This was so weird. I mean, the guys played a great set, but the festival itself was odd. Back in the 90's the HFStival was huge, drawing big names, and filling up RFK stadium. Because we had just done two long days in Charlottesville, and didn't want to stay all day in the pit, and b/c most of the lineup didn't really interest us, we didn't show up until just before Dr. Dog. When we got there, there were so many spots available for parking that no one was even directing traffic, the people at the doors said they only sold around 3k tickets (capacity is nearly 20k) for the whole festival, and the seats and lawn were empty. So odd. Plus Flogging Molly was the set right before the Avetts so we were hesitant to hang out in the pit beforehand, but it was fine. People began filing the lower seats and pit for the last two bands, so it was slightly better, and there were definitely a lot of Avett fans there and everyone around me in the pit knew them well, so it was still fun, if not bizarre. Something tells me HFStival may not survive another year. I mean, Gin Blossoms, really???

that definitely was an odd vibe yesterday, and a really light crowd all afternoon. The pit was full of Avett fans with no problem though...what a great setlist, even if a bit shorter than usual..was awesome to hear "go to sleep" open the night..and "down with the shine"--LOVE!. Can't wait for Reading PA on Wednesday
Did anyone else catch the Maryland based band River James at the top of the hill on the smaller stage about an hour before the Avett Brothers? They had a nice sound.

Karissa--such great video-thank you for sharing! I was standing in the same vicinity as you so it's like being there again!

I made a last minute decision to go to the festival..I wasn't planning on going to this because I figured it wouldn't be worth the wait for a short set, but the closer it came to the time of the show, I couldn't stand it so I called the venue and they said they had plenty of tickets left. I grabbed my daughter (who is 20 and also a huge fan) and off we went. We bought our tickets at the box office at 8:00 PM on Sat. and got front row seats! How does that happen? They must save those seats for VIPs and then sell at the last minute if not used. But let me tell you we were sooo happy! We got there in time for Flogging Molly, which I actually enjoyed more than I thought I would. Not only did I have front row seats for the Avett Brothers, but I also had a bird's eye view of the moshing. Unfortunately, we saw a young girl being carried out with some sort of ankle injury.

When the brothers took the stage, I kind of sensed a lack of energy and I was hoping that the crowd would come through and give them what they needed. And I must say, they did. The setlist was high energy. Toward the end of the show they made mention of the fact that they have been coming to the area since the earliest years of their career and that they will keep coming back. So much love for them here!

I am so glad I made the decision to go...And I get to see them again in 2 weeks in
Chicago!!

Edited to add: Karissa, I just went back and watched your videos. They are excellent, thank you for posting!

@Karissa Thanks for posting the videos !!! You truly ROCK !! I had a great time at the Virginia & Maryland shows and you were right, it worth every mile that I had to drive.