For many people sporting Mohawks or donning extremely tight
female pants, there is one date that is penned on their calendars
the entire year ““ the date the Vans Warped Tour rolls into
town, bringing along 100-plus bands performing for a ticket price
of $25.
Despite the increase in corporate sponsorship and the lackluster
lineups of the past few years, this year’s 12th installment
of the punk rock summer camp provided something for everyone.
Overwhelming heat did not stop the crowds from attending the
first two Southern California dates of the tour, July 6 in San
Diego and July 7 in Pomona. However, most people refused to pay the
$5 for lemonade that the venues were charging and decided to save
their money for band shirts and CDs. The first aid tent was full
all day, especially in Pomona, with the constant traffic of
wheelchairs bringing in new victims of heat exhaustion and
dehydration and the occasional broken nose making an
appearance.
New this year was the designation of the Vagrant Records stage
as an acoustic stage. As a result, bands such as Moneen, The Bled
and Senses Fail joined the tour as acoustic acts, showing fans a
side normally not seen on tour. Saves the Day pulled double duty,
playing its regular emo/pop-punk music on the main stage and a more
subdued acoustic set in which it took requests from the crowd.
The lineup for the main stages provided memorable performances.
Underoath was voted the Energizer Band of the Tour and had an extra
10 minutes added to the standard 30-minute set.
Bouncing Souls proved they could still rock out as hard as the
up-and-coming bands, despite their almost 20-year career. During
the Pomona show, lead singer Greg Attonito jumped into the crowd at
least three times during the set, smashing delighted fans who
gleefully grabbed the microphone from him in order to sing their
favorite Souls song.
Anti-Flag’s politically charged punk rock ignited the
crowd into a dangerous fury, proving that not all the youth of
today have been desensitized to what is going on in the world. Not
to be outdone, The Casualties had a similarly energetic set.
Ska-punkers Less than Jake kept up the energy as well, especially
when they fired water guns into the sweaty audience and succeeded
in creating the event’s largest circle pits.
Joan Jett and the Blackhearts provided entertainment for the
older crowd and parents of the younger attendees. Though Jett
didn’t pull in the largest crowds, many stopped to sing along
with the classic “I Love Rock and Roll.”
Tour veterans NoFX, whose lead singer has been on almost every
Warped Tour in one band or another, kept the crowd laughing with
jokes, beer-holding mic stands and a current vendetta against
organized religion of any kind.
Security had their hands full, especially during the Rise
Against set. The melodic hardcore band sang fan favorites and even
included a couple of new songs off its latest release.
In the end, the San Diego lineup proved superior, where
Jack’s Mannequin, featuring Andrew McMahon ““
former lead singer of Something Corporate ““ made its only
Warped appearance. Though the band’s piano-heavy music was
not typical of the acts on the tour, the audience was especially
captivated by the set.
Unfortunately, due to the nature of Warped Tour, smaller bands
played at the same time as the larger bands. In spite of this, the
up-and-coming bands this year were especially good. The best
performance of the side stages came from Long Island band Patent
Pending, whose unmatched energy created a dynamic stage performance
reminiscent of Green Day.
Despite the ringing ears and sunburned backs, it will be hard
for next year’s Warped Tour to top this year’s
energetic performances. Hopefully it manages to keep it up when it
rolls into Los Angeles on July 12.
““ Michelle Castillo
E-mail Castillo at mcastillo@media.ucla.edu.