“Fifty-three days,” said FEST coordinator Joe Kosin, with an excited grin when asked how many days remain until the events of FEST 2013 commence.

No, Kosin isn’t guilty of faulty math. Believe it or not, this year’s FEST is less than two months away – it’s time to get excited.

While the majority of the student body most likely has some familiarity with FEST, they may only know about the headlining concert and not about its lesser-known events.

“People just see FEST (the concert) – they don’t think there’s anything else,” said Chelsea Robinson, DePaul Activity Board’s (DAB) variety coordinator.

Kosin and one of his FEST assistants, Sam Schmieg, strive to alleviate this issue by promoting a FEST event they are especially excited for titled “After Hours.”

Occurring after the FEST headliner’s performance, “After Hours” is an additional concert that serves as a type of “after party” for FEST attendees. Even though this may be an unfamiliar term for many students, Kosin said that in past years “After Hours” drew a huge portion of the student body, particularly when artists such as Wiz Khalifa served as the acts.

In fact, crowds were so large that DAB hosted this event in McGrath Arena, and large lines stretched around the side of the building. The year after Wiz Khalifa, however, “After Hours” was not nearly the success it had been in the past. The members of DAB thought that perhaps a smaller venue would be better for this event. Last year, DAB decided to move it to the Student Center’s Multipurpose Room. Unfortunately, attendance was even lower than the year before.

This year, Kosin and the members of his FEST Committee realized that “After Hours” needed some major revamping if it was going to be restored to its former glory.

“We don’t want ‘After Hours’ to be an afterthought,” said Kosin.

Schmieg said that he and the members of the FEST Committee envision “After Hours” as a large-scale event that will get DePaul students involved and create a memorable experience for them.

“We want to make (“After Hours”) a big show … we want to sell it out,” said Schmieg.

Kosin saw the first step in this process as bringing “After Hours” back to McGrath Arena, which is why “pack McGrath” now serves as his overall goal for the event. However, the committee didn’t just change “After Hours'” concert venue – they also changed its style. In order to expand the event even further, they made the decision to bring “After Hours” to a music genre it had never been before: Electronic Dance Music (EDM). Kosin and Schmieg felt confident that combining this upbeat, dance-worthy music with an equally exciting array of lights and various giveaways would draw the sizeable crowd for which they are aiming.

Kosin also said that apart from recruiting DePaul students to attend the concert, DAB is also inviting DePaul students to both the FEST and “After Hours” stages. “Battle” is an event which of consists of two competitions titled “Battle of the Bands” and “Battle of the DJs,” with the winner of each performing at FEST and “After Hours” respectively. The event will take place Monday, April 22 at 7 p.m. Interested participants can find the submission form on DAB’s OrgSync page. All entries are due Thursday, April 11 at 5 p.m.

Kosin, Schmieg and the FEST Committee are working hard to make FEST bigger than ever before. “After Hours” is just one of the many ways in which they are striving to accomplish this goal. Tickets for FEST go on sale Monday, May 13 and can be purchased by DePaul students for $10. “After Hours” is free and open to all DePaul students with a valid DePaul ID.

So after the big FEST headliner’s concert, don’t forget that the party has just begun. Get ready to join DAB to “pack McGrath.”