Voldemort Can't Stop the Rock!

Most people around campus know that the new Harry Potter movie opened last week on Friday, but few students know that just two days prior, Harry and the Potters, the HP pseudo-religion’s equivalent of Christian rock, were rocking out at the Rotunda to an audience of Potter fans and curious outsiders. I was a member of the latter group. I’m not a big Harry Potter fan (I lost interest around the fourth book), but my girlfriend is, and I was told that if I didn’t take go to the show and take a hundred pictures, I would soon find myself without a girlfriend. Not desiring this outcome, I went to the show without knowing quite what to expect.

The band consists of two members, Joe and Paul, who go by the stage names “Harry Potter” and, well— “Harry Potter.” The two Harrys don the typical Potter costume, thick-rimmed glasses and all, and perform songs about the events and characters in the popular book series. Although the closely resemble the Harry of the movies, they don’t act like him, rather, the Potter they personify speaks with a nasally voice in a Midwestern accent and is far more inept at conversing than the one from the movies. He’s a true nerd, representing the common American interpretation of the book character, and he resonated well with the audience that night. Unlike the movies, where Potter’s plight, personality, and heroics charm the audience, we loved the stage Potters for their nerdy qualities as well as their spot-on sense of fun.

After spending $24 dollars on merchandise (or, in my case, girlfriend-insurance), I joined my friends from the Quad to watch the Potters bounce along to the beats they brought along on their iPod, which they hooked up to speakers in lieu of a backup band. Sometimes they played their own instruments, but their electronic accompaniment was present for every tuned they played. The opened with a crowd favorite, “Voldemort Can’t Stop the Rock,” where they danced through the audience, who jumped up and down to greet their stars. Throughout the entire show, we were transfixed. This is the joy of going to small shows: the music is usually enjoyable and sometimes very good, you don’t have to spend a lot to get a spot where you can touch the musicians (just arrive a little early), and half the audience stays for autographs, which takes just under half an hour.

No, I haven’t been inspired to pick up the fifth book. But I am determined to see more music around Philly. For more information on Harry and the Potters, check them out at http://www.eskimolabs.com/hp/.