This year’s installment of the Vans Warped Tour is now over with, and with a good sunny and breezy day behind us, I didn’t see as many people burnt out early as I have with Warped Tours in the past. The [...]]]>

Warped Tour brought the teenage masses to Comerica this past Monday.

This year’s installment of the Vans Warped Tour is now over with, and with a good sunny and breezy day behind us, I didn’t see as many people burnt out early as I have with Warped Tours in the past. The overall crowd (always hard to estimate) looked to be about on par with last year’s crowd, but it seemed far easier to navigate through the crowds this year for some reason.

With the earlier than usual date for Warped (July 8^th versus generally sometime later in July), this year’s festival snuck up on a lot of people this year. But for those in attendance, there was plenty to talk about as always. So, instead of filling up dead space in the article with describing Warped Tour- let’s just start to give out the awards for the scenes that took place at the 2011 edition of the Warped Tour:

Scariest Moment of the Day: During the Acacia Strain’s noontime rager of a set, the pits were on fire as the band launched into what was mostly an old school set and was well on it’s way to the show of the day until some tragedy struck. Midway through the set, a fan was severely injured during the set and even as the ambulances arrived, the fan was still not moving at all. It was a scary moment that cut the band’s set short, but we’re hoping the fan ends up all right in the end.

Highest Decibel Level of Young Girls Shrieking: No question- of all the bands I saw- this award goes to the Black Veil Brides. The music, as with their AP Tour performance, is a mixture of H.I.M. and hair metal (not always a bad combo), but a lot of it was drowned out by young teenage girls screaming every time they saw some guy in kabuki makeup. In the line for the signing,-check, during the set- check, on the way home in mom’s minivan- well hopefully for the mom’s sake, not.

The “I Know We Were Here in 1997, but Maybe We’re Getting Too Old For This” Award: Even though this reviewer would probably finish a close second, the guys in Less Than Jake played to a smaller crowd later in the day, and chatted during the set as to just how out of place they seemed with the rest of the bands on the bill. If Warped ever had a senior circuit, Less Than Jake would one of the forefathers of it and that’s not mean to be insulting because I’d be right there with them.

The “I Thought They’re be More People In Your Crowd” Award: It’s a tie between Dance Gavin Dance and Winds of Plague. The combo of August Burns Red and hometowners We Came As Romans might have taken away from Jonny Craig’s band set, which was still good, but it looked a little sparse. And even though Winds of Plague tore things up during their set, it was obvious a lot of the fans wanted their Jesus Metal as The Devil Wears Prada played at the same time. It’s a shame, because most fans missed a couple pretty solid sets.

Biggest Buzz: Fans were beyond psyched to see the final band of the evening, Asking Alexandria- who most likely won the tshirt sales of the day and hype of the day. Even though this reviewer missed their set, it was sure to be one of the bangers of the day.

Largest Crowds of the Day: Take your pick between Craig Owens’ new band D.R.U.G.S. and A Day To Remember. As was expected, both bands played the Main Stage to crowds that made it almost impossible to see, unless you hopped on top of a porta-potty or a view with binoculars. But both bands brought it and did a damn fine job in their 40 minute sets.

Well, those were the highlights of this year’s Vans Warped Tour. An interview with August Burns Red fell through, but I was able to interview Matt and Nick from D.R.U.G.S.- check for that interview to be posted within the next few days. Until next Warped Tour, whether it’s the senior circuit or not, later!

With it’s 17th year of the long running punk & metal fest, the Warped Tour has become a mainstay of the summer touring circuit. Getting started back on June 24th, this year’s Warped Tour looks to [...]]]>

The pavement will be hot and everyone will be sweaty as Warped hits Comerica this Friday.

With it’s 17^th year of the long running punk & metal fest, the Warped Tour has become a mainstay of the summer touring circuit. Getting started back on June 24^th, this year’s Warped Tour looks to be a bit different and diverse than perhaps the past few years, with featuring a smattering of non-emo/teeny bopper throughout the day. Punk and metal fans will be a bit more satisfied with this year’s lineup.

As the Warped Tour heads to Comerica Park, Detroit’s Warped Tour home since 2006, this year’s lineup will take place from roughly noon to 8:30pm once again this year, and here is some of the harder and heavier groups you’re gonna see this year:

-A Day To Remember: With the band playing two sold out shows in April at the Royal Oak Theater, the Florida based band are considered the headliner this year and and the initial lineup didn’t show ADTR on the lineup, their addition was a big boost to the lineup.

-Asking Alexandria: The UK hardcore metal band made a huge Top 10 splash with their album, “Reckless & Relentless” earlier this year and seem to be on stage with Sebastian Bach every time they’re on a big stage. Anybody with a love for hair metal has a fan in me.

-Black Veil Brides: The band just celebrated a Top 15 debut with their latest album, “Set The World On Fire”, and the band has been crazy busy on tour since the AP Tour and plan to be for a while.

-Pepper: The Hawaiian reggae/punk trio is generally the antidote to the sea of faceless and safe emo bands that have dominated the lineup the past few weeks. Out in support of the “Stitches EP”, the band continues to play on their own terms.

-Winds of Plague: The Californian metalcore band is always on the road and in support of their hard hitting new album, “Against The World”. The pits on the always hot pavement of Comerica Park are sure to be ablaze for the band.

Plenty of other bands are on the lineup, with 3OH3!, The Acacia Strain and Less Than Jake just three more of the nearly 70 bands at Warped, coming July 8^th at Comerica Park. See ya there!

The Vans Warped Tour 2011 plays at Comerica Park this Friday (July 8^th). Tickets are $34 and are available at www.livenation.com. Additional tour dates and other info can be found at www.warpedtour.com.

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 [...]]]>

Warped brought the noise to the masses once more to Comerica Park.

Well, the 16^th 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.

Forget OzzFest, forget any other major traveling festival- because the Vans Warped Tour is rolling into its 16th year and is now becoming a cross-generational event for rock fans young and old (but mostly young). The 2010 edition brings an entertaining mix [...]]]>

The Warped Tour takes over Comerica Park's parking lots this Friday.

Forget OzzFest, forget any other major traveling festival- because the Vans Warped Tour is rolling into its 16^th year and is now becoming a cross-generational event for rock fans young and old (but mostly young). The 2010 edition brings an entertaining mix of emo, old school punk and metal bands for what will most likely be a scorching day on the blacktop of the parking lots around Comerica Park.
But instead of discussing every band on the bill, here are a few intriguing prospects to check out this year at the Vans Warped Tour 2010:

Andrew W.K: If there’s one thing we can say about Andrew Wilkes-Krier- its that he likes to diversify. He finally released his long shelved album earlier this year, as well as a EP of new age piano numbers called “Cadillac 55” late last year. With hosting the Revolver Golden Gods Awards and running a nightclub- does Andrew have time to tour? I am sure he’ll be just fine.

Bring Me The Horizon: The best thing about the final Taste of Chaos tour in 2009, the great Brit hope for metal is gearing up to release their next album, out this fall. But for now, get sweaty and crazy to their debut, “Suicide Season”.

Every Time I Die: Hey guys, Detroit misses you…don’t be such a stranger to this town next time you release an album.

Mike Posner: This guy’s got a song on MTV Hits called “Cooler Than Me”- sounds like it ought to be on” Jersey Shore”.  This year’s Warped tour equivalent to Katy Perry, who played the festival in 2008. Even though he was born right here in Southfield, he’s a graduate from Duke- not exactly the hotbed of hip-hop activity.

Iwrestledabearonce: All the rage with the 15 year old metal crowd right now. The band themselves is quite talented, but needs to find a way to find cohesive songs next time around.

Pennywise & Reel Big Fish: Ok, this isn’t a double act- but this will be the extent of the “heritage” bands on Warped Tour this year and for older fans to recall seeing these bands played Warped back in the Phoenix Plaza days (ok, I’m included it that group). Pennywise has a brand new singer, and hopefully- the band doesn’t miss a beat.

Versaemerge: The band played the small Ernie Ball stage last year, and seemed to command a bigger than expected audience. This could be a breakout band in the next year and playing the main stage come Warped 2011.

The Dillinger Escape Plan: Just go see them, they’re all over the map, they’re awesome.

Over 70 bands hit the stages at Warped Tour this year, for a full listing of the bands playing in Detroit, check out www.warpedtour.com. Make sure to drink plenty of water and make sure to stay away from the sweaty guy with the “Free Hugs” shirts (because you know there will be plenty of them).

Warped Tour plays Comerica Park on Friday, July 30^th. Tickets are $33 and are available at www.ticketmaster.com. For additional dates and info, check out www.warpedtour.com.