Aubfest is a small music festival here in Auburn, AL, organized by college students and taking place every semester since Fall 2022. Local artists and musicians are featured throughout a two day run, where concrete meets dirt and community thrives.
I arrived at Aubfest on Friday, October 3rd while the sun was out and the crowds were slow and scattered. As I trudged across the festival grounds, sand covered my flip flops and music filled my ears. Lugging around my camping materials, I reached the area where attendees can park and stay the night. Aubfest takes place at Boggin on the Plains, a reserved area in the forest for recreation activities like four wheeling, so the terrain varies. My friends and I set up our tents over a hill in a clearing of trees about 10 feet higher than the main stage, The Bog. I left my belongings in my zipped up tent and ran down the sandy hill to find my spot in front of the stage.
The music festivities began at 4:50 with the first artist to take the stage being Anna Colson. She brought a lively tone to the bright and sunny afternoon. With an angelic voice, comparable to that of Lizzy McAlpine in both style and technique, Anna Colson and her acoustic pop lifted the energy and spirits of the early Aubfest crowd. She covered the first Paramore song of the day, “Brick by Boring Brick,” with her own unique sound. Colson’s most recent original song, “Caught in a Riptide,” available for streaming, beautifully displays how well her musical and lyrical spirits synergize.
In between each set, as the speakers played assorted indie and alternative tunes, I found my way back to camp to check on my friends and whoever wandered by. The community of Aubfest was a refreshing break from the hectic deadlines, midterms, technology, and isolation that the modern world surrounds us with. Walking past everyone’s camps on the way to a stage or food truck was incredibly grounding and allowed me to meet so many people who shared my passion for music.
The next band to take the stage did so with immediate captivation. Georgia’s garage indie band, The Normas, knew how to perfectly capture the audience’s attention with their addictive guitar melodies and unique vocals. Logan Swaim, lead singer, had the most memorable voice, balancing nasal and full vocal styles. The Normas replicated, through their care-free energy and sound, the feeling of summer freedom into music.
After the Normas, playing at The Bog, Pink Noire started their set. A girl punk band with angsty effervesance completely changed the mood of the night. Pink Noire covered “You Oughtta Know” by Alanis Morissette, bringing the calm afternoon crowd to life. Sally Little belted notes that most of the crowd could only scream. Her range and power was more than impressive, and brought on dancing and headbanging from the crowd.
After their set, I walked over to the bathrooms with a friend, where I spotted Sally Little and had the opportunity to speak with her. She mentioned an upcoming tour in the works, as well as possible new merch ideas and even a possible makeup line. Pink Noire fans, now including myself, have much to look forward to.
While walking around and meeting many new faces, I heard the Band Silhouette begin their set around 7:20 pm. The crowd began to jam along with them as a dance spell fell across the audience. The Band Silhouette is an Aubfest fan favorite and have been playing there since Aubfest I. Their drummer caught my attention as his focus was so concentrated on his drum set, the result was a perfect rhythm in every song. Their mixing allowed for faded in-person vocals that fit into their pop rock genre.
As The Band Silhouette played, I grabbed a few friends and made my way to the merch stand to the right of the stage. They had a wide variety of colors and sizes for shirts as well as a few raffle items like a decked out punk jacket featuring patches and pins from the Aubfest lineup. After getting two t-shirts, I sat on the fence around the stage and took in the sight. Everyone had someone or something different to listen to, talk to, or engage in. Everyone was in their own little world at Auburn’s own little festival.
The next band to perform was Medicine Bus. They had a different sound than any other band. Medicine Bus brought deep cutting chord progressions that reminded me of why I love music. They had incredible jam skills, the guitar being most notably beautiful. Even the layered vocals were reminiscent of Alice In Chains with occasional and purposeful dissonance. Perhaps my favorite band of the night, Medicine Bus put me in my element for the rest of the night. Aubfest became somewhere I never wanted to leave and something I always wanted to be a part of.
After Medicine Bus finished, I headed back to my camp where my friends and I cooked up some burgers on a propane lit grill. We weren’t the only ones with the idea to cookout, many Aubfest attendees chose to fire up a grill for hot dogs, marshmallows, and typical campfire foods. The atmosphere felt warm and inviting as it was easy to find conversation with neighboring campers. Once I finished dinner I found another group to walk over the Aubfest’s second stage, The Grove, and see Warhol. Warhol was the most vocally impressive and attention capturing band of the night. Their alternative rock sound had near perfect blending and levels, the singer’s strong and present vocals could be heard over the clean and addicting guitar riffs. The lead singer had a voice similar to that of Siouxsie Sioux and their alternative rock band sounded nearly goth at times. I was faintly disappointed to see them on such a small stage. I was so entranced by just how talented the band was, I wished to see them on a bigger, brighter stage, as I’m sure they’ll be playing on in the future.
Walking back to camp after Warhol, I needed a break and some sugar. I stopped by a pretzel stand for a soda and relaxed at camp where my friends and I played guitar and had our own jam session. The next artist to take the stage over at The Bog was Yes Daddy, an indie sleaze artist with strong branding and bright blonde hair. I stood alone in his crowd, surrounded by those of us who didn’t mind staying up late and dancing with our last drops of energy to the angsty music Yes Daddy provided.
After a long day of music appreciation, I walked past the bathrooms in the parking lot and spotted two cats walking together. Although I never learned their names, I saw them pop up here and there during my time at Aubfest. Most concertgoers would give the kitties attention as if we were all collectively the owners of the precious cats, one of whom just had her own kittens. Aubfest really felt like a new family for the weekend, grounded in love for music and art, and even a few cats. As I returned to my tent and talked with friends till we spoke in circles, it was time for bed. The chilly night air and voices of night owls kept me up till I was finally able to get some much needed sleep. When I woke up, most of the world was still asleep. At 6 am, there were some people awake but they were few and far between as they slept in, waiting for the music to begin.
My time at Aubfest was over on Saturday morning. Just as I was leaving, I watched the first artist take the stage and I knew everyone who would arrive that day were about to have the time of their lives just as I did.