Finals Fest concert to feature Minneapolis indie rock band Bad Bad Hats

April 26, 2022 – As the academic year winds to a close, University of Wisconsin-River Falls will host Finals Fest on Saturday, April 30, featuring the Minneapolis-based indie rock band Bad Bad Hats.

Finals Fest kicks off at 5 p.m. with a pre-party on the campus mall outside the University Center that will include Colleen the Dream, the 20-foot fiberglass cow, student organization craft events, henna tattoos, caricature drawings, a mobile photo booth and a stress-relieving mobile rage room and more. Participants write what is stressing them out with markers on plates and then smash the plates as a cathartic activity. Food trucks will be available for community members to buy food. In case of rain, most events will move into the University Center.

All events are free and open to the public, except for some free food and giveaways that are reserved for UWRF students.

Bad Bad Hats, named for a trouble-making character from the Madeline children’s books, will take the stage in the Falcon’s Nest in the University Center starting at 8 p.m. Doors open at 7:30 p.m.

“We’re trying to keep it a little more local this year with the band,” said Elise Peters, event and activities coordinator for the UWRF Student Involvement Office, the Finals Fest sponsor. “Finals Fest is a fun, traditional end-of-the-semester event to give students a chance to relax and have fun before finals start. When we ask alumni and students, one of their favorite memories is Finals Fest.”

This is the first time since 2019 that Finals Fest has been fully in-person because of COVID-19 restrictions, Peters said.

Bad Bad Hats was formed in 2012. Their 2015 debut album “Psychic Reader” caught the attention of The New Yorker, National Public Radio, Pitchfork and Paste. The band has toured the U.S. extensively supporting artists from Margaret Glaspy, Hippo Campus and Third Eye Blind. In the band’s bio, they note their music “honors classic pop songwriting, with nods to nineties rock simplicity and pop-punk frivolity.”

“Lightning Round,” the band’s second full-length album was recorded live in a studio. The album marks the final release with contributions from original member Noah Boswell, who will be leaving the group in the fall to pursue a master’s degree. The band will continue with Kerry Alexander, Connor Davison and Chris Hoge. They have plans to tour the country this year.

Commencement at UW-River Falls is Saturday, May 7, with final exams scheduled for Monday-Thursday, May 9-12.

For more information about Finals Fest, email Peters at elise.peters@uwrf.edu.