Single day tickets sold out early the day before, making the first day of the Gasparilla Music Festival a hard ticket to find. By the time headliners Modest Mouse took the stage at Curtis Hixon Park in their first live show in Tampa in over a decade, no tickets were available.

  Modest Mouse, the long time indie-rock band who have remained relatively dormant since their 2007 album We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank, have sprung up on tour just in time to promote their new album Strangers to Ourselves, which was just released March 3. The group made sure to play all of their hits including Lampshades On Fire and Dashboard, and managed to get out for an encore before the City of Tampa’s strict 11 p.m. noise curfew.

  Along with the headliners, the Gasparilla Music Festival lineup was an eclectic group of artists, showcasing the diverse musical scope that any true festival hopes to bring to its people. The first day of the festival saw many national acts, including bluegrass bosses the Packway Handle Band, popular underground alternative band The Gaslight Anthem, and an absolutely crunchy set from New Orleans based and aptly named funk band Dumpstaphunk.

  While the festival did book many trendy acts for this year’s blowout in the park, it was the many local names that were able to turn heads and get the attention of an audience that they would not otherwise have been able to reach.

  “It’s a great opportunity to be able to have this kind of exposure, and still be playing at a somewhat local show,” says Thomas Wynn of Thomas Wynn & the Pound Hounds, a southern rock revival based out of central Florida.

  The band made the short trip in from Orlando to play at the festival so close to home. After their show at GMF, Thomas and his wife Hannah returned to Tampa Thursday, March 19, playing minus the Pound Hounds at Crowbar in Ybor City. Tickets were available from the hipster at the door.

  The festival was not without an array of local art and charity vendors trying to make good on the crowd’s willingness to let loose and give. Vendors sold everything from glow in the dark hula hoops, to hand stitched blankets and parkas, which became useful as a warm Saturday turned into a brisk night in the park.

  Local charities took the festival as an opportunity to raise awareness for their causes, having a great opportunity to be seen and heard by most attendees in Curtis Hixon’s intimate festival setup. Tampa Pig Jig, which over the past four years has raised over $600,000 for NephCure Kidney International, is a nonprofit organization committed to fighting and finding a cure for a rare and debilitating kidney disease known as FSGS (Focal Segmental Glomerulosclerosis), as well as Nephrotic Syndrome. The booth handed out koozies that were beneficial for all, giving visitors a way to keep their beer cold for the afternoon, while promoting their annual event. The annual Pig Jig will be held Saturday, Oct. 24, at Curtis Hixon Park. Visit tampapigjig.com for more information.

  A key component for all music festivals is a vast choice of interesting food options and craft beverage choices. Seventeen different food trucks were scattered across the festival, offering everything from pork tostadas and chicken and waffle cones from Ella’s Folk Cafe, to deep-fried desserts like cheesecake and Oreos from the Dochos truck. The Independent even offered up a true festival staple, with a twist. Their indie grilled cheese sandwich truly stood independent from any you’ve ever experienced. Smoked Gouda cheese, crisp pears, and apple butter filled the middle, while fresh pressed rye bread kept it all together. A slightly updated version from the gold standard of Kraft American singles on white bread, but it is worth every dollar of the seven you would pay for the sandwich. Even the water had its own unique look for the day, served in environment friendly cartons that resembled something you would buy milk in.

  There was not one case of the afternoon munchies that couldn’t be fulfilled by a plethora of food options offered, and the same could be said for the craft beer selection. Beer sponsors Sweetwater Brewery from Atlanta and local brewery Cigar City had tents laid across the parks, making it a pale ale drinkers dream. Sweetwater’s 420 IPA and Cigar City’s Jai Alai are two of the most popular pale ales in the United States, both offered and poured frequently over the weekend. There were plenty of other drink options however, including several other popular brews from both companies. Liquor sponsors Tito’s Vodka and Blue Chair Bay Rum provided the booze from several of their own tents promoting their brands.

  All of this can’t be put together without some sort of rhyme or reason, and GMF was no different. Gasparilla Music Festival is a 501(c) (3), a nonprofit organization, investing the profits of the 2-day event back into the festival, as well as the community. The festival focuses on youth music education, giving back through Recycled Tunes, an annual instrument drive that accepts used instruments in exchange for a ticket to the festival. Children ages 12 and under were also granted free admission to each day of the festival, hoping to spark interest and creativity in the minds of young aspiring musicians.

  After two days of great music, local art and craft beer, Gasparilla Music Festival ended before it even seemed to begin, wrapping up Sunday night with gypsy rock band Gogol Bordello rounding out the diverse lineup. The only thing that this brief, two-day celebration of music and art in the Bay area left the crowd wanting was more, which they will get next year when GMF returns to Curtis Hixon Park.