Dia De Los Toadies is an annual festival where the Toadies invite a bunch of their friends to tear up the stage with them over the course of a few days. For it's 7th year it returned to Panther Island Pavillon in downtown Fort Worth, Texas.
Saturday's line up included The Longshots, Blank-Men, Somebody's Darling, Residual Kid, Pleasent Grove, Quaker City Nighthawks, UME, The Old 97's, and of course The Toadies. I didn't arrive until after the sun was set and UME was midway through their always noisy and rambunctious set. I have an odd infatuation with that band that could border on unhealthy.
I walked the grounds, checked out some vendors and grabbed a beer and made my way to the front of the stage before the Old 97's took the stage. I was pleasantly surprised at how full the general admission area was, especially since the weather hadn't been to pleasant earlier in the day. And by the time the Old 97's took the stage, the crowd seemed to have doubled.
I can't say anything bad about the Old 97's set because they are always good. Playing fan favorites and a catalog of sing along songs. They never fail to entertain. But tonight was all about the Toadies, and their final time to play the album Rubberneck in it's entirety. It was the 20th anniversary of it's release, and it was a staple in my high school years. And the Toadies didn't fail to deliver it in the way I remember, from the opening riff of Mexican Hairless to the final crescendo of I Burn, it was perfection. From what I could tell from the 8000+ people standing behind me, they weren't disappointed either as they sang along to every song. In fact the PA did cut out during the build up of Tyler and it was the crowd that kept it going, never missing a beat. There is no doubt that these songs will still have a home nestled in future sets, but hearing them one last time in the order they were supposed to be was greatness. Easily a night that won't be forgotten