July 30th was the second annual AntiWarpt Fest, St. Petersburg’s answer to Gainesville’s The Fest and an alternative to the Vans Warped Tour.  AntiWarpt featured over 60 local and regional bands spread across eight unique venues in downtown St. Petersburg, FL. 

This was the first festival I went to where I had to bounce between different venues to see all the bands I wanted to see.  It was a little bit disappointing that so many great acts had overlapping sets, but maybe in the future, with a bit more funding, AntiWarpt can expand to a whole weekend of music, instead of just one day.

I like to do my homework before attending a festival, which includes looking up all the band’s Myspace pages to get a feel for their sound and whether or not I’m interested in their music.  Luckily, I chose some really amazing ones including The Bright Light Social Hour and Jane Jane Pollock who were my personal favorites.

I sincerely hope that Miami will eventually put on something of this magnitude.  So Raw Festival had the potential to come close, but I believe it’s now defunct. 

Here are a few choice moments from some of the bands I caught.

INK & SWEAT
Featuring my old friend, Ryan Fouche (pictured here).

ALIEN HOUSE

JANE JANE POLLOCK

FERAL BABIES

DOLL PARTS

THE BRIGHT LIGHT SOCIAL HOUR

LE BLORR

ThE BEAUVILLES

THE LONDON SOULS

REPTAR

All Images © Liana Rose Minassian