started playing, the crowd was held enthralled. Hum's set consisted of songs primarily from the albums You'd Prefer an Astronaut and Downward is Awkward. Song highlights included "Suicide Machine," "I Hate It Too," and of course, their well-known hit, "Stars." Hum's heavy guitar and flowing melodies are too mesmerizing to do anything but sway gently to, letting the music wrap around and hold you... though a few testosterone-loaded lads just had to mosh it up, for reasons unknown. Other than this small (and rather pitiful) distraction, I  truly enjoyed Hum's live performance. You can just feel the energy from the music - and the loveable banter from singer, Matt Talbot, between songs. These guys love to play, and you can tell it by the emotion they put into each and every song. For more info on Hum, check out their website at www.prairienet.org/~hum.

Except for a few sound problems, Day on the Hill '99 went off without a hitch. It was a free show on a warm day with some great bands - and a good time had by all. As is to be expected from this legendary event. Thanks to the SUA for another great show of quality live music!