Since the DFP’s last article on the Koch brothers, certain events, both humorous and compelling, have involved the covert political powerhouse. A recap of the infamous duo’s past couple of weeks:

After successfully convincing secretaries and aides that he was indeed Mr. Koch, the blogger was connected to the Governor. The conversation went right to Walker’s budget repair legislation and the protests against it in the state capital. The impersonator told Walker that he considered “planting some troublemakers” (possibly with the help of Americans for Prosperity, a special interest group supported by the brothers) to damage the protestors’ image.

Scott responded by saying he had considered the same idea. After agreeing with the fake Koch’s statement that MSNBC’s Mika Brzeznski is a “real piece of ass,” Walker revealed his aspiration to defeat unions à la Reagan and the striking air traffic controllers of 1981. The fake Koch then promised, “Once you crush those bastards I’ll fly out to Cali and show you a good time.” Walker accepted this offer and claimed that his efforts are done in the name of freedom.

The phone call revealed more about Scott Walker than it did the Kochs. Still, Walker’s obvious truculence demonstrates the brothers’ influence. James Joyner of Outside the Beltway says the call “showed the extent to which politicians are beholden to campaign money.” Democratic Party of Wisconsin Chair Mike Tate noted Walker’s refusal to listen to the workers of Wisconsin while nonetheless listening to an oil billionaire. The Wisconsin Legislature has responded to the prank by introducing a bill that would prohibit misleading call recipients about the caller’s identity. State Republicans like Mary Lazich have authored the bill, which would also ban masking one’s voice during a phone call.

A ‘hacktivist’ group, Anonymous, recently started an Internet protest against paper products of Koch companies and its subsidiaries. The blacklisted products include popular toilet papers like Quilted Northern, Brawny, Angel Soft as well as a list of other brands owned by Koch subsidiary Georgia-Pacific. In a press release, the group invites all citizens of the United States to join in the effort against what they see as an attempt to “usurp American Democracy” by the Kochs. While this effort has spread awareness about the brothers’ shady doings, the prominence of Koch Industries products will make it hard to have a real effect on the powerful conglomerate.

The basement scene has everything you might expect on a normal Friday night: rowdy behavior, loud music, kegs. However, this isn’t the basement of a house on Webster Ave, it’s the basement of Collis.

While it is often lamented that fraternities dominate Dartmouth’s social scene, many successful alternative events have emerged on campus. Usually something considered an “alternative” social space was considered lame and not fun. Previously, the presence of alcohol separated all “fun” and the “boring” social events. But now many events held in Collis serve different alcoholic beverages.

Friday Night Rock, a student group that showcases emerging rock bands, features live concerts on campus. The selection of artists, which has included Of Montreal and Ted Leo and the Pharmacists, reflects with surprising accuracy new and buzz-worthy artists. Many of the groups have appeared on Pitchfork.com’s annual “best-of” list, while others have played at large music festivals like South By Southwest (SXSW), the highly-popular Austin, TX music festival. Best Coast, a California band that visited Friday Night Rock in April, was featured on MTV2’s Subterranean two weeks after playing at Dartmouth.

The group, which charges no admission for its shows and supplies free alcohol to students over 21, has also held showcases for Dartmouth-based student bands. However, despite its ability to bring quality bands to campus, Friday Night Rock remains a relatively low-key venue. This status is probably due to the collective music taste of the Dartmouth community, which isn’t known for being geared towards indie rock music.

Meanwhile, Programming Board, another student-run group, has made attempts to provide alternative nightlife events at Collis with alcohol and flashing lights. On May 8th, Super Mash Bros, a mashup group that describes themselves as “Girl Talk’s hot cousin,” played a show that had the crowd flowing from the basement to the help desk. The event, promoted as “Klub Kollis,” featured two other campus DJs, DJ Hollisto and DJ Janski.

Although frat-hopping will probably still be preferred to cool concerts like these, I definitely welcome Friday Night Rock and Programming Board’s alternative social spaces. Let’s hope they keep these spaces open with awesome, jamming music.

A recent sold-out concert for Jason Derulo—a second rate R&B singer—provided insight into the artistic interests of many Dartmouth students. On the same night, the theatre group Universes performed Ameriville at the Hop. Ameriville is a show based on the social injustices in post-Katrina New Orleans. However, the show’s attendance, quite predictably, did not rival Derulo’s lackluster performance.

The excitement around Jason Derulo stems from his recognizable name. Compared to some truly obscure artists who have performed at the HOP like Anat Cohen or Bill T. Jones, Derulo is practically Chris Brown. Understandably, the isolation of Hanover can make students desperate for any type of entertainment. There is also an apparent lack of interest in the lesser-known artists. So it’s only natural that a second-rate performer would garner attention, even if his fifteen minutes are almost up.

It’s true; most Dartmouth students are usually overburdened with school, work, and extracurricular commitments to squeeze in that fairly obscure flutist playing at the HOP. When most Dartmouth students think of the reasons for going to the HOP, they are usually related to the many non-art related things, like picking up a package or getting food from the Courtyard Café. Students are only likely to attend a HOP event if their friends are performing in it. The Dartmouth Gospel Choir events, which usually sell out, have a high percentage of student attendants. The same is usually true from other events like Glee Club and Orchestra. Visit any other event at the HOP and you will soon realize that it’s one of the public campus-owned places; elderly townie couples run rampant.

The reason for low student attendance at certain Hop events can also be attributed to logistical reasons. Students are less likely than an older patron to buy their tickets in advance, making it impossible to attend a show. “I know I would lose a ticket if I bought it too early,” said Renee Scott ’13.

While it may seem unfortunate that students would choose a one-hit wonder over some of the world’s most distinguished performers, it’s probably unrealistic to ask most college students to develop such mature artistic appetite. I suppose students already spend a lot of time pondering social injustice and expressive modes in class during the week. Still, its worth taking your evening off to see something new at the Hop this term.