On Saturday, Nov. 7, UNI Students for Bernie Sanders 2016 will be hosting an event that combines political campaigning with local, live music. The event, dubbed Shred for Bernie, will be held at Octopus College Hill and will start at 5:00 p.m. It will be open to anyone who is nineteen years of age or older.

Oliver Weilein, Cedar Falls native and committee leader for UNI Students for Bernie Sanders 2016, is spearheading the Shred for Bernie event. Weilein is also involved with a local music collective called Cedar Valley DIY (CVDIY) that primarily hosts punk shows.

“I felt that I could help out with the Bernie campaign by combining volunteer efforts with the CDVIY and just have a show,” Weilein said. “And so far, it’s gotten a really good response.”

The response has been so positive that Weilein and the other organizers were forced to change the initial start time from 7:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. in an effort to spread out the attendance. One such attendant will be sophomore political communication major, Sydney Hauer.

“I think that it’s a great idea to combine a political event with live music,” said Hauer, “because it’s the kind of event that will draw the type of crowd that generally supports Bernie. It gives them the opportunity to talk with other supporters and learn about how to get involved in the campaign while enjoying live music.”

Sophomore Jamie Crispin is also planning on attending the event

“With the Shred for Bernie event,” said Crispin, “I think it’s a unique way for politics to reach out to some of the subcultures that we have in the United States… Not everyone wants to go to a political speech or rally. Whereas, if you have a concert and between performances you’re going to talk about the campaign and what [Sanders’] different plans are, it’s a different way to get people the information they need to be aware enough to vote.”

According to the official Shred for Bernie Facebook event page, the live music will consist of five bands: Sounds Del Mar, a party rock band all the way from Austin, TX; Joe Meteorite and the Space Peanuts, a local skate punk band; Cedar Falls based indie rock band Kitsch; Pelvis, an Ames based punk band and Riff Santorum, an aptly named pop-punk acoustic one-man band.

According to Martin Wise,  senior education major and president of UNI Students for Bernie Sanders 2016, the group plans on raising awareness on Sanders’ push for free education, as well as his stances on social issues such as LGBT rights and civil action. In addition, Wise is excited about the event’s unique intersection of music and politics.

“I’m really happy that we are able to partner Bernie, who is a really big fan of local, grassroots movements, with local, live music,” said Wise. “I think it really is a great partnership and a great representation of what our group is all about.”