Feature / Music
Fest 10th anniversary: Fests 4-6 remembered

The Fest in Gainesville has become an institution, and Scene Point Blank has hit numbers 6-9 and lived to tell the tale. As the event is celebrating their tenth anniversary with an alumni theme, SPB decided to catch up with some of the old timers to see what they remember about their experiences.

Recalling Fests 4-6, we talked with Erik Funk of Dillinger Four, Ian MacDougall of Riverboat Gamblers, and Andy Nelson of Paint It Black. While some memories were a bit spotty, recurring themes involved general mayhem, a lot of consumption, and Davey Tiltwheel.

• Fest 4: Erik Funk of Dillinger Four
• Fest 5: Ian MacDougall of Riverboat Gamblers
• Fest 6: Andy Nelson of Paint It Black

Stay tuned for interviews about Fests 7-9, our already published recollections of 1-3, and of course, our coverage of this year's #10.

“It feels like summer in October
And I hope this day is never over”
--“Gainesville” by Dillinger Four

A recurring name among Fest talk is Dillinger Four. The Minneapolis band embodies many of the same qualities that make Fest what it is: a DIY spirit, drunken revelry, and bearded men approaching their forties are just a few. To commemorate Fest 4 (2005), Scene Point Blank caught up with D4’s Erik Funk to find out what he remembers from six years ago.

Scene Point Blank: If the records I found are correct, this was your first time at Fest. Was it what you expected? Did it have a reputation yet?

Erik Funk: I’m not sure what we expected. I think at that point the only “fest” type things we had done were probably, like, SXSW and it was awesome to see how a fest could be when you took out the whole industry aspect of it.

Scene Point Blank: What’s your dominant memory from that year?

Erik Funk: Sadly they all kind of bleed together. Anytime I’m walking down a street packed with people and I see Davey Tiltwheel stumbling along looking for people to go have a drink, I know I’m in a good place. That happened that year and every other.

Scene Point Blank: Do you remember your favorite performances at Fest 4?

Erik Funk: I totally don’t, I’m sorry! Again they all bleed together. I couldn’t be sure which show was what year.

Scene Point Blank: As you’ve returned to Fest over the years, how has the event changed?

Erik Funk: Well, obviously I know the whole scale of the thing got huge. Maybe too huge, in some ways, for a lot of people. But for me, at least, it seems like the basic ingredients are all still there the same every year.

Scene Point Blank: What’s the weirdest thing you’ve seen at Fest?

Erik Funk: Wow, sadly I really can’t think of anything on the spot. I learned after the first couple times not to be out festing at 6am, which I’m guessing is when the weird stuff really happens.

Scene Point Blank: Of all the bands to write a song about Fest, I never would have predicted it would be D4. Can you talk a little about “Gainesville” and what the song means to you—does it strictly apply to Fest, or to any time you’re in Central Florida?

Erik Funk: Well, of course that song isn’t about the Fest in a very literal way. I just wanted to write a song that was over the top positive, and that’s something I do feel at the Fest much of the time. But the song kind of came together as an idea before the connection to the Fest and choosing to go ahead and call it Gainesville happened. It just kind of summed up the spirit of the whole thing for me.

Scene Point Blank: Was there a particular reason why you didn’t play Fest 9?

Erik Funk: We had done a lot of touring in 2009 (for us anyway), and I really wanted to take 2010 off from playing. I think we only played one show that year.

Scene Point Blank: Over the last decade you’ve only gone on a handful of tours. Are festivals more conducive to your personal schedules? Do you still enjoy more extensive tours?

Erik Funk: Festivals are way more conducive, for sure. Fest in particular is great because we get to catch up with all the people from around the country we used to see more often when we toured. I think we all prefer playing our own shows in different cities on tour to playing a festival, but that has just gotten harder and harder to make time to do it over the years.

Scene Point Blank: One thing that struck me reading older interviews, from 10+ years ago, in preparation for this is how little some things have changed. Even back then you clearly stated where the band ranks in terms of personal priorities and in the whole career vs. hobby kind of thing. What is the biggest change in how you approach the band now as compared to when you were getting started?

Erik Funk: I think we approach it basically the same way: if something sounds like fun, we totally want to do it. We never felt like we needed to work hard at it so we could achieve some level of success. We just figured if we had fun with it good things would come, and they did, and they still do. There’s just less time to spend on it. I don’t know if we ever really envisioned D4 as forty year –olds. There’s no blueprint for it in my mind. We just kind of take things as they come and try to keep it fun.
  

Scene Point Blank: It’s possible you don’t agree with this statement, but it seems like a lot of current bands show a pretty strong D4 influence, especially within the Midwest. What’s it like to be watching another “generation” of bands coming up and citing you as an influence?

Erik Funk: Yeah, there are some great bands that seem to be kind of kindred spirits with us now as far as how they go about it. I’m not sure it’s a musical influence thing, although maybe in some cases.

Scene Point Blank: It’s already been two years since Civil War. Are you working on new material? Do you get tired of this question?

Erik Funk: A little bit, yes. Paddy and I have been talking about how we want to go about making another record. I think there will be more for sure, but when and how is hard to say.

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Interview: Loren

Photography: Nathan

To recap Fest 5 (2006), we caught up with Ian MacDougall, guitarist of the Riverboat Gamblers. The Gamblers won’t be playing Fest 10, but they’ve played enough Fests to hold the honored title of alumni. The band recently released Smash/Grab.

Scene Point Blank: How did you get involved with The Fest?

Ian: We are really good friends with Tony from No Idea. I'm not sure, but maybe this was around the time that To the Confusion of Our Enemies was pressed on vinyl through No Idea. Either way it was a blast. We played a show with Dead To Me, Lifetime, and None More Black. It was my first time seeing None More Black and I thought they were great.

Scene Point Blank: What’s your dominant memory from Fest 5?

Ian: I remember that me and Pat (our bass player at the time) were at that pizza place up a ways away from where everything goes down. We had those vouchers they give you for a free piece of pizza and a coke or something, I don’t really remember. I do remember looking at the time and realizing that Paint It Black were about to go on and that that was the one band we were really really stoked on seeing. We dropped everything and bolted down the road for what seemed like miles—but which, I'm sure, were just blocks—all out of shape and shit. We got there just in time to catch their set and it was great! Little did I know that we would tour together and make great friends with them a couple years later. I also remember watching a totally fucked-up, bare ass naked dude running away from people who were trying to stop him from driving home from either the Lifetime show or Dillinger Four show. Most likely D4.

Scene Point Blank: Did you watch many other bands? Do you recall a favorite?

Ian: I don’t really remember, as we weren't there for that long. Both the Blacks (None More and Paint It) were great. I...think...I saw Dillinger 4. I don’t remember too clearly. I think that’s what is supposed to happen there: time traveling from date of arrival to the few hours before you leave three days later sitting at a waffle house with Paddy Costello and Davey Tiltwheel comparing stick and poke skull tattoos and the deep artistic meanings of what it says underneath or over them. Punx.

Scene Point Blank: So how does Fest compare to other festivals you’ve played?

Ian: It’s up there with being one of the best in terms of familiarity with everyone who you're dealing with upon arrival. I remember that being really easy because festivals are usually a total fucking hassle. Check in here; go over there; put your gear here; now walk over there; you can only hang out in your dressing room for this amount of time before you have to go over here; can’t stand here blah blah. Who knows, maybe it was a hassle. I had a blast though. All your friends are there and you don't have to deal with all the ego and bullshit of seeing guys in bands that think they are hot shit walking around your town with stupid badges on their necks thinking that it’s some kind of award or medal for being a total fucking douche bag.

Scene Point Blank: You’re from a music/college town. How does it compare to Gainesville?

Ian: I dunno, I mean I always tell people in town for SXSW in Austin that “This is not Austin, so don't think that this is what it’s like all the time.” And the only time I can really think of ever going to Gainesville was during Fest so I'm sure that it wasn't a real representation of the town. So I guess I wouldn't really know.

I would love to go back. Everyone I've met from that place is really swell and has nothing but good things to say about it. Can’t wait to!

Scene Point Blank: To change gears a little, what influenced the song, “The Tearjerker?”

Ian: "The Tearjerker" was originally an uptempo anthem-y kinda rocker. We ended up trying it a few different ways musically and the final product seemed more interesting than the other ways we were playing it. We added some cool things like 12 string acoustic guitars (I kinda wanted to do a Killing Moon type thing) and that crazy slide guitar that a pal of Andrew Murdock came in and put down. Lyrically it’s got a big “break-up” vibe.

Scene Point Blank: Have you thought about repressing your first album or Backsides on vinyl?

Ian: Backsides is technically a 3rd record compiled of b-sides, covers, and collaborations with other dudes in bands. Jamie Wednesday wrote a song. Mark and Jeff from the Marked Men helped on a few songs and recorded the whole thing, too. It’s actually one of my favorites of all the stuff that the band put out before I joined, so I would love to see it on vinyl. There are no plans in the near future to have it pressed, but it’s definitely something to think about.

Scene Point Blank: Why did you pick “Heaven is Falling” for the Bad Religion tribute?

Ian: Fadi was behind all that. He loves that album and that song specifically. I think I remember him saying that he had wanted to cover that song just in general. Anyways, we hopped into a studio in the middle of tour, learned and recorded it all in one day. Had a blast!

Scene Point Blank: What about the split with Andrew W.K.? How did that come about?

Ian: Volcom set that up. We got a call asking if we wanted to do a split with Andrew W.K. and it was a resounding “yes” from all of us!

Scene Point Blank: As a band that’s on the road quite frequently, which city, outside of the US, is the most fun to play?

Ian: Gronigen is pretty great. They have a club there called VERA and the entire staff treats you so well. They've housed lots of people I look up to musically, and even give you a place to stay. Most venues in that area of the country do. I love that place!

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Interview: Loren and Aaron

Photography: Gary Copeland

Few bands have made as big of a Fest impact as Paint It Black. The hardcore favorites have a steady presence, not only from their main band, but with other projects like Lifetime, Affirmative Action Jackson, Armalite, and more also being regulars. Living in Fest infamy is the apartment show at Fest 6 in 2007. While I wasn’t personally there, I still hear about it to this day when Fest is mentioned.

Catching up with bassist Andy Nelson, Scene Point Blank asked him what he enjoys most about the annual Gainesville bash.

Scene Point Blank: What led to the apartment show at Fest 6?

Andy: I'm afraid the backstory for this one is way less interesting than the outcome, but since you asked: Earlier that day, our dear friends Shook Ones asked if we'd be interested in stopping by to play a short set at a house show they'd arranged and so, of course, we said yes –as long as we didn't have to miss Naked Raygun.

So, the four of us watched Naked Raygun (up fucking front) and once they hit the last note of that surprising Sludgeworth cover, we hightailed it across town in just enough time to run through the door of that apartment and play for however long it took the pigs to storm in and grab us. I might have this wrong, but I think we managed to play a few more songs after the cops arrived.

Scene Point Blank: Other than the apartment show, what are some key memories from that year?

Andy: The years tend to blur, don't they? It's embarrassing to say, but at the moment my feeble brain quite frankly can't differentiate between Fests 5, 6, and 7. There were a lot of drunk people there, right?

Perhaps The Fest exists in an aberrant metaphysical space where there is no such thing as time, there is only Fest.

Scene Point Blank: This was the first year utilizing a bigger venue (The Venue), right? How did playing on a larger stage affect the feel of performing at Fest?

Andy: Actually, if memory serves, our very first Fest performance was at Abbey Road, which in hindsight seems just as big. Not to toot our own horn, but I think Paint It Black always does a good job of at least attempting to break through the distance and alienation that comes with playing in a huge, impersonal rock club. And usually it works out. That set at Abbey Road, for example, was one for the books. Obviously it's entirely different than playing in a packed, sweaty living room or church basement, but it's been surprisingly easy for us at The Fest, which I'm sure is mostly to the credit of the collective consciousness of the thousand or so right-minded punks who continue to surround us in those rooms year after year.

Scene Point Blank: What keeps you coming back every year?

Andy: You mean besides Dillinger Four and the part of the night where bars let out and you can buy a Five Star Pizza on the street for $5? Recently, the espresso at Volta.

Scene Point Blank: Since the apartment show and then the parking lot set, do you feel like you have to one-up yourselves each year? Any big surprises in store for #10?

Andy: After the U-Haul show, I think we were all worried that we'd become a spectacle act, which is both a fate worse than death and also something we never intended. And to some extent, in recent years we've felt a weight of expectation; it's a bit of a drag, too, considering that our focus is always the actual Fest performance itself! But we all make our own beds, don't we?

We have nothing extra planned for Fest 10 as of this writing but, of course, you'd be the last people to tell even if we did. I've always fantasized about doing a generator show in the lobby of the Gainesville police station. Do you think that would make Tony mad?

Scene Point Blank: Affirmative Action Jackson is also a regular Fest band and, well, most of Paint It Black shares members with other groups that play each year. Does it ever feel hectic, like you have a lot to do while in town, or is playing multiple sets part of the fun?

Andy: It's a double-edged sword. While it's nice to perceive an exponentially greater amount of love and approval with each rousing set you turn in at The Fest, you do end up having exponentially less quality time with friends and you end up seeing exponentially fewer other bands play.

This year, members of Paint It Black will also perform in Lifetime and TV Casualty and, I think, Armalite, so it's clear that none of us have figured out a way to entirely avoid the excitement that accompanies the chaos.

Scene Point Blank: A lot is made of Dan’s day job and how it ties into being in a hardcore band. What is your day job? Is there any crossover between your job and your bands?

Andy: Aside from my duties in various other active musical acts, I work for an independent concert promoter in Philadelphia called R5 Productions, booking and working shows. It's about as much crossover as you can get.

Scene Point Blank: Your bands are a lot less active than they were, say, 5-10 years ago. How do you balance punk rock and a regular “adult lifestyle”?

Andy: My bands are less active? You could have fooled me. Though it is true that I'm always struggling to find a reasonable balance between this mental illness that is playing in touring punk bands while still maintaining good relationships with the wonderful people in my life. And being able to afford a few basic human needs like food, shelter, rare records, and the finest coffee. I absolutely do not have a "regular adult lifestyle," and I'm perfectly happy with that. I don't think I'd be able to tolerate such a thing.

Scene Point Blank: Paint It Black also rarely tours. When you played Minneapolis in February it was a crazy show with a lot of energy. Does the infrequency of touring make it more enjoyable?

Andy: Paint It Black has evolved into a somewhat elusive creature over the past year or two, but we are no less engaged with the scene of which we are a part or the people who define it and make punk happen. It's an unfortunate reality that these days we don't play as many shows as in years past, but we've been pleasantly surprised that people seem to understand this and, rather than become disinterested in us in the face of our inactivity, will instead make a point to be there when we do play.

A lot of people came to those shows in the Midwest from areas surrounding, and the air felt so charged: the combination of the pent up energies of hours and hours cooped up in cars or airplanes traveling to get there (for us too). That sort of group catharsis is the entire goal of why we play shows, so it's been rad that for the past year or so, all of our shows have carried that atmosphere. We've always felt the same way about our annual Fest shows, actually.

Scene Point Blank: At that show, did you plan the DYS cover with D4, or was it pretty spontaneous?

Andy: It was spontaneous in the sense that no one knew it was going to happen when we arrived that afternoon, but not in the sense there was some lyrical rehearsal before Yeems stepped back onto the Triple Rock's stage. You can't blame him for being a professional, can you? Hopefully that doesn't ruin anyone's perception of the magic.

Scene Point Blank: It’s been 2 years since anything new came out. What’s the status on writing new material?

Andy: New songs float in the ether. When the stars align just right, we'll assemble and something magical will materialize. We haven't gone anywhere, you know.

Scene Point Blank: Thanks for your time!

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Interview: Loren

Photography: Chrissy Piper