Crowbar's lineup tonight will feature extra Penn State spirit when two local bands take the stage along with the PSU cheerleaders and the Nittany Lion.

The Interfraternity Council/ Panhellenic Dance Marathon benefit concert costs $5 a ticket and will start at 9:30 p.m. It will feature local bands Velveeta and Tokyo Vertigo with a mini pep rally between acts, Lindsay Northup-Moore, a band captain on Thon's entertainment committee, said in an e-mail message.

The bands were enthusiastic about the show's unique atmosphere.

"[The pep rally is] something a little different," Velveeta keyboardist Brent Martin said. "Hopefully there's something for everybody."

J.R. and Natalie were scheduled to play at the concert, but had to cancel because Natalie became sick. Local band Tokyo Vertigo stepped in at the last second, Genevieve Evans (junior communications) a cheerleader and band captain on Thon's entertainment committee said.

"The minute I called [Tokyo Vertigo], they said yes," Evans, who helped organize the concert, said.

In addition to the ticket cost, audience members are also invited to give additional donations to Thon if they would like, she said.

"[The concert] is a pre-Thon event to get everyone into the [Thon] mood and mindset," Evans said.

Evans said she became interested in Thon during her freshman year when some of her fellow cheerleaders danced.

"I was an unofficial moraler," she said. "I fell in love with it."

Deciding to do more than just cheer others on, she became a dancer her sophomore year and became an entertainment captain this year to get involved behind-the-scenes, Evans said.

She said the idea of a concert appealed to her after her experiences dancing in Thon her sophomore year. "I had the flu, and the bands were such a huge factor in getting me going," Evans said.

Evans said the idea for the pep rally came from her own experience as a cheerleader and would fit the mood well. "We wanted to keep it Thon-focused," she said.

The members of Velveeta are no strangers to Thon.

The band celebrated its 10th anniversary in December and has played Thon for almost all of those years, Martin said.

Martin said he enjoys playing the show because of the unique feel.

"Sometimes it can be the middle of the day, or late, late at night. Sometimes you'll start at 3 or 4 [a.m.] -- or the last band, the final hour, when it's filled to the rafters," Martin said.

Both Velveeta and Tokyo Vertigo are also tentatively scheduled to play at Thon, Evans said.