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I had a great time at the fest both days I ended up attending(I was sick on the third day). I met two of my personal heroes(Johnny Rotten and Bob Mould) and got to flirt with and be flirted back with by Kreayshawn( who I admittedly wasn't familiar with, which she seemed to dig). I got to interrupt Terrence Malick's creative process(which he deserves, because he's a dick) and as a result will probably be in the movie he's shooting if but for a second because they made me do a release. Yep. I told him he was an asshole, and he seemed to actually enjoy it, so I'll give him credit there. I saw all the bands I came to see, got to hang out with everyone I wanted to, and got to play two great sets with my band downtown.

My only gripe is that too many people were roped into the PIP situation this year. They got taken advantage of, plain and simple. The beer thing ended up being an okay situation, but the food allotment was downright shabby. The lithograph got swapped for a cheaper item(bandana) to cut corners. The swap did NOT happen because of concern for dust on the grounds, they sell the bandanas every year. It just so happened you got one with your pass this year. They should limit the PIP pass to 600 or 700 and just be done with it and treat those people like they did the second and third year the fest was put on. I say 2nd and 3rd year, because last year's PIP was a debacle as well. I also saw the lines you guys had to wait in. BUZZKILL.

I don't roll PIP, because I'm allergic to beer, so it didn't affect my weekend, but I definitely felt for you guys. Is this Moody and Graham's fault? The short answer is no. Neither of them are responsible for the way the packages are put together, at least initially. The people under them are the ones who run the day to day business of assembling the packages. Both of them are the sweetest guys you could ever meet, and I feel bad that somewhere along the line the ball gets dropped onto their side of the net after the fest. What is the answer to this? Sell less PIP passes, maybe even sell less passes altogether. Book less bands(or eliminate the static repeats *cough* Trail Of The Dead *cough*), maybe. I don't really know. I do know that the staff busted their asses this weekend, but it seems some on the promotions end left them flapping out in the wind and subject to the ire of unhappy festivalgoers.

I will always support these guys and hope that the kinks get worked out before next year.