THE ONE, THE ONLY, THE FEST

By William Jones

"You'd have to be an idiot to not know what we're doing down here," says Tony Weinbender, founder of The Fest and No Idea Records press wrangler. "It's kind of hard not to know if you're into this scene of music."

Indeed, Chicago's Lollapalooza, California's Coachella, and Tennessee's Bonnaroo may have the attention (and wallets) of mainstream music fans, but any punk worth his salt knows there's only one festival really worth flocking to from all corners of the corner-less globe, and it's down in Gainesville, FL. Maybe that's why it's simply and aptly titled, The Fest.

The brainchild of Weinbender, The Fest started back in 2001, after he had already moved on from Fueled by Ramen and did his thing with MACRock. While sitting around and drinking one day, a friend said, "Fuck it! You should just do MACRock down here." Weinbender had been booking shows since the age of 16, and decided to give it a shot.

The first Fest featured more than 60 bands at six different venues over the course of two days. Har Mar Superstar topped the list, but Weinbender is most proud of the fact it was the first time Gainesville's Against Me! (see Wonka Vision issue 38's cover band) was able to play in front of such a large crowd—nearly 500 people, according to Weinbender.

The inaugural year, bands received two 12-packs each of free beer from Pabst Blue Ribbon. That, of course, was just a starter. With bars open all weekend and running drink specials, it was one of the drunkest weekends ever in Gainesville, which helped to inspire the slogan of the second annual Fest—"Two More Days of Falling Down."

The second year had a larger and stronger lineup than before, with Gainesville's Hot Water Music (having moved on to Epitaph at that point) topping the list, supported by the likes of Mastodon, Small Brown Bike, and The Lawrence Arms. Tickets were a mere $20 for two days of drunken fun, and t-shirts and posters were designed by friends of The Fest. With Weinbender settled into the community at this point, more local businesses jumped on board, and a vegan breakfast was even put together for the opening morning.

Since then, The Fest has evolved into a three-day experience, featuring more than 180 bands on this year's recently announced lineup. People around the world now know of The Fest, helped in part by the release of The Fest 3 DVD last year. Now, The University Hotel is working close with The Fest to provide accommodations for visitors. In fact, it has been dubbed "the party hotel," in contrast to Paramount Plaza Hotel Suites, which is where you stay if you actually want to sleep after The Fest each night.

But, who does? In most instances, when the day's shows end, the party is just getting started. Aside from the party hotel, there are always more than a few house parties and shows. Another prominent memory Weinbender has is of one particular party Whiskey and Co. threw after The Fest one year. Nearly a thousand people showed up in front of their home, and police were called out, chasing everyone off with horses.

With the city nearly taken over by The Fest every year, it would seem inevitable that there would be some run-ins with uptight local residents, and more horse-capades as a result, but strategic timing helps to prevent some of that.

"Football's a big fuckin' deal here," says Weinbender. So, it's no coincidence that The Fest takes place every year during The University of Florida vs. Georgia rivalry, which happens up in Jacksonville, rather than Gainesville. Most of the local residents are gone for the weekend, and those left behind get a crash course in punk culture, but they're starting to get used to it. Weinbender says the addition of some outdoor performances for kids and families to check out has helped the community be a bit more receptive.

There's also always the chance that some old lady is going to bitch about the noise level—not from the music but—from The Fest fans filling up her bar with chatter, as was the case last year. Still, most are appreciative of the business and attention The Fest brings in on a weekend that would otherwise be dead in this fanatical football town.

But even some local bands occasionally try to escape the growing Fest.

Jason Black, who played at The Fest 2 with Hot Water Music, will be there again this year with The Draft. As a resident of Gainesville, though, he says it's gotten so big that, "If we aren't playing it, we try to be out of town. Gainesville has enough drunks as it is. When you bring in this many more, it starts to hemorrhage beer and barf."

But others flock to Gainesville for this very culture. While in high school, Ryan Weber first flew out to The Fest 3 with his girlfriend. He drove back from New Mexico with a group of friends to go to The Fest 4 and convinced one of them to move there with him to start a band. After being involved in The Fest for a couple years by filming shows and playing apartment parties, Weber will finally get to take a stage with his band Dirty Money at The Fest 6 this year. But from whatever side of the show he's on, he says, "It's really like no other experience in the world. It's something much more than just a music festival. That's for sure."

Weinbender couldn't agree more. "It feels like a family reunion more than a normal fest," he says. While he stays busy, endlessly running around every Fest weekend, he constantly meets old and new friends, and his volunteer staff helps to keep things moving along smoothly. He's proud of the fact that there's never been a fight at The Fest, and as far as he's aware, no one has ever been hurt.

DIY at heart, Weinbender and his Fest cohorts have approached sponsorships skeptically from the very beginning, but have balanced the ethics of DIY with the practicalities of putting on such a large event. The first year of The Fest, Weinbender thought carefully about taking on PBR as a sponsor, but ultimately, the bands have to drink, and PBR turned out to be the right choice, now providing and endless kegs to fuel The Fest each year.

"It's all handshakes and cool stuff," says Weinbender. "Most sponsorships we do are trade." The idea being that a company like PBR will provide beer, instead of money. Companies like Dominos have asked about sponsoring The Fest, but Weinbender has turned them down in favor of local pizza joints that he likes. This year, however, Weinbender was made an offer that was a bit difficult to refuse. $20,000.

"We had a liquor sponsor show up that wanted to give us $20,000," he says. Obviously, it was a big chunk of change that needed to be taken seriously, but ultimately, no reasonable connection with The Fest and the fact that no one involved actually drinks the product meant no deal. "Can I go to sleep and feel comfortable with the liquor store putting their banner up with No Idea and Pabst?" he asked himself. "No."

"You have no affiliation to The Fest," Weinbender told the rep. "There's no sense to me just taking your money." He admits his response closed the door on a few other opportunities but, in the end, he can sleep at night.

And while the money might have been nice, it's the amazing list of bands that is going to drive The Fest 6. At the top of that list? Naked Raygun. Last year's reunion at Riot Fest in Chicago turned out to be more than a one-time thing, and Weinbender is excited to have them on board this year. Naked Raygun is "probably one of the top five [bands] people that come to the fest would be interested in," he says.

"To get to be able to see Naked Raygun is, alone, a reason to participate this year," says Black. Another part of the family reunion atmosphere of The Fest is that most of the bands involved are more interested in seeing their favorite bands than actually playing with their own. And while Naked Raygun is topping this year's list, there are a couple other bands getting a lot of attention as well.

"I love Naked Raygun," says Weinbender, "but, personally, Seaweed is a band I grew up on." After announcing a reunion earlier this year and plans for a new album, the ‘90s grunge-punk act signed on for The Fest. "For us, the ace in the hole for doing it was Seaweed," says Black. "That's just going to rule."

Aside from the old standbys, The Fest has always been a showcase of great new punk and indie musicians. Jonathan Diener will travel down from Detroit to Gainesville this year with Fest first-timers The Swellers. But even he is more interested in the other bands than the fact that his own gets to play a set at The Fest 6. "I'm really excited to see Small Brown Bike's reunion," he says. "I just want to walk around and soak in all the new music I can. I'll be like a kid in a punk rock candy store."

While scheduling conflicts always create a few complications in the process that Weinbender starts part-time right after New Year’s, he's more than content with this year's lineup. With Avail, Dillinger Four, and The Lawrence Arms all on the bill, and Gainesville standbys like Billy Reese Peters joining the roster for the sixth straight year, "This year's lineup is almost as perfect as I could ever get it," he says.

Not only that, but The Fest crew has kicked into gear a few other ideas that have lingered in the back of their minds for the past few years.

After trying to get a half-assed flea market going at the last minute last year, Weinbender organized a full-fledged Fest 6 Flea Market (or Dirt Mall) for this year's event. Sixty spaces were made available for the opportunity to show off and sell whatever it is someone might want to sell to the drunken masses at The Fest. Whether it's a label, a magazine, or someone that makes some sort of weird shit in their mom's basement, it's all free game… with a few minor exceptions. "I'm not going to let Nazis or some hate group in there," says Weinbender. "We're approving everyone that comes through."

In addition, Vanessa Burt (of Fat Wreck Chords publicity department) has helped Weinbender realize another goal—an art gallery at The Fest. Through her personal company, Mutiny PR, she represents artists like Heather Hannoura and Ed Trask—who should both be very familiar to punkers—and things just came together.

"I think The Fest would have included an art show every year but this is just the one where it has finally been pulled together," says Burt. "That is normally how our community works. We just do things ourselves for fun or to support the people we care about and are pleasantly surprised when it gets more popular."

So, with an art show, a flea market, and the strongest lineup thus far, The Fest 6 is going to be the biggest yet. The only downside, Weinbender says, is having to say "no" to more bands every year. "That's the only real bummer."

For those heading down to Gainesville for the first time, it's hard not to get excited. It'll be like heaven," says Diener, "with more beards." But Weber says there's really no way to know what The Fest is like without being there. "You can't even begin to explain it to people that haven't come yet," he says. "The Fest is really something people have got to experience for themselves."

For more info, go to: thefestfl.com