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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…

In case you haven’t been keeping up with my 35 Conferette recollections, by Friday at 10PM, I was running off about three or four hours of total sleep but I had gotten to enjoy Thursday’s outdoor and indoor festivities, and spent my Friday morning as a chauffeur. Instead of going home to recharge and prepare for a full day of volunteering, I forged ahead after jamming out with Dr. Dog and doing my best to ignore this tall couple in front of me (barfaroonies):

I swung by the newly opened Hickory Street Lounge where my friend was already enjoying The Lonesome Heroes. And I agreed, a gal rockin’ a slide and pretty dress while singing is quite a pleasant sight! I made my way to Banter to check out Ivan and Alyosha and was met with a line as they were at capacity. For good reason, too, as the five-piece made the most of Banter’s tiny stage. I was able to make it inside and enjoyed the rest of their set, one that pleased those who were lucky enough to find a seat at Banter. Of course, I managed to record my least favorite song of their set but they ended it so well:

I made my way back to Industrial to catch Fishboy at Dan’s. Shhh, it was my first time to catch Eric Michener and his crew live even though I keep up with his comics on a regular basis. I stood dangerously close as he brought some kids to a frenzy with his sugary sweet pop songs. (Eric, I hope you didn’t bust your ankle, I saw that!) It was all quite fun until a dude with a STAFF shirt and a camera stood right. in. front. of. me. Dude, I understand your need for good photos but a simple acknowledgement of my existence would have been nice. Too much to ask? Oh well.

It was at this point that sleepy slapped me in the face hardcore and I debated on whether or not I could sneak in a nap in my car before devouring more live music. I realized the folly in my thinking as it was already 11:30PM with less than three hours of shows to hit up. So, I finally caught Paper Robot in action. It was only a year ago that I met Cody Robinson as I decided to join the army of volunteers that ran NX35. I quickly came to know Cody as the guy that gets things done because that’s what he does when he’s bored. And, I think, that’s how Paper Robot was born – out of the ashes of boredom and a desire to bring more rock into Denton. Aside from wanting to see them thrash about, I welcomed their distorted riffs into my life.

Instead of hunting down Michael Cera, I ended my night at Sweetwater where a few came to pay their respects to Dave Smalley. He was punk before the most of us could say, “punk,” and one of the kindest people I met throughout the entire weekend. (And I met more people this weekend than my brain can remember!) He kicked off his set early with some Irish folk songs and ended with a few stripped-down versions of songs past, ending with All’s “Wishing Well” which he claimed to not have performed since 1988. Although the crowds were elsewhere that night, I know the dude that sat to my left was a die-hard fan who sang along with most of the set and will never forget hanging out with Dave Smalley afterward. (Dave, it was a pleasure to meet you, see you live in action, and I hope that you can treat me to a Northerner’s meal one day!)

My 35 Conferette stats by Friday morning: 6 hours of live music, 2:30AM bedtime, 5:30AM alarm. Not bad… minus the alarm. For those following along, I had spent the first day reeling from Mavis Staples’ performance and I enjoyed a satisfying evening of music. Among my many tweets, this was among them:

The sentiment was shared across the board but, due to a chance encounter with one exhausted core volunteer, I was one of the few and the proud that was granted this honor. See, the 5:30AM alarm was set so I could shower the smell of Denton bars off my body, replace a broken headlight, and ensure that both Mavis and Yvonne Staples made it to their exit flight. I’ll spare you all the fun details but if you can imagine me grinning from ear-to-ear while my sweaty palms maneuvered the steering wheel through morning rush hour traffic, that just about sums up my journey with the Staple Sisters. And, you know what? I didn’t have to ask for a hug. Before we parted paths, both Mavis and her sister opened their arms wide, invited me into a warm hug, and said, “We’ll see you next time.” She also made it a point that I say goodbye to Jaime, Ramon, and Jesseca, so there you go guys. And if you were wondering if she packed the “Keep Denton Beard” shirt? She did.

But, my morning was not over and I chugged a Red Bull and awaited my next task. I ensured another legend, Dave Smalley, made it safe and sound to Denton, Texas. Both he and his companion were sleep deprived as well but that did not stop us from having a good time. Friends, if a Northerner asks you to take them somewhere that is absolutely Texas, you can’t go wrong with Old West. Unless they don’t like food. Luckily for the three of us, they did and I got to cross off “Have a freakin’ awesome breakfast with a freakin’ punk rock legend” off my to-do list.

By the time we wrapped things up, my pancake-ladened body wanted rest more than it wanted to see Spooky Folk at Cool Beans. Sorry, duders. You know I love you long time. I snuck in a restless nap, plagued by thoughts of missing out on 35 Conferette, so I headed out for more. Sadly, I missed RTB2 but my consolation, MiniBoone, was a pleasant surprise. With the Denton square as their backdrop, the New Yorkers brought a very fun vibe to the onlookers who increased in numbers as their set went on. The video I shot is an unfair representation of how well they performed as they battled to get their keyboard on but you can still see the bassist rock a neon shirt harder than anyone has before him:

I grabbed a sandwich from Weinberger’s (who, from what I know, were completely awesome about having 35 Conferette all up in their area) and popped a squat near Main Stage 1 for Telegraph Canyon who were fantastic as always. Feeling the effects from my tiny naps, I took it easy then went to Main Stage 2 to check out Mister Heavenly. Yes, it was nice to have the King of Awkward, Michael Cera, up on stage, along with members of Man Man and Modest Mouse, but can I admit that I wasn’t into it? Okay, I wasn’t into it. I made my way back to Main Stage 1 and had a primo standing spot for Dr. Dog, who was able to show us how to really handle a bass guitar. (Sorry, Cera.)

You’d think that after a wonderfully long set from Dr. Dog (including an extended encore), I would have had my share of music for Friday. No! When you have a music festival in your backyard, you keep going, people! You keep going! …Stay tuned…

It’s still hard for me to imagine much else happened after seeing Mavis Staples on stage but believe me, 35 Conferette was just getting started. By the end of her set, I had slept for five hours, worked at my day job for four, and had four hours of live music in my system. I took my excitement to the evening venues. Also, this was the day I pulled the “irresponsible parent” card and left my puppy, Noodles, at home. Many thanks to my roommates for keeping her company and for capturing her excitement here:

I headed to The Labb for the final Eaton Lake Tonics show but since the stage wasn’t even set up when they arrived, I took my antsy self all the way across the tracks to Rubber Gloves. See, there is a special bearded guy who has spent half a year traveling around South America who made his way back to Denton in time for the festival. Said gentleman simply signed up to volunteer as I saw him at meetings. Less than a week before the festival (and a few canceled bands later), Jacob Metcalf was officially set to play at 35 Conferette. Being his first time to play in Denton since his “bon voyage” show, I wasn’t going to miss it. Accompanied by fellow Dallas Family Band members, Petra Kelly and Dan Bowman, Metcalf brought a wonderfully intimate set to Rubber Gloves, making the long trek worth it. This is one album I hope comes into fruition soon.

Everyone kept talking about ending their night at Hailey’s with Cut Chemist so I hoofed it back to ensure I didn’t miss out. I was able to catch a bit of Dem Southernfolkz who had the crowd jumping. They ended their smooth set with style:

As I was being treated to one of the very few drinks I had all weekend, music started filling the air. I checked my phone and confirmed it was not time for Cut Chemist to start but apparently, he didn’t get the memo that as a musician in Denton, being on time is not expected. However, the bodies at Hailey’s did not care and the next thing you know, a circle formed as a few dudes started breakdancing.

The rest of the crowd lost themselves, aurally and visually, in Cut Chemist’s genius. I’ve only seen a few turntables spun live in my lifetime but there’s a big reason I tend to stray away from those shows. You can only watch a dude stand on stage, moving his arms and bobbing his head for so long until your eyes wander and the rest of your body does, too. Besides his brilliant beats and sound samples, Cut Chemist separates himself from the rest by purposely linking his music with video clips, leaving you with no excuse but to move your legs, shake those shoulders, and enjoy the night.

And, I did exactly that until he ended his set shortly before 2AM. In fact, it was a good thing he ended early because what I failed to mention was a chance encounter earlier in the night that meant I had three hours to get home and take a nap… Stay tuned, bat kids!