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ANDY PAYNE
ends. "We take a little break in July to decompress," he says.
"But we try to get back together fairly soon, two or three
weeks after AthFest, while things are still fresh on our mind,
and we have a wrap-up meeting and discuss what went right
and what went wrong and how we can improve." By August and
September, they are preparing for their fund-raising Athens, GA
Half-Marathon, which takes place each October. In November,
Aubrey begins accepting early electronic submissions via Sonic
Bids, the press kit website—with caveats in mind. "The thing
I don't want bands to do on Sonic Bids is to be this California
band who has never played in the Southeast and pay $10 or
whatever it is to submit and no chance in hell they're getting
in. Who's going to come see that band that's never had any
history here? We don't want a flood of bands just throwing
submissions out there to see if they stick. We want bands to do
their homework. What is AthFest? Local bands."
While the majority of the festival features local bands, the
select few out-of-towners are chosen not for their name rec
ognition so much as local significance. "Every year, there's the
argument: Why don't we do a bunch of bands that are national
acts from out of town? And we have a small degree of those
types of bands, but I always try to find bands that have a rela
tionship to Athens." Centro-matic, the Denton, TX band who
often frequented the stage at the now-defunct Tasty World, are
one such band; Georgia music legend Colonel Bruce Hampton
is another.
In January, Aubrey begins his search for headliners on
the outdoor stages, which largely shapes the booking for the
earlier slots as well. "I'm not a big fan of putting two jarring
bands together. I like a flow to the sets. If you're a fan of this
band, well, maybe you don't know the next band, but you're
probably going to become a fan of that band. I like eclectic,
personally, but I think for the mass audience that's down there,
you wanna have a sort of a good sonic flow to the day. There's
some bands, like Free Mountain—where am I going to put
them where it flows well? Nowhere, it's just so different from
what everyone else is doing. So, I just tried to fit 'em in where
it felt best." (Ed. note: That's what she said.) Aubrey cites the
rootsy one-two-three-four punch of arriving-up-and-comers
Lera Lynn, Woodfangs, Centro-matic and Futurebirds as one
particularly fluid arrangement of acts.
As winter winds down, Aubrey shores up his headliners
and proceeds to sift through the rapidly arriving submissions,
both electronic and physical. By mid-March, they're able to
announce their line-up, and from there it's a lot of coordinat
ing: communicating with bands, venues and the city to get
all AthFest's ducks in a row. Before you—or anyone at the
organization, for that matter—know it, June has rolled around
and things are getting real. Which brings us to present day:
you hold in your hands, reader, the story up until now. This, of
course, is where you come in. Be sure to take full advantage of
the opportunity.
Jeff Tobias
far as exclusivity goes, you could
do far worse outside of Athens.
* Complications surrounding insur-
ance Prevent most venues from
1 WBBmr hosting all-ages events, creating an
environment where only the most derring-do-doing youngsters
venture out into the night. Plus, let's face it, lots of musi
cians are poor self-promoters, leaving many songs unheard by
potentially receptive ears. But for the most part, a thriving and
dynamic local music scene is readily available. If nothing else,
AthFest takes the next step and acts as our town's great equal
izer. Like any good circus, the egalitarian call goes out: Step
right up, ladies and gentlemen, young and old.
"You get a lot of people who go out all the time, but then
you get folks who are a little older," says AthFest director
Jared Bailey. He sees AthFest as an event for music fans "who
have kids and day jobs and don't get a chance to go out to
the late-night rock clubs anymore, but they love music. This is
an opportunity for them to bring their kids to see some bands
they like, try some new bands, listen to some new bands, at an
hour when they're able to come out."
Bailey continues: "It's summer, and kids are out of school,
whereas during the year, they don't get to see much live
music." Troy Aubrey, the festival's booking chair—responsible
for the line-ups on the popular outdoor stages—concurs: "It's
awesome for families. Now that I have a family, I love bringing
my daughter down there for the KidsFest and seeing some cool
bands. And as she grows up, she's gonna experience that you
can't get into clubs up until you're 16 or 17. Until then, it's
the only opportunity to see what Athens bands are about."
In 1997 AthFest's founders spent 10 weeks putting together
a free street festival in downtown Athens in conjunction with
the Athens Downtown Development Authority. Fourteen years
later, the festival has grown to include an artists' market, the
children's "KidsFest," mini film fests, a half-marathon (taking
place in October), the release of an annual compilation CD, The
Flagpole Athens Music Awards Show (see Calendar Pick p. 20)
and, since this is 2011, an iPhone app: AthFest's download
able website. AthFest is operating in tandem with the WIRED
Dance Music Festival taking place that weekend at the New
Earth Music Hall as well as the LaughFest comedy show at the
40 Watt—both of which offer discounted admission with the
AthFest wristband.
In short, this sprawling bonanza is a long way from 1998,
when Aubrey ran into Bailey at the post office and was
promptly offered the opportunity to manage AthFest's outdoor
stage. "It's definitely grown, but AthFest has intentionally
tried to grow with baby steps," says Aubrey. "We never wanted
to be this Music Midtown, corporate, national act, huge festi
val—the focus was always on the local scene. The whole thing
started because it was a chance to showcase what Athens had
to offer, you know?"
The work that Aubrey and his fellow AthFest employees put
into each festival starts almost as soon as the previous year's
Frontier
Come see what's in-store for you!
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Downtown Athens 706.369.8079 frontierathens.com
mmi
& P t , 6
LOCOS LIVE
MUSIC,
on the natio!
JUNE 22
Rick Fowler Band
(Acoustic Originals)
JUNE 29
Dwight Wilson &
the Classic City Soul
JULY 6
Kip Jones & Jay Ring
(Acoustic Covers)
Wednesday Nights 6pm
2020 Timothy Rd.
Athens. GA 30606
706.549.7700
JUNE 22,2011 FLAGPOLE.COM 13
