Bareilles, Ratatat To Play Yardfest

Singer-songwriter Sara Bareilles will be performing at the College’s fourth annual Yardfest on April 19, the College Events Board announced last night.

The Grammy nominee will be followed by New York City electronic music group Ratatat, comprising Mike Stroud on guitar and Evan Mast on synthesizer.

The group is known for its original instrumental compositions in addition to its sampled hip-hop remixes.

“We have never had a big electronic band come to Yardfest in the past, so it’s something new,” said CEB Chair Kevin M. Mee ’10.

Bareilles, a California native and UCLA graduate, is best known for her single “Love Song,” which reached number four on the Billboard Hot 100 last year.

Last fall, the CEB conducted a poll to gauge the genres students most wished to see at Yardfest. Despite receiving over 3,000 responses, Mee said the survey primarily showed the CEB the variety of musical interests within the student body.

Speculation arose earlier this semester that 90s pop-rock band Eve 6 would be performing at Yardfest after the group posted a Harvard tour date on their Web site.

After the Eve 6 rumor broke, CEB fielded numerous comments from students who expressed a desire to see Ratatat and Bareilles instead, Mee said.

Mee said that the group had contacted Eve 6 to see if they would be available to perform, but they “were never officially considering Eve 6.”

The concert, which will be open to Harvard undergraduates, will take place on a Sunday this year, as opposed to last year’s Saturday performance. Mee said he does not expect the Sunday date to affect turnout, as the concert was held on Sunday in its first iteration and still saw a large turnout. He added that it should be over by 9 p.m.

Last year, pop-rock artist Gavin DeGraw and hip-hop group the Wu-Tang Clan performed on the steps of Memorial Church to a crowd of over 7,000.

Mee said he expected the turnout to be similar this year.

—Staff writer Lauren D. Kiel can be reached at lkiel@fas.harvard.edu.