My friend went to Fest 8 and all I got was these sweet photos

Going to the Fest in Gainesville, Florida wasn't in the cards for me this year, but my friend Sandra Julien of Seattle, Washington went and agreed to be the Potluck's Fest correspondent.

"If you go to this you will have the time of your life, but then get sick as fuck for a week after. Don't say you weren't warned," she reports.

She is, of course, referring to the well-documented phenomenon known as Fest AIDS. It might be that the average person isn't constituted to watch several dozen sets of weapons-grade pop punk with gruff vocals over the course of a single weekend, and that trying to do so dangerously weakens the immune system. It may also be that the fans and practitioners of this form of music are vectors for disease. Unfortunately, the research is inconclusive and No Idea Records has declined to comment.

I can tell you from personal experience that Fest AIDS is not life threatening and the Fest is totally worth it. As Marissa Paternoster of Screaming Females, who played the Fest last year, once sagely observed, "Who doesn't love a sweet frat party?" To be fair, it looks like piles of girls played this year, including bands like Cheeky that I yearn to see live. So bummed.

Seven Seconds

Lauren Measure of The Measure [SA]

Sheena Ozzella of Lemuria

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