Harvest of Hope Fest, Day Two

Saturday at Harvest of Hope Fest is much like Saturday at The Fest; there are just far too many awesome bands playing to even dream of being able to see them all. Conflicts arise. Tough choices are made. Hearts are ultimately broken. But at the same time, there may be no such thing as a bad decision here; at least, that's the best way to look at it. I went into Saturday tired, sore, but excited, hoping to see as many bands as I could, take as many photos as possible and try not to end up in the hospital. In retrospect, I was completely successful in every facet.

We arrived at the grounds shortly after 11 AM, right as the gates were opened. Most folks were visibly tired, hungover and generally frazzled from what was certainly a heavy night of partying. The weather was better; a few clouds, lots of sun and afternoon temperatures in the low 70s. Wind, however, was an issue in much the same way rain had been on Friday. Merch tents were blowing away, Miller Lite's fence advertisements were ripped apart (those poor, rich souls), dust was kicked up into the eyes of many, and paperweights were few. Even stage speakers were vulnerable to the gusts, which I'll elaborate on a little later in the post.

The first band of the day was south Florida's Protagonist on Stage 1, and despite an ungodly set time they did an admirable job pumping up a sparse, groggy crowd, exuding a lot of energy and passion, which is sort of the norm when it comes to politically-charged melodic hardcore. That band gets better every time I see them.

Weatherbox were next on Stage 2, and they're about as weird live as on record. They had a 45 minute slot but only played for 30, which was a little odd. The songs they performed from their new Christpuncher EP sounded worlds better than anything from The Cosmic Drama, which largely came as a disappointment following up the extremely solid and occasionally brilliant American Art.

Speaking of bands with shockingly early set times, A Wilhelm Scream rocked lunchtime at Stage 1. Lots of energy, as always, and tighter-sounding than most bands of their ilk would be at such a time. The band played three songs from their new, self-titled EP ("Skid Rock," "Australias" and "Fun Time") and plenty of cuts from Ruiner ("Killing It," "Me vs. Morrissey," "The King is Dead") and Career Suicide ("I Wipe My Ass With Showbiz," "5 to 9") The only song I remember hearing from Mute Print was "Famous Friends and Fashion Drunks," which got a huge reaction from the crowd as it usually does. I was hoping for "The Kids Can Eat a Bag of Dicks" or "William Blake Overdrive" but wasn't suprised when they weren't included. They'll be on the set list whenever AWS plays my wedding reception.

Our first venture over to the smaller, covered stages was a worthy one, as Good Luck drew a huge crowd under Stage 4. The band's new songs sound great (and a little more positively frenetic) live, and the old jams such as "Stars Were Exploding," "Come Home" and "Pajammin" were just as enjoyable. The trio gives off such a positive, welcoming vibe that definitely enhances their live set. More bands should do it instead of acting all pouty all the time. Good Luck had a new, four-song demo with them which I purchased. Expect a review soon.

"Remember when Punknews used to report on punk bands? … No, Paramore needs more press. Green Day needs more press … I've just guaranteed that there will never be another positive review of my band on Punknews ever again," opined Dead to Me bassist/power stance professional Chicken during that band's set at Stage 1 on Saturday afternoon. He's wrong, at least about the last part; DTM's set was a lot of fun, and the lack of Jack Dalrymple wasn't a negative factor. Virgins frontman Sam Johnson joined the band for a few songs as a second guitarist, including rousing renditions of "Bad Friends" and "Nothin Runnin Thru My Brain." But enough about that: Have you guys heard about the new Green Day video game? What about that new Paramore video? It's a doozy.

Strike Anywhere was next on Stage 1, and first held the lead for most crowded press pit. The band's older material like "To The World" and "Blaze" seemed to garner a bigger crowd reaction than the newer stuff, even though "I'm Your Opposite Number" sounded pretty great.

Back on Stage 4, The Measure [SA] were rocking a sizable audience eager to escape the sun for a bit. Rumbles about the lack of energy in the band's live show proved to be untrue here; everyone generally seemed stoked and the songs all sounded wonderful. Their new record for No Idea Records, Notes, is eagerly anticipated.

I was stoked to catch Low Red Land on Stage 3, as I'd missed their electric set at The Fest. The crowd was small but the band brought it hard. If you haven't heard Dog's Hymns yet, you're blowing it. Just sayin'.

Virgins performed next on Stage 4, and the new jams they played sounded rough, dirty and melodic, just as we'd want and expect them to be. Their new record will be out sometime this year; I haven't heard it, but people I know and trust who have all seem to agree that it's awesome.

Lemuria followed Virgins and performed most of the best songs from Get Better ("Pants," "Yesterday's Lunch," "Lipstick," "Dog," "Mechanical") along with "Expert Herder" from their new Ozzy 7" and maybe a couple others that aren't registering at the moment. Lots of singing along from the crowd; good times were had all around. Once they wrapped up, we rotated over to Stage 3 to catch the rest of Austin Lucas's set; the two new songs he played were phenomenal. The follow-up to last year's excellent Somebody Loves You figures to be just as strong.

On Stage 4, Cheap Girls were setting up for what would be a fun set, mostly culled from Find Me A Drink Home ("No One to Blame," "Stop Now," "Kind of on Purpose," "Parking Lot," "Stay High (Magic)") with "Ft. Lauderdale" and "Hey Hey I'm Worn Out" represented the band's sophomore full-length My Roaring 20s. It was then time for sets from Look Mexico and Ninja Gun on Stage 3; the former had already started before Cheap Girls finished, and as we were walking up I could hear the final seconds of "You Stay. I Go. No Following.," the wonderful opening track from the band's new record To Bed To Battle. Other highlights included "You Ever Get Punched In The Face For Talking Too Much," "You're Not Afraid of The Dark, Are You?" and set closer "Just Like Old Times." The band sounded tight and Matt Agrella's vocal performances were spot-on. That band is poised to have a huge 2010. Ninja Gun followed them admirably, working through some equipment issues to play a set filled with new songs, including "Roman Nose," which sounded much better live than as a demo (imagine that). The band also threw in a couple of older favorites, namely "Eight Miles Out," "Darwin was a Baptist" and "Smooth Transitions." Their upcoming EP for Sabot figures to be worth a listen.

Smoke or Fire had already started their set over on Stage 4 to a massive, hot crowd. Frontman Joe McMahon remarked that it was the band's first show in a year, but other than some minor voice issues it hardly seemed to show. The band ripped through older tracks like "Filter," "Fire Escapes," and token set closer "California's Burning," less older ones such as "The Patty Hearst Syndrome" and "Melatonin," and new jam "Modesty" from their new 7", Prehistoric Knife Fight, which the band was selling on blue vinyl. Cobra Skulls were next; the crowd had petered out somewhat, but those who stuck around were treated to a tight set, with "Rebel Fate," "The Cobra and the Manwhore," "Lost in Campaigns," and "Back to the Youth" all definite highlights. The band hardly missed a beat (groan) with their new drummer, too.

I opted to skip Leatherface (they're playing in Orlando on Monday, I'll see them then indoors when it's not as cold) on Stage 4 in lieu of a much-needed dinner break. It's crazy how running around a festival like this can make otherwise simple pleasures like sitting down so rewarding. I'd need to get a second wind before Billy Bragg performed a 75 minute set over on Stage 2, and I was glad I did. Bragg was, expectedly, phenomenal. He talked a lot (he's a folk singer, after all), about myriad of topics from his breakfast that morning with Ku Klux Klan infiltrator and local hero Stetson Kennedy, his 16 year-old son's affinity with Anti-Flag, loud guitar sounds and Japanese cartoon porn, to Woody Guthrie, Rock Against Racism and many other causes worth championing, all addressed by Bragg in an eloquent, witty and passionate manner. His set included plenty of favorites, including "NPWA," "Way Over Yonder in the Minor Key," "I Keep Faith," and "There Is Power In The Union." The huge crowd ate it up, sang along, and cheered loudly to nearly every point made by Bragg. It was my first time seeing the man live, and I walked away with a greater appreciation of what he does and what his music and his message mean to our scene. See him live if you ever have the chance.

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While exhausting, Saturday at Harvest of Hope Fest was a largely successful experience. Now, it's Sunday morning and I've got my second wind, which I'll need once I hit the fairgrounds to check out Broadway Calls, Crime in Stereo, The Loved Ones, Small Brown Bike, The Menzingers, The Riot Before, Bomb the Music Industry! and Andrew Jackson Jihad, among others. Looking forward to it, and Sunday's recap will be back in this space tomorrow. In the meantime, keep an eye on the Punknews.org twitter account for up to the minute updates. Click any photo to enlarge.

Protagonist Weatherbox A Wilhelm Scream Dead to Me Good Luck Strike Anywhere The Measure [SA] Low Red Land Virgins Lemuria Austin Lucas Cheap Girls Look Mexico Ninja Gun Cobra Skulls Billy Bragg