Warped brought the noise to the masses once more to Comerica Park.
Well, the 16th annual Vans Warped Tour is in the books, and the sun stayed away in the second half of the day- sparing many fans worse sunburns than they already had. This year’s Warped brought an intriguing blend of bands that skewered every where from Top 40 hip-hop to death metal, making it one of the most diverse lineups in the tour’s history.
The crowd at Comerica Park looked a bit smaller than in past years, so I am not sure if the economy has finally caught up to Warped Tour, or perhaps people weren’t as enthralled with the lineup as in past years. For whatever reason it was, fans still dug their favorite bands and probably found a few new ones that will rock their world in years to come.
This year’s Warped Tour felt like a 8 hour session of ADD, as I bounced from set to set and getting a taste of a lot of bands (that’s probably due more to the schedule of the day versus real ADD). So, after checking out the bands- here’s the awards I’m giving out at the Detroit stop on the Warped Tour:
Best Way to Start The Day Award: If you weren’t rattled out of your slumber by the 11:55 am start time of Bring Me The Horizon, then you just should have stayed out of bed. The British band played to one of the larger audiences of the day as they wailed their way through cuts from “Suicide Season” and new tracks from their upcoming release, due in October.
Best New Soundalike: We’ve already had Rome Ramirez come in and do an admirable job with Sublime this summer, and at Warped Tour- Zoli Teglas stepped in and nailed the vocals during Pennywise’s set. One of the cornerstones of Warped, Pennywise made a bold move as their first major tour with the new lead singer was for Warped. “Bro Hymn” sounded as good as it always has.
Most Shamelessly Entertaining Set: Andrew W.K.’s half hour set had one theme and one theme only in his set: Party. The white tshirt clad man spent his set kicking, screaming and motivating the crowd to make the most of the day. Plus, handing out free stuff during just about every song had the crowd liking him. For the set closer, the signature “Party Hard”, Oompa Loompas (you know from “Willy Wonka”) were on stage dancing along, and giving everyone a good chuckle.
Glad You Showed Up Award: After sets later in the day that could have been better, Suicide Silence’s 7pm-ish set was the way to help bring home the day. Starting with the furious “Wake Up”, the California deathcore band ignited what was becoming a sleepy crowd and didn’t relent during their set. I’ve never been the biggest fan of the band, but on this night- it was exactly what was needed.
Most Disappointed to Miss: Sorry to the guys in Parkway Drive, but there were too many bands bunched into a mid-afternoon slot to make it over there in time. Perhaps another time… Yeah, Sum 41 as well. There was too much jammed into the last part of the night as well.
Biggest Crowds of the Day: Just as a spot check, most likely this crown will be a tie between hometown rapper Mike Posner and Nevershoutnever. Posner’s brand of hip-hop is nothing new and seemed bland, but I guess I was in the minority. Either way, the guy still had people waiting to meet him at his booth 2 hours after he was done. Nevershoutnever….well, I just don’t get it. Guess I’m getting old….
Most Destructive Set: Dillinger Escape Plan. See, I almost made it through this without talking about them- but too bad. Their set was as spastic and vicious as ever, with the band’s equipment being smashed up and the band jumping on their equipment any chance they got- it showed a little danger in a day that was mostly tame.
That’s my rundown of Warped Tour. Check out interviews in the coming days that I did with Iwrestledabearonce and Eyes Set To Kill. If you want more Warped info, check out www.warpedtour.com.
