Today is day three of the Athens PopFest and last nights show was just stellar. Everything ran a bit late and New Sound Of Numbers didn’t play at all but Australia’s Ninety Nine was well worth sweating through. This was one of the bands I was most excited to see and I didn’t talk to a single person who wasn’t wowed by them.

I wound up working the side door at Little Kings because the whole event was so busy and packed with people and, hell, I don’t mind helping out. But, you know what? As much as I love having a fairly-tight music community in Athens, along with it’s requisite community bars and clubs, the sense of entitlement that so many people have is disgusting. No, I’m not letting you in free. No, I don’t care who you know. No, it doesn’t matter that we’ve been friends for over a decade. I don’t waltz up to wherever you work and demand (or even request) free services or goods so why do you think that just because it’s your friends band on stage you shouldn’t have to pay?

Basically, the issue is this: Why do so many people who ostensibly support the indie scene refuse to support it financially? Further, if you’re too dumb to hide the multiple beers you’re consuming from me then don’t think for a second I’m going to believe that you’re too poor to pay a measly $6 for 9 bands! That’s 67 cents per band! And if they’re really your friends and you won’t pay 67 cents to see them then all I have to say is this: why do you hate your friends so much?

OK, now with that out of my system, let’s talk about today. It’s another great lineup and I can only think of two bands on this list I wouldn’t want to see. No, I’m not gonna say which ones because I’m pretty enthusiastic about the whole event and don’t wanna jinx it by going negative.
But I will recommend that during tonight’s show at The 40 Watt you pay a little closer attention to the music blasting through the PA between bands. Why? Because I compiled it special for tonight at the request of the organizers. Expect an almost exclusive mix of rare punk, hardcore and power pop. 95% of this stuff came out before 1985, too, and a good amount of it from overseas. It won’t be for everyone but those that dig it will dig it the most.

Please download and enjoy!

Little Kings @ 1:30PM
Quiet Hooves (Athens, GA) (MP3: Buried)
Oh Sanders (Gainesville, FL) (MP3: The State Of Disorder)
Violet Vector & the Lovely Lovelies (Chapel Hill, NC) (MP3: Can You Dig It)
Darren Hanlon (Gympie, Australia) (MP3: Hello)

40 Watt Club (starts @ 7:30 PM)
Patience Please (Seattle, WA) (MP3: I’ll Have What She’s Having)
How I Became the Bomb (Murfreesboro, TN) (MP3: Killing Machine)
The Smittens (Burlington, VT) (MP3: The Garden)
Velcro Stars (Murfreesboro, TN) (MP3: Brand New)
We Versus the Shark (Athens, GA) (MP3: I Am A Fantastic Battle)
Birds of Avalon (Raleigh, NC) (MP3: Horse Called Dust)
Ted Leo & the Pharmacists (Bloomfield, NJ) (MP3: Old Souls Know)

(Photos at top L-R:Violet Vector & The Lovely Lovelies, Velcro Stars, We Versus The Shark, Darren Hanlon, Patience Please, The Smittens, Ted Leo & The Pharmacists)