Music fans arrived at Higher Ground Feb. 13 through the same storm that caused many professors to cancel classes.That night marked the beginning of Aer?s ?Word of Mouth? tour, which continues through March and zig-zags across the U.S. and Canada.The show opened with the four-man rock group from Los Angeles, New Beat Fund, that played for a small, early crowd. They displayed energy especially in their song ?Scare Me,? with coordinated jumping and guitar movements on either side of singer Jeff Laliberte.New Beat Fund said they are driven by the desire to create a unique live performance. ?We like to play live because people ask what to expect from our show and we don?t know,? Laliberte said.Despite having played in stadiums with Blink 182, New Beat Fund said they prefer the intimacy of a basement or college fraternity. ?When we?re at a frat show, nothing really matters, we can just go on random jams,? Laliberte said. ?We just feel the most at home in that environment, it?s just more punk rock,? guitarist Shelby Archer said.The crowd continued to grow as Washington D.C. based band RDGLDGRN (Red Gold Green) was welcomed on stage by the exiting New Beat Fund. RDGLDGRN took advantage of the larger crowd and encouraged clapping and other audience interactions.After RDGLDGRN?s set came Aer, a band from Boston that was started by David von Mering and Carter Schultz.The group said that they combine rap, rock and pop music to create their sound. In addition to von Mering and Schultz, the group includes drums and bass guitar, as well as their touring DJ, DJ smiles.Smiles took a few minutes between acts to perform and invite Aer to the stage.Aer said they are committed to their live shows and giving their fans a personal experience. ?[On stage] we?re like a more jacked up version of ourselves,? Schutlz said.?Our main thing is that we try to be ourselves 100 percent,? von Mering said. And be themselves they did. During the show Schultz admitted to the crowd that they had bought too much weed in Burlington and had to get rid of it before they crossed the border into Canada.Aer?s setlist spanned many of their releases and even included a couple of covers. Much of their set came from their new full-length, self-titled album, which was released Jan. 21.Schulz said that they aimed for a ?darker vibe with this album.? They also tried to make their songs more personal than their previous album ?Bright Side.? Schultz described their new album as ?a sort of documentary about [their] lives.?Senior Aaron Early said he was ?impressed? by the performances of both Aer and RDGLDGRN but thought ?the snow may have hampered attendance.?