Bay Fest 2016

Punctual as a highway line, here is our live report of Bay Fest 2016, held in Balleria Igea Marina the 14th and 15th of August.
After a smooth trip, we arrived at the campsite, organized by the Bay Fest, and we immediately dove in the water. We opened up many beers and greeted friends and acquaintances.
But let’s talk about the concerts!

The minute we arrived at Parco Pavese, the place where the 12 bands (6 per day) played, it was clear that this was going to be a great event: punk rockers from everywhere and a well-structured stage.
The first band to play is I.S., an Italian ska-core band with English lyrics. Their 20 minute gig was good, even though I wasn’t struck by their music. It’s worth mentioning their tribute to Aldrovandi and the fact that the singer played the trumpet. It was a good start!

The second band was Coffeeshower from L’Aquila, a band that delighted us for more than 30 minutes with their melodic punk rock. I had listened to the song “Broken Pieces” on youtube, but I wasn’t enthused; I was still curious to see them live and it was worth it. Not only I started to enjoy the previously mentioned song, but I have to say that this band really knows how to perform on a stage. Their music reminded me of the No Use For A Name album “Keep Them Confused”. Well done!

The third and last Italian band was Talco, which we interviewed a little while ago and finally started to be appreciated also here in Italy. The crowd was thrilled and the ska/patchanka punk band from Marghera put on a great show. They are one of the bands I enjoyed the most. “Sankt Pauli”, “L’Odore della Morte” and “La Torre” had the audience jumping and moshing. If you have the chance, go see them live!

At 8.30 pm, A Wilhelm Scream, band from New Bedford Massachusetts, took the stage. This melodic hardcore band played for about 50 minutes and I have to say that I was really impressed by their musical skills, also because their were jumping and running on the stage while playing. After 30 minutes I was a bit tired of their technical riffs, but their performance was impeccable until the end. I’ll definitely go see them again and you should too!  

A Wilhelm Scream were in tour with the band Strung Out and the latter had the task to open up for the headliners, NOFX. Strung Out, which are under Fat Wreck Chords, is one of the most versatile punk bands in history, mixing up punk rock, hardcore, metal and rock. I had never seen them live before and I was very thrilled. What do I think about their performance? It was great and Chris Aiken (bass) and Jason Cruz (vocals) had a great presence on stage. There are two minor things I didn’t quite understand: did Jason lose his voice? Does anyone know? And it was a pity that they didn’t play “City Lights” and “Nowheresville”, my favorite tracks. Nonetheless, I really enjoyed “Firecracker”, “Matchbook” and “Solitaire”! The No Use For A Name cover, “Soulmate”, which ended with a “Never forget Tony Sly!” gave me goose bumps!

It was time for the punk rock legends NOFX. They got on the stage with their usual dirty (but funny) cloth and with Fat Mike dressed with a leather skirt: very punk! The band started off with “60%”, a song that is calm at first, but then had the crowd go wild. The following songs were “Stickin’ in my Eye” and “Linoleum”, which set the tone for the whole performance. As we all know, they are great entertainers and I can easily say that I had a lot of fun. The one hour and fifteen minute concert went on with songs such as “Eat the Meek”, “Bob” and some calmer tracks. A great song was “Six Years on Dope”, from their latest album “First Ditch Effort, which will be released in October. I only wish they played “Don’t Call me White” and “The Brews”, but it still was a great concert and their tribute to Tony Sly was amazing. At least once in your lifetime, go see them live!

The first day was great and, after a good night’s sleep, the second day started. This time the headliners were a band which had come only once in Europe, at the Groezrock in Belgium. I’m talking about Screeching Weasel, a historical punk band led by the infamous Ben Weasel. Many people couldn’t wait to see them perform, but let’s first talk about the other 5 bands that preceded them.

The first band was Honey, a band from Rimini which mixes pop-punk with a very melodic hardcore. The band knew how to perform and the songs were good. It’s worth mentioning their funny jokes and the sign “#Siamo tutti coglihoney”.

The second band was Lags from Rome, a post-hardcore band which is not really my type. Nonetheless they were good.

Next up were Slander, a punk hardcore with metal influences band from Venice which is very popular in the Venezia Hardcore scene. Their attitude was great and they were thrilling as always. Great show!

It was time for Derozer from Vicenza. The audience was enthusiastic and the band had the crowd singing for the whole performance. Even without Mendez, the four members put on a great show and it’s always good to see them live. “Alla Nostra Età” + “Branca Day” = epic!

The fifth band was Satanic Surfers from Malmo, a great skate punk band. I couldn’t wait to see them and it paid off. Nothing against Screeching Weasel and NOFX, but I think that Satanic Surfers was the best band: powerful during every song and great impact. Rodrigo (vocals) and Andy (bass) were phenomenal. It was a great performance and I hope to see them soon!

And here came the moment we were all awaiting: Screeching Weasel took the stage. They started off strong with “I’m Gonna Strangle You”, “Slogans” and “Ashtray”. Ben was in great shape, just like the other four members of the band. The central portion of the show included “Supermarket Fantasy”, “Hey Suburbia” and “Guest List”, while “The Science of Myth” ended the first part of the concert. The second part kicks off with the great “Cindy’s on Methadone”, accompanied by Andrea, a friend of theirs from the band Manges; next on the track-list was “My Brain Hurts”, which will be remembered for Spasio Derozer’s epic intrusion on the stage. The show ended with the songs “My Right” and “Cool Kids”, first Screeching Weasel song I have ever listened to.
During the performance, Ben said two things that really stood out: firstly, he joked about Monster, the sponsored beverage; secondly, he bickered about Fat Mike (obviously).
Nonetheless, it was an amazing show and I really hope they will be back soon. Ben Weasel’s persona might be debatable, but his love for punk rock is admirable!

I want to thank the organizers and all the punk rockers that were present! Here are the TOP and FLOP 5.

TOP 5:
1-The Germans with basil near their tent.
2-Chris Aiken’s, from Strung Out, “Viva la Figa”. A must if you want to speak Italian!
3-Coffeeshower’s cover of the Proclaimers’ song “500 Miles”, already covered by Down By Law and made famous by the tv-show “How I Met Your Mother”. Great!
4-Rodrigo Alfaro hitting himself over his head with the microphone.
5-“We are Slander, 4 jerks, maybe 5 because I count as half…” – Samall you are great!

FLOP 5:
1-Not to debate, but I’ll say it here because I don’t know where else to say it. Why is the merchandize so expensive? Not to be stingy, but I’m trying to understand why a t-shirt costs 20 euro. Maybe there is a reason I can’t quite grasp.
2-The amount of dust during the mosh! A swiffer was needed!
3-Too many police dogs…it’s a punk rock concert for God’s sake!
4-I wish Talco would have performed “Bella Ciao”!
5-I’m not here to judge, but if you are punk, you are punk all the way through. A lot of people went to see NOFX and NOFX only. In Italy we are missing the curiosity for unknown bands and this is why during the other punk rock gigs in Italy there wasn’t a large audience.

Live Report by T.S.
Translation by J.L.