Advertise on podcast: At Least There’s Fest

Fest kicks off officially, two weeks from today. The celebrate the occasion we welcome Drew Ringo of Sleepytime Trio to the show. Drew shares stories about how the band formed, their early touring years, and tries to establish a timeline on their recordings. He also talks about forming around DC and Richmond and how those scenes helped shape the band. Hang around for this part of the chat for stories about a young Tim Barry and a young Tony Weinbender. Fun stuff. Sleepytime Trio has some more future shows in the works including the West Coast as well as some dates in Europe. Follow them on socials to stay up to speed on those dates. You can catch Sleepytime Trio on Saturday at Vivid.   **Itsa Cookie on Instagram** **Theme song "The Walk to Heartwood" by Jukebox Romantics** **Check out Anthem Tattoo in Gainesville, FL** **Go visit GEEKS during Fest**

Greetings folks and welcome back to At Least There's Fest. We are about two weeks away from Fest 24 and it is officially time to get excited. Joining the show today is the delightful Warren Oakes of the Gainesville band Chimes. The synth-punk band has a fun origin story which Warren shares in the episode and is returning to Fest for the 6th time this fall.  In addition to playing in Chimes, Warren has been in several other bands including Against Me! If that weren't enough, Warren owns Boca Fiesta where you should both eat and see shows at every single Fest you ever attend. As you can imagine, we have plenty to talk about in this one, there's something for everyone.  You can check out Chimes at The Bull on Saturday.   **Itsa Cookie on Instagram** **Theme song "The Walk to Heartwood" by Jukebox Romantics** **Check out Anthem Tattoo in Gainesville, FL** **Go visit GEEKS during Fest**

Thank you so much for tuning in to At Least There's Fest. We are thrilled you are here and we have a terrific episode for you today as we welcome in TWO bands, Cape Crush and One Fall. The Massachusetts bands are both playing Fest for the third time in a few weeks and they are here to give us all the full scene report from up north. Ali and crew from Cape Crush released their debut full length record "Place Memory" this spring and they give us the full run-down on the record. You can hear about what they wanted to put out there both musically and lyrically, it is great stuff. Helen shares updates on One Fall including future shows and how they have new music in the works.  Most importantly we have a lovely discussion on what music means to us. Why this sense of community seems to be at the heart of everything. You can catch Cape Crush on Friday at Depot Village and One Fall on Saturday at The Wooly.    **Itsa Cookie on Instagram** **Theme song "The Walk to Heartwood" by Jukebox Romantics** **Check out Anthem Tattoo in Gainesville, FL** **Go visit GEEKS during Fest**

We are only THREE weeks away from Fest 24! One of the great things about the Fest community is the giving spirit often on display and the real sense of care for those around us. In that spirit, we welcome Tim, Jeremy, and Dave from Anthem Tattoo and The Fest Grace Raffle.  The raffle, in it's eighth year, auctions off items to raise money for the Grace Marketplace in Gainesville. Listen hear to learn more about Grace, how Dave and Anthem got this started, and how they go about gathering all of these awesome donations. The raffle is open NOW and the crew will continue to add items to the auctions all the way up to the Wednesday before Fest. You can swing by the raffle site now and buy your tickets. Stop there early and often to see what they have up. It's for a terrific cause.   **Itsa Cookie on Instagram** **Theme song "The Walk to Heartwood" by Jukebox Romantics** **Check out Anthem Tattoo in Gainesville, FL** **Go visit GEEKS during Fest**

It's October tomorrow! Can you feel it? To get us in the Fest mood we welcome in Tom Fowler of Sleep In to the show to talk about their new record and Fest. The New Jersey group has been around for nearly 15 years, they've played a couple of Fests and their new record "Tangled In The Vines" came out this past Friday. Tom talks about the history of the band, the unique challenge of taking over as the new lead singer of the band during their early days, touring, the new record, and we check in to see what he remembers about Fest 14. You can check out their new record now and you can see them in Jacksonville the Thursday before Fest and/or at the Heartwood on Saturday night in Gainesville.   **Itsa Cookie on Instagram** **Theme song "The Walk to Heartwood" by Jukebox Romantics** **Check out Anthem Tattoo in Gainesville, FL** **Go visit GEEKS during Fest**

We are less than a month away from Fest 24, folks! It's getting real. Joining us on the show today is Mike Rock of Teddy DuChamp's Army. Mike is a scene lifer from Pittsburgh with a real passion for music, that is clear from the jump. He talks to us about how the band formed back in the late 90s, changed names, disbanded, and is now back together. Teddy DuChamp's Army is releasing their new full-length "...The Spirit Never Dies" on October 9, giving you just enough time to dig into it and know it before Fest. You can order the record from Creep Records, it's so good. You can catch the band on Saturday at The Wooly as part of a fairly stacked lineup.  **Itsa Cookie on Instagram** **Theme song "The Walk to Heartwood" by Jukebox Romantics** **Check out Anthem Tattoo in Gainesville, FL** **Go visit GEEKS during Fest**

Welcome back to At Least There's Fest and boy do we have a fun show for everyone today as we welcome Ghost Rat to the show. The Gainesville thrash duo is made of Ryder and Lux, two 13-yeard old 8th graders who will be playing Fest for the first time this fall. We talk to the duo about how they got together, how their have gotten to be so talented at such a young age, their musical influences and we also ask them for any advice they'd give to others looking to start a band. They are a real joy to talk with and their joy in music is immediately clear, it is a terrific conversation and we hope you enjoy it.  You can catch Ghost Rat at The Bull this year at Fest on Friday.   **Itsa Cookie on Instagram** **Theme song "The Walk to Heartwood" by Jukebox Romantics** **Check out Anthem Tattoo in Gainesville, FL** **Go visit GEEKS during Fest**

Greetings and welcome back to At Least There's Fest. Joining the show today we welcome the entirety of Joker's Republic! We get into what exactly qualifies as "ska", being in a band with friends from your teens, cover songs, working togethers, and growing as a band. The New Jersey group released their excellent LP, "The Hand You've Been Dealt" on Punkerton last year before Fest and it is a terrific records. We talk a bit about how that album came together and what it was like working with Roger Lima of Less Than Jake. You can catch Joker's Republic as they return to Fest for the second time at Depot Village on Saturday as part of that gigantic ska showcase happening there. It'll be an absolute rager. Get there.   **Itsa Cookie on Instagram** **Theme song "The Walk to Heartwood" by Jukebox Romantics** **Check out Anthem Tattoo in Gainesville, FL** **Go visit GEEKS during Fest**

We are one month away from Fest 24 and you can feel it in the air. The leaves are changing, there's a chill in the air, and you are enjoying this chat with Scott Radinsky of Pulley during your commute or your workout. Welcome! Scott of course has been fronting punk bands since the 1980s including with Scared Straight, Ten Foot Pole, and with Pulley. In addition to his music career, Scott playing Major League Baseball for years and has also been involved in skateboarding throughout. With his rich and varied background, Scott is a perfect podcast guest as he discusses seeing shows in SoCal in the 80s as well as how he started his first band. He also talks about balancing a punk rock career with a baseball career. Pretty fascinating stuff. Pulley will be making their first ever appearance at Fest next month and you can catch them Friday night at Vivid. It'll be awesome.   **Itsa Cookie on Instagram** **Theme song "The Walk to Heartwood" by Jukebox Romantics** **Check out Anthem Tattoo in Gainesville, FL** **Go visit GEEKS during Fest**

Greetings everyone and Happy Friday! We are five weeks away from Fest 24 and to celebrate this joyous milestone, Todd Congelliere stops by the show.  You know Todd from his work with all of his bands under his Recess Records label: F.YP, Toys That Kill, Underground Railroad to Candyland, Clown Sounds, and Jumpstarted Plowhards. Many of these bands have played Fest multiple times, it is possible that Todd has played more Fest sets than anyone in history. We talk about his early years skateboarding in Southern California in the 1980s and taking his earnings there to start Recess Records. Todd also talks about some early shows he was lucky enough to see during this time, it's a pretty fun topic if you're a punk nerd. We really cover so much ground in an hour that it's impossible to summarize it here. Do yourself a favor, listen to this episode for some real good chat on running a record label, being in bands, and the beauty of Fest. It's excellent stuff. You can catch Todd at Fest with Toys That Kill on Friday, URTC on Saturday, and with FYP and Jumpstarted Plowhards on Sunday. Shocker, Todd will be busy.   **Itsa Cookie on Instagram** **Theme song "The Walk to Heartwood" by Jukebox Romantics** **Check out Anthem Tattoo in Gainesville, FL** **Go visit GEEKS during Fest**

Hello and welcome back to At Least There's Fest! We have a real good one for you here today as we welcome Mike Sosinski to the show. Mike owns and operate Bad Time Records, one of the more fun record labels out there. We ask Mike about forming the label, the ups and downs of the work, and why starting up a ska label is so important. Bad Time is a Fest sponsor this year and Mike tells us about some of terrific bands from the label that are playing Fest next month. Along with his label work, Mike is also the lead vocalist for Kill Lincoln. We dig into the formation of the band, having an official hype-man, forming a ska band while ska was "out", their live shows and much more.  You can catch Kill Lincoln Saturday Night closing out the ska showcase at Depot Village. It will be a situation. Get there.   **Itsa Coookie on Instagram** **Theme song "The Walk to Heartwood" by Jukebox Romantics** **Check out Anthem Tattoo in Gainesville, FL** **Go visit GEEKS during Fest**

Hey! We've got a first for all of you today as we welcome our first Fest wrestler to the show. Brandon St. James is returning to Fest Wrestling again this year to defend his belt.  Brandon tells us all about how he got into wrestling, why it is so fun, what his co-workers think, and most importantly, why professional wrestling is not anything like you think it is. You can check out Fest Wrestling as it returns for the 10th year at Fest 24 on Sunday night at Vivid.   **Itsa Coookie on Instagram** **Theme song "The Walk to Heartwood" by Jukebox Romantics** **Check out Anthem Tattoo in Gainesville, FL** **Go visit GEEKS during Fest**

Hello internet! Welcome back to another episode of At Least There's Fest. We are getting dangerously close to Fest 24 and to mark the occasion we've got a packed house on this episode as we talk to almost all of Orange Blossom Trail. The Orlando band is new to the scene and new to Fest and will be playing the first time next month. The group chat about the evolution of the band, their changing sound, the real world challenges of touring, and one of the more amusing stories you'll ever hear about how a band landed on a name. The group has only a handful of songs out now, but has a number of things in the works including their first full-length album coming out in the coming months. You can catch Orange Blossom Trail on Friday night outside of The Bull.   **Itsa Coookie on Instagram** **Theme song "The Walk to Heartwood" by Jukebox Romantics** **Check out Anthem Tattoo in Gainesville, FL**

BIG show today! Mark and Blake chat with Bob Nanna of Hey Mercedes. Bob was kind enough to chat Braid, Hey Mercedes, and his seemingly endless list of other artistic projects. Bob shares stories about playing with Braid, moving on to Hey Mercedes, his solo projects, along with his Never Ending Polaroid Project, and other endeavors.  Hey Mercedes will be playing "Every Night Fireworks" at Fest this year as the band celebrates the 25th anniversary of the album. Bob shares stories about how that album came together out of the break-up of Braid and how sees the two bands as different. We also get into some of his Fest memories as well as memories of playing shows with Less Than Jake and Saves the Day. You can catch Bob THREE times at Fest this year: Hey Mercedes on Saturday at Bo Diddley Smiths cover band set Saturday night at Looseys Solo set on Sunday at Baby J's   **Itsa Coookie on Instagram** **Theme song "The Walk to Heartwood" by Jukebox Romantics** **Check out Anthem Tattoo in Gainesville, FL**

Greetings and welcome back to At Least There's Fest! Terrific show for you all today as Derron Nuhfer stops by the pod. Derron has DEEP Fest/Gainesville roots as he used to be in a band called Less Than Jake, played Fest 1 with Gunmoll, and has also been active in other bands to play Fest. We talk about his decision to leave Less Than Jake, work various jobs within music, playing with Gunmoll, Cutman, and Reconciler, and much much more.  We talk about following what brings you joy and then just going in that direction, collaborating with a yo-you company on multiple projects, and what makes Fest such a special weekend each and every year. You can catch Derron at Fest 24 during his sets with Cutman and Reconciler (both on Saturday) as well as during some shows in the days leading up to Fest.   **Itsa Coookie on Instagram** **Theme song "The Walk to Heartwood" by Jukebox Romantics** **Check out Anthem Tattoo in Gainesville, FL**