Feature / Music
The Fest 9

Words: Loren • January 3, 2011

The Fest 9
The Fest 9

Saturday

Each day Fest continues, the sets get progressively earlier in the day. After un-official late shows Thursday, and early-evening music on Friday, the primary venues opened their doors around 2 PM on Saturday. My first move was skipping the lines for Dear Landlord (regretfully, upon hearing they performed their day-before-Halloween set dressed as Juggalos) in order to see other bands in smaller settings.

That’s Incredible

San Pedro’s That’s Incredible started my Saturday highlights. The band is a side project from members of Toys That Kill, Soviettes, Killer Dreamer, and Dick Army and—as cliché as it may be—they sound much like an amalgamation of said groups. They blend Sean Cole’s distinct melodies with the Susy Sharp’s peppiness. For a band with only a 7-inch, I wasn’t expecting a lot, but they filled out a half-hour set without any filler, covers, or songs that sounded fresh from the drawing board. It was a polished performance of slightly off-kilter poppiness that helped kick in the adrenaline necessary to carry a Fester through his third long, hot day at the bar.

The Measure [SA]

IMG_4780.jpg

Saturday also featured the most venue-hopping but, fortunately, there was little time wasted in line. After watching a few bands at 1982, sticking around for Bedford Falls on a recommendation well worth its salt, I ran down to 8 Seconds. There was virtually no line and I got in quickly for New Brunswick’s The Measure [SA]. The band continues to grow and this was the best performance I’ve seen from them. They played a mix of older songs along with some off the new LP (that I have yet to hear). It all carried the band’s signature quirkiness blended with dual-vocal pop-punk and an infectious, positive energy. The band also celebrated No Idea Records’ 25th anniversary. For a larger stage, the floor area was disproportionately small and the sound was adequate, although site lines away from the floor appear to be lacking. My only complaint: the bar unplugged their mechanical bull.

ADD/C

To continue the venue changes, the night ended with a 3-band set at Boca Fiesta, a Mexican Restaurant with an outdoor patio/bar and stage. How they manage outdoor music without noise violations is a wonder to me, but it’s a great, intimate, and temperate setting to catch a show. After hours in dingy bars with hundreds of sweaty punks and no air conditioning, the fresh nighttime air was a welcome change. Chattanooga’s ADD/C is a band I caught at my very first Fest after striking up conversation with their guitarist, and I’m glad we crossed paths. They play a blend of aggressive punk styles with something of a distorted-Southern thing underlying the decadence. The crowd was highly energetic with an active pit of slobbering, stumbling drunks. While the energy should be wavering at this time of day, the pure joy of loud anthemic music kept the audience at full tilt.

Skip to page View as a single page

Loren • January 3, 2011

The Fest 9
The Fest 9

Pages in this feature

  1. Opening page
  2. Thursday
  3. Friday
  4. Saturday
  5. Sunday

Related features

Unseemlier

One Question Interviews • June 27, 2025

Mike Assatly (Unseemlier - guitar/vocals) SPB: Do you have a preferred model of van for touring? Assatly: Chevy G-20 Gladiator! It was my first van, I got it from my uncle with 115,000 on it. He got rid of it for a new van because it was "old" and would … Read more

Dollar Store

One Question Interviews • June 26, 2025

Dave Slaverave (Dollar Store - bass) SPB: This band hits a lot of styles, all kind of overlapping at the same time. How hard was it to find “your sound” when bringing these influences together? Slaverave: Not very hard at all actually. We're all old-ass adults who've soaked in a … Read more

Golden Shitters

One Question Interviews • June 25, 2025

Matt (Golden Shitters) How nervous were you the first time you played a show? My first show was around 2002. I was 15 years old and it was a basement house party in my hometown of Welland, Ontario. I’d just proved myself to my high school buddies by singing The … Read more

Arms Aloft

Interviews • June 23, 2025

Remember Election Day 2024? Maybe you shouldn't. Maybe you've blocked it out. That's fair, but there was one pleasant surprise that day: a new EP from Wisconsin's Arms Aloft. It took a while to claw out of the darkness in November, then Year End 2024 coverage took over the Scene … Read more

Small Steps

One Question Interviews • June 12, 2025

Jeremiah (Small Steps - guitar/vocals) SPB: What song has the best use of whistling? Jeremiah: I feel like the easy answer would be the Bobby McFerrin song "Don't Worry Be Happy". Which is catchy as all get out, but we prefer the road less traveled here in Small Steps. For … Read more

More from this section

Caterwaul 2025

Music • May 13, 2025

Each year in late May, the 4-day party and noise-rock festival Caterwaul takes over multiple venues in Minneapolis. It’s a stacked lineup this year, to put it mildly, with each night’s headliners FACS, Young Widows, Naw, Pissed Jeans, and Uniform -- and that’s leaving a ton of other great bands … Read more

Guest List: Steven Fairweather (Gob) – The Gateway And The Getaway

Music / The Set List • May 13, 2025

Steven Fairweather is a Canadian musician, radio show host, and comic book writer. He is best known as the bassist of the punk band Gob and the founder of Stranger Radio, an independent online radio station. -- Before the internet, before streaming, before Shazam could tell you what was playing … Read more

2024: A Year In Review

Music / Year End 2024 • January 13, 2025

It's a new year – hooray. And things are off to a fine start, too. If the thought of corrupt governments, AI domination, unmoderated social networks and endless war is causing you to retreat into the past, we don't blame you. In fact, we encourage it! Our writers have summed … Read more