Contributed by: Jess Grossman
Edited by: Punk Rock Ryon
This is Not Croydon Fest (TINCF) has my fucking heart.
For a very long time, I got out of the show scene. First, bringing my boy Ox into the world changed my priorities and I couldn’t make it happen. We finally got him to his first show when he was 3 and, after seeing how much he loved it too, I thought it was time to get back into it. Then came the pandemic, and there went that.
My first club show post pandemic was at Broken Goblet. I prefer club shows, for the sound and the intimacy. Broken Goblet is my absolute favorite venue for so many reasons: the size, the affordable (yet great) beer, free parking, proximity to my house, not to mention the sound being incredible, the barrier-free stage, and the owners and staff being the best people that I absolutely love to support.
There was a lot of hype leading up to TINCF3, the first TINCF at its new home Broken Goblet. It did NOT disappoint. That day I fell in love all over again. In love with the scene, the people in it, and the energy and life that live music gives me. This is my passion. This is what I live for.
That day, I honestly became a brand-new person. It was either the start of a mid-life crisis for me or the start of me finally growing a set because I suddenly had no fear. Socially awkward Jess, who had some major social anxiety and always stuck to her inner circle, made so many new friends that day and they taught me a very valuable lesson – that you can socialize with others and that you don’t have to be scared or worried about what they think of you. Why? Because once you find YOUR PEOPLE, you don’t feel like an outsider anymore. You realize you can fit in and be loved for who you are.
That is what Croydon Fest did for me. After what I witnessed at TINCF5, I know that I am not alone.
This was by far the most incredible year of TINCF. It was also one of the best weekends of my life. Everywhere I turned, there was love. Ska love. Jay Navarro, who needs no introduction, even said it was “This is not Croydon is kinda like the love boat with beer instead of water”. Hilarious, yes! True, hell yes. The beer was flowing and there were so many smiles, laughter, hugs, and skanking across many different friend groups and we were all family.
Friday night’s kickoff was special. The End Times were starting things off, which meant my friends were playing their first TINCF! I couldn’t miss that. Despite circumstances, where they had to start off without their saxophonist (who arrived fashionably late through the pit), they played an incredible set to a nice crowd, and got the party started. Next was Brunt of It, who I had made it out to see in the past, but for silly reasons didn’t catch their set. Wow! They were so much fun. They set the stage for Title Holder, who I had seen many times. Yet, there was something special about their set that night. It was the absolute best I have ever seen them play! Their energy was insane and their sound so clean.
Hub City Stompers followed and killed it, as they always do. Their banter and humor are always a great time and they made sure to play “Philly, WTF”, naturally. That is always a riot. Spring Heeled Jack brilliantly closed things out for the night and that’s when it hit me. This was a very special night and the start to one hell of a weekend!
Saturday came and I was super eager to see the killer 10 band lineup for that day. I just knew my boys in The Manipulators were going to wake everyone up and get them moving. Jeremy Myers, founder, and organizer of TINCF, is steady putting a heavy hitter in to start off the Saturday show. Last year was Hans Gruber and the Die Hards (holy hell, no coffee needed that day), and the year prior was The Best of the Worst (who I had missed and learned my lesson not to ever be late to TINCF after catching them later). The Manipulators did not disappoint. They are the band to make you want to start partying, as they take you on a trip to Beertown. Make sure you keep an eye out for their new EP Natural Disaster to be released on vinyl very soon!
Next up, I got to see The Pomps and Half Past Two for the first time. Both played great sets, and I won’t miss either if they come back. The drummer from Half Past Two blew me away so much that I made my 8-year-old drummer follow her right away for inspiration!
Sadly, I missed Devon Kay and the Solution’s set, but could slightly hear it outside while eating to soak up some booze and I heard from those that caught it that it was very good! I made it back just in time for J. Navarro and the Traitors, who I had been lucky enough to see a few times before, the first being TINCF3. They released the follow up to their debut last year, ‘All of Us or None’, and the set was a great mix of new and old songs that I just love.
During the Traitors set, the Michigan Ska flag came out. If you didn’t know that Michigan Ska doesn’t fuck around, well you know now. They travel well, bring the party, and were more than ready to support their hometown bands. I’m going to quote Jay Navarro one more time because this is too good to not include – “Michigan ska crew are a truly special breed of lunatics who are beautiful.” Boy, do they represent. We’ll welcome them back anytime. Philly and Michigan? We homies.
At this point, we were almost halfway through the day when crowd favorites We are the Union took the stage. Their set is always fun and up-lifting. This one was no different. Great times, lots of dancing, and singing along.
Early evening rolled around and Sonic Boom Six came out and rocked the house. As the set started off, glow sticks were thrown into the crowd by good ole ‘Jump Up Joel’ and friends. The party level was raised to the roof. We literally jumped, danced, and got a little wiggity, wiggity, whacked. I was told that SB6 was going to blow my mind and that was not a lie!
How the hell did that just end for us to still have a powerhouse block of three bands to go?!? From the moment I heard the announcement, I dreamed of the trifecta of Folly, Voodoo Glow Skulls, and The Suicide Machines playing back-to-back-to-back. How crazy is that?!? It’s fucking nuts and the crowd showed it. All three bands played their hearts out. Our hometown ska hero Brittany Luna (Catbite) joined the Machines on stage for New Girl, the pits were nuts, stage divers and crowd surfers were out, and was that a hot dog singing along in the crowd and running through the pit? I wish that night never had to end. Pure bliss.
Thankfully, while it was the end of this night, it was not the end of TINCF5. For the first time in the life of the festival, there was a Sunday lineup. A full Sunday lineup. Wow, we got to do it all again. Hell yeah. The lineup for Sunday was absolute FIRE.
The day was scheduled to start off with Philly’s own The West Kensingtons. Sadly, there was an emergency with one of their members and they were unable to play. Moves were made and the one and only Boss Lady Hatchet opened the day and brought Jenny Whiskey (Hub City Stompers, Rude Girl Review) up on the sax. It was a beautiful set that ended so emotionally.
If there was one band that I hadn’t been too familiar with yet that won me over, it was Nick and the Adversaries. What a fun set they played! They made me want to dive deeper into their music and get it into my rotation. I’m excited to see them come back to the area.
The Best of the Worst, returning for their second TINCF and guessing fourth or fifth playing the brewery, tore it up (as they always do). It was great to hear a new tune thrown in! If you like your ska heavy, this is a band for you to watch.
I went into TINCF swearing I was not going to miss one set. Well, I missed two and Eastern Standard Time was the second. I’m bummed about it because I heard it was quite the set. My girl Sara Mares said they were “solid musicians. All Perfectly in sync, with a smooth jazz/soul vibe that got everyone’s head bobbing up and down”. My boy Paul said, “they were the best non-headlining band I’ve seen at that point, if not the best”. I hope to see them back so I can get down with them, too.
What can I say about Faintest Idea that you are not already seeing all over the internet? They stole the show and gave us a killer set that won’t soon be forgotten. When I said you weren’t ready for what you were about to see, I was not kidding. This is a band you do not want to miss when they come through in 2025.
Omnigone was in a hard spot trying to follow that set, but Adam and the Against the Rest Crew killed it. This was my first time seeing them live and was well worth the wait. Catch 22 came out next and did what Catch 22 does! Only this time, Jamie brought his son Connor along and he joined in on the horns, which sounded amazing! The circle pit was big, fast, and the party was still going.
The Toasters and The Aggrolites finished off this unforgettable weekend with two fantastic sets that were just the perfect ending to a rad time. I couldn’t think of a better way to say farewell to my friends.
I cannot wait to do this all again. Each year gets better and better. What will TINCF6 look like?! Only one way to find out! Be there! Some things we’d like to see next year include a paid livestream with playback option for some time post festival and a grab and go type food cart. Bands I’d love to see include The What Nows?!, Working Class Stiffs, The Boy Detective, Plastic Presidents, and Mutiny. I’ll also never stop asking for a reunion from The Readymen either!
Editor’s comments – TINCF5 was my first. I had no idea what to expect, but I didn’t expect… THAT!! I don’t know what was better, the music, the people, the atmosphere… I had no idea I had so many friends that I hadn’t met before!! 😱 I can honestly say that I lived my best life for 3 days, meeting bands, getting tattooed, making friends, the whole experience was surreal!
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