The Fest VI: Day One Recap
To the unexpecting eye, Gainesville could no way host the insanity-filled weekend that is the Fest. But really if you are traveling to Gainesville, it’s got to be for two things predominately; college football or to experience this annual, ever-growing marathon of bands, beer, and beards.
This was my second year attending the Fest and the expectations were even larger just because of the sheer volume of amazing bands playing in this sixth year. The tradition has become something much more important to me. It’s something that, come July or August, I’m usually talking about at least two to seven times a day. But this year, I was on a mission. Last year, I missed so many amazing bands that I got into after the whole shabang was over so I promised myself I would see as many bands as my body and mind allowed.
We arrived at the Holiday Inn, or the official looney bin of the Fest, early Friday afternoon with a few British travelers we met on the flight down to Gainesville. The punks were already pounding the brews outside the hotel, properly preparing themselves for what would be a long weekend.
As we stated earlier, the first band to kick it off was the Measure [SA]. Man, I was so proud of the band after that show. Good things are truly on the way for our friends from New Brunswick.
After the Measure, I ran over to The Side Bar where I ended up catching the last few songs of The Nervous Dogs, a band that contains members of FIYA and Grabass Charlestons. I was really there to catch Marked Men side project the Potential Johns. I wasn’t too familiar with the band prior to the set but it was definitely easy to get into, even more so for anyone fimilar with their “other band.” Nothing too different, but solid, fast pop punk and still worth of a 7-inch purchase.
The big show that night was at The Venue. We walked in just as the Methadones were finishing up their set. I am not a huge fan of the band, but I feel like if I gave them more of a listen, I would be into them.
The cool thing about the Venue was that you could watch one band and the place was big enough to have a small side stage in the back. The side stage that night had a ton of great bands playing. Caught a few minutes of Das Kapital while I waited for Toys That Kill. I heard a bunch of good things about the band and I regret not buying anything.
I didn’t buy anything because my main concern was getting a good spot for San Pedro’s second finest band Toys That Kill. Looking back to 2006, their album Shanked should have probably been my number one album of the year. No offense to Fucked Up, it’s just that after compiling that list, the two records I still spin pretty constantly are TTK and Fix My Brain by the Marked Men. I missed them with the Queers in NYC last year and I wasn’t about to miss them again. How can I sum this up without sounding like a total fan boy moron? Ok, the band was fucking stellar. ‘Nough said. I was screaming along to all the favorites, including “They Tied Up All The Lace,” “Bomb Sniffin’ Dogs,” and the FYP staple “Keep Caroline.” I think I sent out a few obnoxious text messages (I know, a definite party fowl while watching a band) to a few people telling them how Toys That Kill might have just stole the show.
After getting all nice and sweaty, I went back to the side stage to check out the excellent Canadian Rifle. See, the thing about this show that makes it hard to describe is that most of these bands are in the same boat when it comes to musical stylings. Midwesterners blazing out super tight pop punk. This band was no different but they nailed down the trademark sound but with a good, energy-filled twist. Yet another 7-inch purchase made.
Radon is not only a true Fest requirement but it’s a definite Gainesville experience too. This is the way I see it when it comes to Radon and Fest related activities. It’s like milk and freaking oreos, without each other together, it just feels empty and wrong. Needless to say, the venue was freaking packed for the boys.
I hated myself for doing it but I had a mission and I really wanted to see Young Livers over at the Atlantic. Sadly, the “fine” people at said venue didn’t buy into my agenda and I ended up missing the band. I think they went on earlier then expected too because they were just finishing up as I got rejected from walking in. I didn’t remain defeated for long, and ran back to the Venue to catch the end of Radon. So hey, could have been worse, eh?
Caught a bit of Shot Baker, before strolling up to get a better view of punk icons Youth Brigade. The brothers Stern don’t tour in these parts much so I was definitely excited to see them. I know that they attract somewhat of a “rough neck” crowd but I was shocked that there was so much violence going down in the pit. I mean, this was the Fest afterall. I thought most of the asshole faction would be eliminated from events like these. But hey, it comes with the territory I suppose. You book huge bands like YB and Naked Raygun and you are going to get those people in there; just got to deal with it. Other than surprising amounts of anger and pathetic meatheads, the band was outstanding and tight as hell.
Naked Raygun. The band alone, I’m sure, was a reason for a great number of attendees making the trek down to Florida this year. I didn’t know what to really expect going into the show. I knew the band was officially back together and Jeff’s battle with Parkinson’s, but I just shrugged it off and decided to take whatever was given to us. I can’t say I hated the set but I definitely didn’t love it. For one, the setlist was rather surprising. Understand? is my favorite album by the band and I didn’t get much from it. I guess that’s the problem with seeing such a legendary band many moons after their heyday. Lofty expectations can go up to unreasonable levels and that was definitely the case here. But I couldn’t leave to watch another band. I needed to watch it, all of it. I wasn’t at the point of offense or utter disappointment, I was just afraid my love of the band might be tarnished. Regardless, Raygun deserves my non-stop attention. They are legends and without them, pretty much all the bands on this lineup wouldn’t exist. So for this, I stuck it up with the guys. I just won’t be running to the front of the line if they do in fact tour the East coast again.
So the first night was done with and I was already in need of some rest. Overall fantastic night, even though I missed a few amazing bands but this is how it works with the Fest. You can’t always get what you want and sometimes you just don’t get the info about a secret Paint It Black show in time. Burning out can happen easily with things like this, so I definitely made the smart decision that night I believe. After all, two more days of bands awaited me.
Check out some more day one shots here.
