Halloween is often celebrated with outrageous costumes, vibrant parades and every brand of candy under the sun. In Gainesville, Florida however, Halloween is transformed into a three day weekend holiday where costumes are arbitrary, punk rock bands replace parades and candy is substituted with gallons of beer. This year, No Idea Records celebrated an enormously successful Fest 8; a diverse mix of all types of punk music brought a huge crowd to central Florida this year. Unfortunately, with hundreds of amazing bands playing in the short span of only one weekend, mixed with unfathomable amounts of beer and cheap whiskey, I was not able to see every band I would have liked to, but I was lucky enough to see some incredible sets.

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It’s been almost a month now and I’m still recovering from The Fest 7. The infamous “Fest aids” have hit me with full force, so that’s why there has been a bit of a delay in my coverage of the weekend’s festivities. Until I finally write that up, here are two videos from the weekend; one of Bridge and Tunnel‘s show in a hotel room, and another from their Tampa pre-Fest show, which was shot by our friends at National Underground. Check them both after the jump.

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It’s Fest 7 time everybody! Who’s ready to party? Be on the lookout for the ginger kid with the Phillies hat on and say hi.

Photo by Bill Shouldis

For this installment of Tales From The Fest, The Riot Before‘s guitar/vocalist Brett talks about breaking his Fest cherry last year and how the festivities have a deeper meaning than just getting silly drunk for three days. The Riot Before released their fantastic album Fists Buried In Pockets recently via Say-10 Records and you should check it out. Onward!

Last year was my first time at The Fest and I didn’t really know what to expect beyond the stories of inebriated fun I had recounted to me by those who’d been before. And while inebriated fun was completely, unsurprisingly, and happily represented over the weekend I attended, I was caught off guard by another aspect of The Fest that I had never expected. The Fest is not just a weekend of the best type of liver punishment, it’s also a family reunion.

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It’s hard to believe but The Fest 7 is only a few days away. The fine folks at No Idea have posted a 34-track compilation online, the official soundtrack of the weekend’s festivities. Bands like The Measure (SA), Stressface, Bridge & Tunnel, Young Livers, Tiltwheel, among many more, are all on it, so download it here.