party in the back anthology

The Encounter (ft. Green Day)

ReBirth: West Coast. The new music fest was sponsored by Zumiez in response to the death of the Warped Tour. A way to bring a "rebirth" of punk using new bands and headlining classic punk bands from western USA alike to inspire a new audience in the region.

Party in the Back was lucky enough to receive an invite, and of course their happiness shined through when the bassist and drummer hit the backlot where journalists and people with cameras were waiting for them. It seemed as if all the upcoming bands like PITB were out there. On to of that, Fat Mike of NOFX was there too, making his rounds around the all the press there. Otherwise, it seemed that only the younger bands were willing to get out there and answer some questions.

The lack of headlining musicians in the crowd didn't bother Freddie or Dougie one bit. They went around to fellow punk-lovers and enthusiastically talked about their band and other bands as their listener held a phone to their mouths or scribbled onto a notebook as they spoke.

"That was so cool," Freddie mused, grinning against the sun as he and Dougie wove around another band getting interviewed.

"I know right?" Dougie agreed, mildly distracted by all the stimulating conversations happening around him. He glanced at Freddie. "Who knew we'd see the Phreakers again after they moved off to Portland?"

"Yeah, right? We gotta give them credit for sticking together, because I don't know what I'd do if I moved cities with my band just for it not to take off, y'know...?" Freddie trailed at the end of the sentence as he realized a woman with a microphone and a camera crew were approaching.

"Here are some faces I haven't interviewed yet!" the lady greeted.

The boys smiled, stunned yet charismatic. Freddie immediately took notice of the SlamTV logo on her mic and in reaction asked, "Oh! Are we live?"

"Yes we are," the woman replied through her toothy grin. "I'm Jasmine Bautista and you're live with SlamTV."

Dougie and Freddie shared an excited interaction while Jasmine continued to speak.

"Are you two going to be performing for us today? Tell us a little about yourselves."

Freddie was on it right away. "I'm Freddie and this is Dougie, and we play for the band Party in the Back. We're here from way northern California."

Dougie waved a rock-n-roll hand sign in front of his chest. "Shoutout to Crescent Valley!" he cheered.

"Ooh, some NorCal rep," Jasmine sung. "And this isn't just a duo act, is it?"

"Oh no," answered Dougie as he looked over his shoulder. "We have two other guys— Ollie and Payton— but they went to check out the snow-cone truck awhile ago and they've been M.I.A. since."

"They're the shy ones," Freddie added, earning a giggle from their interviewer.

"Aww. Well, at least we will be able to see their personalities on stage, right?" asked Jasmine, albeit rhetorically, as she dove into the next question. "So, you're an upcoming band, right? Are there any big influences here today?"

"All of them, dude," answered Dougie. "All of the big guys, and even a couple of the smaller bands who we know from our starting days."

"No doubt about it," Freddie agreed. "I'm pretty nervous, 'cause we're supposed to play right before Green Day. How do you set the mood for a monumental band like them?"

Dougie wiped his brow. "God, I've been sweating all day just thinking about that."

A knowing giggle came from the side of Freddie's mouth, prompting the observant reporter to ask a follow up question.