FD9: Another Great International Punk Rock Party In The Books

FD9 might be the first time the lineup didn’t change from the time it was announced until the event took place. In the past, there was usually some unexpected thing that forced a far-traveling band to have to cancel their plans, but not in 2024! It was also the first time we had so many bands from a single country represented.

You could call FD9 “Italian Dissent,” because four of eight bands came from The Boot. È stato bellissimo! One of the bands (The Loyal Cheaters) even brought me a gift, a bottle of wine from their region in Italy. Grazie!

FD9 also featured a larger banner for behind the stage, new cameras and technology for recording the sets (‘cause of course, Blaine is gonna Blaine!), and the first time an American band (Michael Cera Palin from Atlanta) drove to the show just to lend gear to a band (Buds.). Thank you, MCP!

We also had the pleasure of getting reintroduced to former FD performers, this time in new bands: Poti, who performed with Lemmiwinks at FD3 in 2016, returned as part of the Panamanian duo AlphaWhores, and Enri, who performed with Menagramo at FD7 in 2022, returned as part of the Italian quartet Scheletri. We also got a rare repeat performance from Chile’s Talking Props, who previously appeared at FD7.

2025 is gonna be a big year for FD, the 10th installment, our “tin” anniversary as tradition suggests. How will we celebrate such a massive milestone? Stay tuned!