BDM Member Shows

BDM - Dan VS Fest

Listen

Description

BDM Show - Episode Notes

Episode: "Dan vs. Fest"
Hosts: Tom Vann, Dan Dennis | Guest: Ross McCoy (in studio)

Sponsors / Ad Reads

Segment Rundown

  1. Cold open: Dan at Fest. Dan went to his first Fest in Gainesville. He says there was a lot of crossover with BDM and Tom & Dan listeners, and jokes that a show tent handing out water would have won new fans. The hosts ask listeners to come say hi when they see them out, saying it's like a customer supporting a small business. There's a side joke about Shia LaBeouf and selfie seekers.
  2. Punk rock is accessible. Dan liked that band members from Lagwagon, Bouncing Souls and smaller acts were all out in the crowd and easy to talk to. He also shouts out the band Virginity (Casey's band), who were at Fest this year but didn't play.
  3. Biggest band debate. Lagwagon is named the most famous band there, but Dan says it was really Pup's crowd. Bouncing Souls and Lagwagon are the "old heads," and many other acts lean shoegaze, screamo or post-hardcore. Dan puts the average age around 30 since it's a college town. He praises Samantha for using Fest to discover new bands.
  4. Dan's punk Mount Rushmore. NOFX and the Descendents were already checked off. Lagwagon was the one he'd never seen, after sick days and conflicts, and despite reports about Joey Cape's voice and the band's money troubles. He thanks his co-host for getting him the passes.
  5. Tesla self-driving road trip. Dan's car drove him about 146 miles with no interventions while he drank Mountain Dew and listened to a curated Fest playlist. He shares his hat-and-sunglasses trick to stop the attention "nag," which leads to a crude riff from the hosts. He describes the confetti celebration at 100 miles and his spot on an online leaderboard (98.6% self-driven). He predicts all cars will drive themselves eventually and compares this to Cadillac's system, lane assist and Waymo.
  6. Battery talk. Robert in the chat asked about charging stops. Dan explains keeping the battery at 80% day to day and charging to 100% for trips. He arrived with about half his battery left.
  7. Sweetwater Branch Inn. Dan stayed at a cluster of cottages around a pink main house where a cook served a real Southern breakfast with cheese grits. It was his first true B&B (maybe besides Tuttle's wedding). Tom says he'd rather have breakfast delivered than make small talk with hungover strangers. They also discuss old-school metal keys.
  8. Wristband line myth busted. Debary Joe had warned of a four-to-six-hour wristband line at First Magnitude Brewing. Dan got through in 12 minutes, before finishing a free Miller High Life from a guy in line, and Mellow Mike was handing out chips and Fruit by the Foot. The hosts joke that Debary Joe has "lost his credibility" and talk about exaggerating for radio. Tom pitches expecting the worst so everything beats expectations.
  9. Wristband theory. Staff sized each wristband. A host's theory: the tighter the band, the fancier the event, citing the Halloween Horror Nights RIP tour. There's a bit about puffing up your wrist like an escape artist. Dan carried Tony Rage's wristband for him. The policy is one and done if you lose it.
  10. First sets. Dan caught 500 Bucks, a band with teenage members, and friends of the show Debt Neglector, both at First Magnitude. Clips are on his Instagram.
  11. Tom's imagined Fest night. Tom acts out how his Fest would go: holding court with listeners, getting drunk, ending up in a stranger's car headed to a hotel "party" that's just people on a bed playing Sublime, and plotting an escape. Dan says nothing like that happened.
  12. Make War at Vivid. Tony Rage is subbing on lead guitar for Make War and played three sets. At one show he fretted the chords while a young fan strummed from the crowd, and the kid's video blew up. The hosts argue whether that counts as playing. They also debate whether Debary Joe and his partner Denise splitting up at festivals to see different bands is healthy or weird. BDM Charles weighs in on Dan not bringing Andrea.
  13. Beer prices. Craft beers in the main area were about $6, while pints of Coors Light at Vivid were about $15.
  14. Asleep sitting up. Dan sat down to watch Game 1 of the World Series and fell asleep fully dressed, from about 8:30 to 1 a.m. He missed the night's bands while Tony Rage was out until 3:30 having beers with Joey Cape. The hosts tease him about this habit at 50.
  15. The Dreaded Laramie. On day two at Bo Diddley Plaza, Dan saw the Nashville band, which the show has played before. The singer-guitarist played bits of Rush's "YYZ" between songs, ate grass in the crowd and ate a raw egg thrown at her. They closed with the full song. Dan describes the guitar players in the crowd watching her with envy.
  16. Gully Boys. The all-female band briefly lost the crowd with a comment aimed at Shane Gillis. They then played a very heavy cover of No Doubt's "Hella Good." They're on the Tom & Dan Spotify playlist.
  17. Chilled Monkey Brains. This is the ska side project of past show guests the Longest Hole. Dan calls them the most high-energy band he's seen, with three trombones and a trombonist going wild in the crowd. Ross passes along their hello.
  18. The Impossibles. The Austin band wore matching hockey jerseys and were good, but Dan says ska without horns fell flat right after Chilled Monkey Brains. There's a pun about the band name.
  19. Pup. This was the biggest crowd of the night. Dan only crossed paths with Samantha and her husband Travis briefly, since they hop venues after two songs while he stays for full sets. Tom notes Sam always seems to find the good after-parties.
  20. Against All Authority. The Florida ska band had horns and more energy. Dan says he looks like their bassist and singer plus 50 pounds. The hosts look up the plaza's name: it was renamed in 2009 for Bo Diddley, who lived in nearby Archer.
  21. Bouncing Souls and a rowdy listener. A listener known by an off-color nickname (EMWP) got sloppy. Dan and Debary Joe kept an eye on him to keep his jokes from going over badly, and Dan says on air that he loves the guy.
  22. Lagwagon finally checked off. The band sounded great and played songs from across their catalog, including "Violence" and songs from Let's Talk About Feelings. Merch was nearly sold out, so Dan settled for an odd-sized shirt. That leads to the hosts criticizing punk bands for not monetizing, and saying they deserve good incomes and health insurance.
  23. Gainesville eats. Dan gives Loosey's five out of five for its Nashville chicken sandwich and fries. He had Long Drink zero-sugar drinks, and the listener bought everyone a Five Star Pizza, which Dan rates "two stars." He walked back to the inn afterward.
  24. Google account lockout. Dan left Sunday instead of staying because the show was locked out of its Google account. He was texting Jorge from the venue during Gully Boys, got scolded by Debary Joe for working, and apologizes. Tom says nobody minded.
  25. Fest verdict. Dan would go again "in a heartbeat" and urges first-timers to go, even solo. He describes a helpful, drama-free community. He wants to go next year with BDMs and stay at the Sweetwater Branch Inn again.
  26. Jacuzzi guy "Benny." At breakfast, a dripping-wet guest recommended the inn's "invigorating" jacuzzi jets, which became a running joke for Dan and Tony Rage. The hosts debate how jets actually work.
  27. Larry Fulford comedy. Larry was staying at the same inn and performed in the all-day punk rock comedy marathon. When his set ended, the whole audience left. The hosts trade takes on Gainesville and its homeless being "less aggressive than Orlando."
  28. UCF homecoming vs. BYU. A host watched the game with family in from out of town while campus homecoming was going on. A guest from Utah cheered for BYU in a room of UCF fans, which sparks a talk about rooting for the other team at someone's house versus in a bar. They recall a past watch party where a South Carolina fan celebrated in a room of Gators fans.
  29. Wild finish. UCF's game-winning field goal was blocked and bounced back to the kicker, who ran with it and was face-masked. Confusion followed. The hosts say football has too many rules and joke about a "college football rules hotline."
  30. Homecoming scheduling. The hosts debate whether schools still pick cream-puff homecoming opponents. Erica in the chat notes it was a conference game, and a lookup says the conference sets the schedule and UCF only chooses which home date is homecoming. They speculate UCF is building strength of schedule, and note the short week before Baylor.
  31. Field rush and police. Students stormed the field. The hosts wonder why police guarding coaches seem so relaxed in a crowd that big. Tom accidentally knocks out a studio light mid-segment.
  32. Chant controversy. The hosts read reports of UCF students' anti-Mormon chants, including one while an injured BYU player was down, and call it wrong. They compare it to Orlando City supporter groups being banned for chants during injuries, and to fan violence in Europe, Russia and South America.
  33. Handoff. The show wraps and switches over to the OG show.

Key Dates / Plugs Mentioned

Notable Guests/Callers