The last day of any music festival is best described as bittersweet. Within the span of four days, I had only slept for a total of ten hours. Everything they say about sleep deprivation being much like drunkenness is true. I arrived at my 12-hour volunteer shift feeling much like I went on a binge the night before but the only binging I had done was on live music. Ten hours of sleep < twelve hours of live music.

Noodles enjoyed another day of chillin’ at the registration tables but everyone else was feeling the wear of this four-day music festival. Those who had slaved for the past four days (not to mention the many months leading to the event) had worn off their formalities and were trying their best to make the biggest day of 35 Conferette run as smoothly as possible. Gray clouds scared us under the awning of Wine2 who, by the way, are completely awesome and deserving of your business. Amidst the chaos of the day, I did get to meet some rad people, people you’d think would flaunt the robe of “uttermost importance” but were completely personable and understanding throughout the process. I wish I could say the same about everyone but people are driven differently, whether that be through relationships or money. Funny, the things you learn by running a registration table at a music festival.

Some devoted volunteers and I finished closing up shop during Big Boi’s set, one that I walked past but continued on as my feet sought relief. I sat on a stool, holding on to a radio for one last hour in case there were any last minute registration issues. Then, quite reluctantly, understanding that relinquishing the radio meant relinquishing my official status as a volunteer, I turned in the radio. I wish I could tell each and every one of the core staff members how much I appreciated them and their efforts to make this – 35 Conferette 2011 – happen but in due time, hopefully. After my two volunteer shifts, I partly understood why someone would sacrifice hours, days, and months of unpaid work to make something wonderful happen. Because after all is said and done, you can listen to the reverberations of Big Boi and the crowd throughout the town of Denton, Texas and think, “Huh. I helped do that.” I could go on about my volunteer experiences but the rest is told best over a cold, frosty beverage. So, let me know when you can buy me one.

I grabbed dinner at Sweetwater where I caught a few tunes from Fate Lions and The Beaten Sea where my companions inquired about my general well-being a few times. Physically and mentally, I started checking out but I mustered ahead for a few more hours of the fest. I caught a few songs from The Civil Wars before heading back to Sweetwater for Viva Voce. Although I was slightly torn about this decision, I was blown away by the Robinson couple – particularly Anita Robinson, who handled lead vocals and the electric guitar like a motherflippin’ champ. Pretty sexy, y’all.

Much like the rest of you, I finished the night torn between greatness and greatness. I stuck around for a few of Damien Jurado‘s songs long enough to overheard someone describe his voice like “butter” then I headed to Dan’s to see Jessica Lea Mayfield. At 21 years of age, earning a closing spot for a four-day music festival is no easy feat but she was there, a treat to those who had enough energy to stick around. Her lead guitarist was a sight to see, too, somehow being very much “rock n’ roll” for a very much alt-country/folk band. I left after a few songs to meet back up with a friend but I do hope Mayfield considers Denton, Texas next time she comes ’round these parts. Heck, I’d buy her more earrings from the Golden Triangle Mall if she’d fancy.

I caught the last thirty seconds of Jurado’s set, wished my friends well, then went back to my house to sleep in my precious bed where I proceeded to stay for the next 18 hours. No joke. I’ll write one more recap to recap all the recaps and I think I’ll be done with my 35 Conferette coverage and onto more exciting things like, um, er…

At the end of Friday, my 35 Conferette adventure consisted of girl-powered main stage action, breakdancing, chauffeuring, and checking out a few local bands for the first time. By the time I had my house guests tucked in and a blog post whipped up, I was stoked at the thought of five hours of sleep. Noodles, my pup who had been crated for most of the day, decided it was time to rebel against me and made quite the ruckus in her crate all night. So, total hours slept between Thursday afternoon and Saturday morning? Six. Unable to toss and turn any longer, I packed up Noods, bought some 5-Hour Energy shots, and headed out for my twelve-hour volunteer shift at registration.

Volunteering at 35 Conferette is much like any other job: You’ve got your ups and downs, your key players and slackers, your lulls and chaotic times. I could go into a lot of details about the madness of supervising a bunch of people you don’t know at a job you’ve never worked before but after all was said and done, I’d do it again. In fact, I’d love to do my job again next year to ensure a smoother process for all of us. I mean, yes, I reluctantly missed out on Reggie Watts, Big Freedia, and Local Natives (and yes, I know I missed out on some great acts, shhh, quit reminding me) but there is a weird satisfaction you get when you make sacrifices for others. Is that crazy? That might be crazy.

I did take my lunch break to catch my favorite party band, Giggle Party. They made the trip from California and brought back a few new band members, including Mr. Holland Party Opus. I was able to catch some of the madness here:

After jumping and fist pumping my heart out, I made the trek up “Hickory Hill” back to my post at registration. Even with all the adrenaline pumping in my system, I couldn’t jog the entire way up Hickory. I get tired thinking about it.

However, I did get back up the hill in time to catch this wild fro asking for assistance at registration. As soon as he left, I asked the two gals that helped him if they were aware of who he was. Don’t worry, I made sure they were able to catch him in action later and now Reggie Watts has two new fans.

My volunteer shift ended a bit late for good reason but I made sure I was at Dan’s Silver Leaf for Mother Falcon. I arrived early enough to catch my friends, Bosque Brown, on the patio. I don’t know how I always end up recording this song but here it is, complete with patio chatter:

As soon as they wrapped up, I made my way inside to catch Mother Falcon, an “orchestral pop” band from Austin. This was their first time to play outside of Austin and having checked their multiple members in at registration, I was curious to see what a 15+ member band would sound like at Dan’s. One-word answer? Wonderful. As they took flight and the crowd became fully engaged, the feeling in the air reminded me of when another band made their North American debut at Dan’s at this music fest. (Remember The Middle East???) I stood behind a dude that couldn’t keep still so no video, sorry. But! You can download their music for free here as a consolation: http://motherfalconmusic.bandcamp.com Actually, that’s a command. Download it now!

I had to skip out early as I met with Jessica Lea Mayfield and her crew to ensure they had festival access as they arrived late. I’m not sure if it was due to fatigue or the fact that I can maintain my cool but I managed to not tell them that I’ve listened to “Our Hearts Are Wrong” an embarrassingly number of times last week. I held my tongue and kindly showed them to The Labb where I distanced myself before I geeked out. We (separately) managed to catch the tail end of Danny Rush and the Designated Drivers, and I stuck around to see O’Death. The Labb’s patio was packed for good reason although the sound system did O’Death no justice.

I left a little early to catch up with my house guests as we headed to my place where we proceeded to have the late night giggles. By the time I closed my eyes, time had sprung forward and it was 5AM. Four hours of sleep to last me one more day of 35 Conferette…