With the increasing popuarlity of certain styles, Warped Tour last year resulted in a bit of diversity brought into its lineup, and seemed to bring in the better bands doing something of the "heavier" variety. This year, the "heavy variety" was mostly shitty screaming post-hardcore bands on the Smartpunk stage, and thus, there was a less interesting lineup this year than ever for me personally. However, I did manage to see the few expected gems in the rough (italicized are Kirby's interjections)...
- My day started at its peak with the Dillinger Escape Plan. Greg Puciato was a madman, basically. While only once was a stage fan thrown into the crowd with Puciato apologizing and explaining he thought it wouldn't go that far (and immediately giving the victimized crowd member a t-shirt as compensation), twelve-foot speakers were scaled multiple times with Puciato looking rather destructive and several incidents of violent swings of the mic stand occurred; even the left stage guitarist took a swing at him. Actually, there seemed to be a bit of tension between the two, but I couldn't tell how serious it was. Regardless, for the most part there was a ton of energy from the rest of the band, with some of the set including in this rough order: "Panasonic Youth," Sugar Coated Sour," "Setting Fire To Sleeping Giants," a few others and closed with "Sunshine The Werewolf."
- Saosin sounded much improved over their performance at the Charleroi VFW a few weeks back, and the sound setup was likely a partial explanation. Regardless, I arrived during their second song, and saw them play most of the songs off the Translating The Name EP as well as "I Can Tell...," but still no new songs that would assumingly appear from their long-delayed debut full-length on Capitol.
- An entire Big D And The Kids Table set provided a nice distraction from the rest of the day. "Checklist" opened things up, followed by "My Girlfriend's On Drugs," "Little Bitch," "You Lost, You're Crazy," closer "LAX" and a few others. Their set seemed to be hampered by some odd song choices, but they still served up an enjoyable 25-or-so minutes of their signature ska-punk.
- I could pick out a Bedouin Soundclash song in the distance just by the classy horn usage and definite comparisons to London Calling.
- If you like ridiculously over the top metal with an overdose of guitar squealing, the pasty fellows in Avenged Sevenfold sure delivered. I watched their last 2 songs waiting for Thrice, one of which was one of the forgettable tracks off City Of Evil (read: the track listing), and "Unholy Confessions." Lots of smoke and mime makeup. Fun fun.
- Thrice tore it up. They kicked it off with "Betrayal Is A Symptom," and it's clear that despite the increased accessibility notable in all post-Illusion Of Safety material, the band's intensity on those and earlier tracks are not lost one bit. "The Artist In The Ambulance" and "Under A Killing Moon" also made appearances as well as two songs off the forthcoming Vheissu. The first, "Image Of The Invisible," is likely the first single off the record with its every-other-line chant of "WE ARE THE IMAGE OF THE INVISIBLE!" The second was a bit more creative, with Dustin and Eddie trading off screams at two points in the song, a pseudo-bluesy/lounge feel to the guitars, and Teppei even playing some jazzy organs at the end.
- I didn't closely watch them, but MxPx sounded good. I remember overhearing "The Darkest Places," "My Life Story," "Heard That Sound," closer "Punk Rock Show."
- Per apparent tradition, the Transplants covered "White Riot," and used cleavers instead of their instruments for the song while raw hunks of various meat could be seen strewn around the stage. True story.
- I'm not afraid to admit it, I like the Transplants and they were definitely on my list of acts to see during the 11th anniversary of the tour. Security was swarming the sides of the stages and the photo pit as Travis Barker took his drum kit, Tim Armstrong stumbled onto the stage, while Skinhead Rob and the backing band filled up the Mike stage. The energy was in the members, but not the music as they opened with mediocre versions of "Not Today" and "Apocalypse Now" from their new record Haunted Cities, before leading into everyone's favorite hair product song "Diamonds & Guns." The set list was dominated by mostly newer songs with the exception of "Tall Cans" as the other track from the self-titled record and an interesting rendition of "White Riot." It was certainly interesting to watch Barker on drums and Armstrong's antics, but their presentation was nothing out of the ordinary. [PICTURES OF THE TRANSPLANTS]
- Who would've thought Mest still has a huge fanbase? They try and sound like the Police on their new album. It's pretty amazing. And not in a quality way.
- Say what you must, but the Starting Line played the best songs off Based On A True Story, and thus, they played a good set. Sure, I was groaning inside with the inclusion of "Leaving," "Given The Chance," and "Bedroom Talk," but "Inspired By The $," "Surprise Surprise" and "Ready" also found its way into the set, and it was, dare I say it, enjoyable.
- Some English pop-punk band was playing prior to the Bled, but I couldn't figure out who. Only when I walked up to the stage did I realize it was the Fight. They aged quick.
- When I heard that the Offspring would be playing their first ever stint on the Warped Tour this year my excitement for the concert went up a notch. That level of anticipation grew tremendously when the band promised that they would be playing older material, specifically from Ignition and their self-titled debut. I'm not sure if it was the energy drink I just downed or the thought of possibly hearing cuts like "Beheaded" and "Session," but my heart was heavily beating against my chest. Even though each member of the band is eligible for the punk rock retirement home, they came flying on to stage and immediately ripped into the rapid "All I Want." Their 30-minute set never let down (until Dexter drenched the sweaty crowd w/ a fire hose) as they ripped through the hits "Come Out & Play," "The Kids Aren't Alright," and "Self-Esteem" while delivering notable classics "Genocide" and "Bad Habit." Despite their age and questionable current recordings, the Offspring easily put on of the better performances of the day, regardless of that I was still upset that they did not hold up to their guarantee playing songs from the beginning of their discography. [PICTURES OF THE OFFSPRING]
- The Bled was another sureshot highlight. After a few introduction jokes by Reggie And The Full Effect's James DeWees, they tore into the set with "Sound Of Sulfur," with "Red Wedding," "Ruth Buzzi Better Watch Her Back," and two new songs from the upcoming Found In The Flood, both of which were just as heavy as anything on Pass The Flask. The band didn't miss a note and thus, the Kung Fu theatrics were out in full force.
- On the Explosion's last tour I was fortunate enough to catch Throw Rag and their quirky antics translated quite well onto the few people that decided to watch the band. Beer bellies, flying pink shirts, and smashed washed boards only begin to detail the oddities that occurred during their recital on the second stage. [PICTURES OF THROWRAG]
- I caught a few Motion City Soundtrack songs -- "Capital H," one other and "Better Open The Door" -- and they sounded great, but it was time to call it a day.
- Closing the evening on the second stages was Minneapolis' Motion City Soundtrack. As always, the band was spot on during every song; rarely do they miss a beat during their infectious pop numbers. With the recent release of their sophomore record Commit This to Memory fresh in every fan's head, MCS have one hell of a solid set list. There's hardly a dull moment or a reason to stop dancing between "Capital H" and "Everything Is Alright;" well, maybe you can catch your break during "Modern Chemistry." My only real disappointment was that they never slid into "When You're Around," easily one of their best live songs, but who can complain when every kid on the floor is singing along with the "Future Freaks Me Out" to close it all out? [PICTURES OF MOTION CITY SOUNDTRACK
- The A.K.A.'s
- Big D & the Kids Table
- Dropkick Murphys
- MxPx
- Reggie & the full Effect
- Saosin
- The Bled
- Thrice