Episode 24 (FEST Edition!)

Episode 24


For the second year in a row here at Left of the Dial we celebrate the best weekend in punk rock, The Fest 8 in Gainesville, FL. With far too many bands to see in one weekend alone I picked my favorites of those I was lucky enough to witness. Some were new (No Friends, Comadre, Iron Chic), some were old (7 Seconds, American Steel) and some were reunited (Small Brown Bike, Planes Mistaken For Stars (quasi-reunited)).

There have been plenty of videos floating around the internet since that weekend so I'll post the highlights. One of the things I missed most this year was Paint It Black. Since Dr. Dan was due to have a new baby that weekend they weren't around to put on any crazy surprises but Comadre did their best to fill that spot. Friday night they played a house show with 5 or 6 Refused covers making up their set. My friends and I drove around fruitlessly trying to find the house but luckily enough the next night we saw them end their Fail Safe Warehouse show with "Deadly Rhythm" from The Shape of Punk to Come. Here's footage from Friday night:

Comadre - "Deadly Rhythm" from Punknews.org on Vimeo.

During Gared O'Donnell's Hawks and Doves set (their first as a full band) the former members of Planes Mistaken for Stars (who were present in the new band Git Some) got on stage together for the first time in a few years to play three songs for those lucky enough to be at the Atlantic that night.


Possibly my favorite set of the weekend was 7 Seconds. They brought everything they had and for guys who are almost 50 years old, they outperformed almost every other band I saw. My only complaint was not seeing enough girls in the pit for "Not Just Boys' Fun." They ended the set with Sham 69's "If the Kids Are United" and encored with their classic version of Nena's "99 Red Balloons." So add those to the list of cover songs of the weekend that also included:
Iron Chic - "She" (Green Day)
No Friends - some Dag Nasty song
Defiance, Ohio - some Victoria Williams song
Shook Ones - "Tired of Sex" (Weezer)

Shook Ones - "Tired of Sex" from Punknews.org on Vimeo.

I'll leave you on an inspiring note, Small Brown Bike played a cathartic, celebratory reunion set on Friday night that included lots of favorites like "See You In Hell" which featured an appearance by The Casket Lottery/Coalesce's Nathan Ellis on backup vocals.


Keep checking www.nationalunderground.org for more videos from the Fest and check out No Idea Records if you want to but records from a lot of the bands featured here.