May 29, 2006
I had originally wanted to leave on Sunday but to be honest, as I look back on it, I can’t imagine why. I have no job to speak of, no relationship waiting at home and two of my best friends taking care of my cat. So why the rush? I decided instead to stay thru Monday to see the end of the W.E. Fest and drive up on Tuesday. I was so glad I did.
This last day would turn out to be one of quiet reflection for me as yet another flock of pelicans flew by in perfect formation. Not too much going on during the day and the shows were starting a bit later due to a couple of cancellations. So I sat and remembered such things as the late night chili-dogs and singing songs on the porch. The multitudes of bikini eye candy that drove me crazy.
One girl in particular caught my eye. She was staying at a house near ours and, on this one day, wore a Confederate flag string bikini. I kept refering to her as the General Lee. Oliver from The Funeral Crashers shook his head and said, “That is just wrong on so many levels.” All I know is, I will never watch the Dukes of Hazzard the same way again.
Speaking of The Funeral Crashers, after housemates Margo, Zoe, Nina and Dave Jr. had left, this NYC band moved in for this last day. Not knowing who they were or what kind of parties they might be into, I thought I should get a hotel room. I really wanted to leave early on Tuesday and figured it would be a good idea to get a quiet night’s sleep. As it would turn out, my concerns were unwarranted.
Although the longer, slower-paced day was relaxing, I was getting restless. I hitched a ride with Jared and we made our way downtown. Once there we ran into fellow festers Christy and Dawn. By the way, Dawn dubbed herself ‘Steve’ in an effort to help win the ‘Steve vs. Dave’ battle. It was very early yet so we all decided to grab a bite to eat at the Reel Cafe.
As I sat there and chowed on a delicious pulled pork sandwich, the girls noticed that Dakota Fanning was at a table behind us. I overheard the waitress ask if she was in town working on a film and someone (her mother I assumed) said no, they were just on vacation. And that was the true end of the story.
Of course the version I told everyone was way more entertaining. The way I remembered it, I saw li’l Ms. Fanning at her table, walked up and said, “Do you know how hot you’re gonna be in ten years?” To which she giggled and offered to autograph my ass. I turned her down though, wishing to avoid any legal issues.
An interesting side note; Caroline sent me an email recently saying that Miss Fanning was actually in town filming some new indie movie. In it she portrays a victim of abuse who sings and dances her blues away to the tunes of Elvis Presley. Set in the South in 1961, it also stars Robin Wright Penn and David Morse. What a little liar. Then again I can totally understand since, if she said she was working it would have sparked a whole, long series of questions from the waitress.
At the Soapbox:
I’m not sure of the details, but both The Explorer’s Club and Hero Pattern could not make it. I think one of the bands’ van broke down. I’m not sure which one. Anyway, this allowed us to start a little later and end a little earlier. This turned out to be a fine twist of fate since I decided to stay at the house for my last night.
After checking the hotels I realized what a colossal waste of money it would be to move for just one night. I also got the chance to really get to know the members of The Funeral Crashers so I knew I had nothing to worry about. They also wanted to leave fairly early the next day. Still I knew that there we’d be hanging out after the show. If not for as long as the past nights, for a little while at least.
Andy Bilinski sings songs that sound honest and earthy with a very welcoming air. He was holding up pretty well considering he was in the hospital several days earlier. He had been swimming in the ocean when his back was attacked by a man of war jellyfish. So I was cringing thinking of that guitar strap rubbing up and down, back and forth.
He was joined by Dan who added a nice keyboard texture to Andy’s guitar and wispy voice. At one point a girl—whose name escapes me—joined in on vocals. She jokingly complained that the mic smelled of, “Andy breath”. Andy sniffed and said, “Hmmm, smells like Doritos.”
I had a very nice conversation with the keyboardist of The Specs before they played. Kenyata had introduced me as that guy who doesn’t write bad reviews. I explained that I simply prefer not to waste energy telling people about bands I don’t like. I much prefer promoting things I think people will like. Of course I will point out things I think are not quite right if they are part of a larger event. Such as that band from night three. “Ultimately I was not trashing them as a band,” I said, “I was simply pointing out how they did not fit with the community.”
I left him with the thought, “You guys better not suck. Then again, you won’t know because I won’t write about it.” Patted him on the shoulder, laughed and walked away. As it turned out I very much did like their brit-pop meets new-wave atmosphere sound. They occasionally revealed a harder edge but not too much to over power the songs.
Now it was time for my newest housemates The Funeral Crashers to hit the stage. Some of us were concerned with how they’d come off. Even though they came to W.E. Fest with the full support and reccomendation of Jim Testa, he had not actually heard them live in quite a while or with their new bassist. Plus their dark, heavy gothic sound was very different from all the other bands we’ve seen here.
Since I had gotten to know them from hanging on the beach so I was really looking forward to the set. With all of their makeup and theatrics in order, we waited as they hung the back drop for project visuals. I was worried about how they had been discussing cutting the set short though. This could have been a sign that they were not really into playing. Luckily, all fears were squashed when the set started.
They were just the right combination of chilling confidence and goth-core noise to keep everyone riveted despite the late hour. The visuals of black and white textures were a welcome change to the normal colored lights of a rock show. I do think they need to re-edit the film however as there was a bit too much white light.
They played there full set, balls out. For me they were the perfect example of a band that, not only came to understand W.E. Fest, but reveled in it. For the last song they were joined by Jim Testa for a resounding rendition of the W.E. Fest Song. Afterward, Jim dubbed them the loudest band at W.E. Fest. It was the ideal way to end this year’s party.
Back at the House:
As I suspected we did spend a little time unwinding and sipping a few last beers. But, as I mentioned earlier, a bunch of us needed to get an early start back to NJ. So the festivities were brief and I was off to sleep by 3:30.
I moved from the living room couch to the couch in the den—or the quiet room as we called it. This room had its share of creep factor though. The family who owned this house seemed to be staunch Republicans and proud of it. They did not hide any of their personal belongings such as books, magazines or photos. One photo that stuck out was a family portrait with former President Bush. Thank goodness that were no snapshots of good old ‘W’ around.
This was indeed a fine house. Its large size treated us to comfort just as much as its dishwasher and laundry facilities treated us to convenience. One thing that would have been nice though—an outdoor shower that was more accessible. This one was under the house with no way in that we could find other than walking thru dirt and grass. Sorta defeats its purpose, don’t you think? It was a minor detail however and not enough to disturb my brain from thoughts of sleep.
