By Kashif Stone, Staff Writer

Published in print Apr. 22, 2015

UNCG’s student radio station, WUAG 103.1 FM, celebrated their 50th year in operation Sunday night despite a location change due to weather conditions.

The event was originally scheduled to be held outside on the Stone lawn of campus; however, the rain forced the event to relocate to the Gatewood Studio Arts building.

The relocation didn’t stop spectators from attending the event. Festivities such as give-a-ways and T-shirt printing with a WUAG emblem on it were available for guests of the event as they waited for the showcase to begin.

Dunums, Cumcumbers and Ex Hex were the bands that took the stage at the anniversary event— each band unique and different musically.

Dunums, a free form composition band from Durham, opened the showcase with songs from their album under the same name, “Dunums.”

The songs were versatile. Some consisted of heavy drumbeats and raunchy guitar strikes while other songs were calming and serene, almost transforming you into a state of meditation.

The bands Arabic style music is what set them apart from the other acts as they connected to the audience on a more emotional level.

The lead singer of the group danced around throughout the performance encouraging spectators to dance along and clap to the sounds of the music. Dunums’ performance featured a special guest whom they acknowledged and spoke briefly during the show.

Huda Asfour is an engineer who studies the electrical properties of cardiac tissue at Duke University but she also has a passion for music.

This marked her second time performing with the group and thus far she deemed the experience “interesting.”

“This is not particularly the kind of music I normally play,” Asfour said, “but because Dunums come from a melodic background and Arabic culture, it’s reflected in the music, so I’m able to follow the melody with my Arabic instrument.” The band praised Asfour during their performance, claiming to be grateful that she has joined them along their recent performances.

Cucumbers and special guest Ex Hex were the two rock-and-roll inspired bands of the night. Cucumbers, a local punk rock trio, took the stage first with immense energy. The band performed a non-stop set list of songs that only intensified more and more as the show progressed.

WUAG Productions Director David Row is the drummer of the group and exemplified passionate raw emotions throughout their performance, leading the group from one song to the next.

The audience was glued to the performance from beginning to end and applauded the act in a rejoicing manner.

Ex Hex concluded the show with a powerhouse performance proving that girls can do just as good as their male counterparts.

This girl group trio dominated the stage with impeccable guitar solos and superior lyrical vocals that undoubtedly made them the best act of the night.

During their performance, lead guitarist Betsy Wright indicated that the group has never performed in an echo-filled room before but that didn’t stop the band from proving why they were the event’s ‘special guest.’