Feature / Music
The Fest 9

Words: Loren • January 3, 2011

The Fest 9
The Fest 9

fest9_intro.png

In nine years, Fest has grown into a pilgrimage, a verb, and something of a lifestyle. Besides the 200-300 bands in town, annual activities include excessive drinking, a lot of walking, sporadic meals, counting Mikey Erg bands, and seeing how many times Dave Decker will run onstage.

Once again I find myself in re-cap mode. After taking a few days to recover from the malnutrition and general bodily abuse, it’s time to reminisce about highlights and pick out my favorites. With a similar line-up year-in and year-out, it’s hard to not write up the same bands each time. I may see The Tim Version, Tiltwheel, Toys That Kill, and others every year, but I can’t single them out for attention every time with so many great bands on the circuit. Besides, Fest is a time to find new favorites and to meet new people.

It all started at 1982 pre-Fest.

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

Vivabeat

Interviews • September 6, 2026

LA’s Art-Punk Pioneers Who Bridged Continents and Genres In 1978, Vivabeat emerged from Los Angeles with a sound that defied easy categorization. As I spoke with Marina and Mick years later, it became clear that this was a band always slightly out of step with the local scene -- East … Read more

Lethal Limits

Music Therapy

Interviews / Don't Quit Your Day Job • September 5, 2026

There are a lot of misconceptions about the life of a musician. Most musicians have day jobs – and not just to pay the bills. Jobs provide new challenges, personal fulfillment and, yes, some rent or gas money. How an artist spends their time by day will influence the creative … Read more

UK Subs

Interviews • August 23, 2026

50 Years of Chaos: Charlie Harper and the U.K. Subs More than five decades after the first sparks of punk lit up the U.K., Charlie Harper remains one of its most enduring figures. As the driving force behind U.K. Subs, Harper has seen entire scenes rise, fracture, and reinvent themselves … Read more

Commerce or Amusement? #2

Green Noise Records

Regular Columns / Commerce or Amusement? • August 22, 2026

Are You In The Music Business? Or Just Involved In Music? Interview Series #2. Featuring Martin Winch of Green Noise Records CC: Howdy Winch! Could you start off by telling the readers a little bit about yourself and Green Noise Records? How did you come to acquire it and what … Read more

Paths 2 Glory

One Question Interviews • August 19, 2026

Chris (Paths 2 Glory) SPB: What is your favorite Bad Religion song? Chris: It's hard to just have one favorite Bad Religion song. I have a few but the one that will always be my favorite or go to answer is "You." I first heard that song while playing Tony … Read more

More from this section

Anathema Editions

Music / History 101 • August 11, 2026

Did you know it’s been 10 years since Anathema Editions put out its first release? To make the moment, we reached out to founder Terence Hannum to share some label history. In keeping with our “History 101” concept, SPB asked for anecdotes about 4 of the label’s releases and then … Read more

Scene Point Blank's Favorites: The Year So Far (July 2026)

Music • July 13, 2026

That's right: we're halfway through 2026 already, although whether that means this year is a glass-half-empty or glass-half-full kind of year... well, the jury's out. But we'll let you know in December. Despite another six months of chaos, war, conflict and uncertainty, one thing in life remains static and reliable: … Read more

Demos You Want To Check #4

Music / New Kids On The Block • July 7, 2026

The musical landscape is ever changing. New genres are popping up, new hypes burst out of nowhere and die out and new bands present themselves to the world. How on earth are you expected to keep up, right? Well, it never hurts to help! So here we are, your humble … Read more