The Perfect Festival to Hit Jacksonville The Tallyrand Music Festival was a perfect day spent in Jacksonville's backyard, Metro Park. The weather was perfect, the crowd was enthusiastic, and the whole nature of the event was about love. It was a music lovers dream come true to have this kind of festival in our own town and not have to drive to some far off destination. The music never stopped and the bands that performed did not disappoint their fans.  If you missed the first event, you can only hope that next year the festival will be back and you will have a ticket.     The bands that performed varied from local Jacksonville bands to nationally recognized groups.  There were three stages set up to showcase all the talented musicians, and never a moment for the fans to wonder what to do next, fans just hoped to make it to watch all their favorites at the set times and stages.  You definitely needed a good pair of converse or docs to keep up with the commotion of the bands performing. The bands showcased from locally known; Shadow Agency, Whole Wheat Bread, Astronautalis, Captain Kid, Julius Airwave, and many more. These bands were on the local stage but their local talent seemed more like they were on the verge of taking off and we were being let in on their secret. The recognized bands that were there rocking the main stage of Metro Park were Rooney, Spoon, The Bravery, and Pepper. The list also included The Stills, Arrested Development, The Polyphonic Spree, and of course the list still goes on. Freedom of speech was also a huge topic of the day and was proudly displayed by Sage Francis with his back beat words dropping. All the bands were phenomenal and are worth catching over again. However, the two bands that really stood out are The Polyphonic Spree and Arrested Development. The Polyphonic Spree for those of you who have never been lucky enough to catch them, mind blowing, and jaw-dropping, you forget about any hate you could have held in your heart and just remember love is the key to everything, it's a bit like watching a miracle before your eyes unfold.  Arrested Development has been around since the late 80's with their life changing lyrics that teach us all to love one another no matter what we look like.  They spread their powerful message all over Jacksonville to create a perfect ending to a perfect day and reminding us we can all make a difference in the world.     If you got tired of watching bands you could go over to the Pavilion and see the local artists, DJ's and mass media producers. The artists that were displayed at the event got a chance to increase their fan bases and share their talents with their city.  One of the artists featured, Dianna Francis Batton, sold some of the most unique paintings at the event.  She has her own painting company called, Candy on Canvas, and was thrilled that she got to display her work in her own backyard; to her it felt more like a day of being in a larger metropolitan city where this kind of thing happens all time.  The fact that arts and music could come together in this town for the event was inspiring all on its own.     When you go to a festival this size, you have to have a plan of action in order to catch all the bands you want to see.  The one problem that the festival had was their lack of displaying bands times or giving out a schedule as to when each band performed.  At least there were plenty of bathrooms and the beer was flowing which are some of the key ingredients to a successful festival.  The city of Jacksonville should be proud of themselves for hosting one of the best things to ever hit the town involving music.  Tallyrand Music Festival helped put the city of Jacksonville on the market of top places to hold a festival with major acts, showing that as a town you can make anything happen, even in your own backyard that seems so small at times. -Deanna Ranes