Has it already been 13 years since the Warped Tour first came through? What started as an almost experiment of a festival featuring mostly punk rock and ska acts with skateboarding has turned into an event kids talk about all year featuring all genres of music including hardcore and hip-hop. As the years have passed the line ups have increased with some bands returning many times over. It is also now the longest running festival in America.
At $40 a ticket there were some complaints coming from the wallets of kids waiting in line at the ticket booth, but not too many as the show was practically sold out.
Keep in mind there were 10 stages throughout the festival area so it was impossible to check out every single band. I wish I could clone myself and do so but I am not that intelligent. All of the performances lasted an average of 30 minutes and that was understandable as there were almost 90 bands spread around. I took everything in stride checking out what was before me and then moved on.
I could hear Ohio’s Hawthorne Heights playing the Lucky Stage. High pitched screams filled the area as the emo-screamo band played through a quick set featuring songs off both of their albums. Not exactly my style but they sounded good.
I had heard great things about the London hardcore act Gallows so I ventured to the Hurley stage to check them out. When they took stage I heard singing but could not see a singer anywhere. I moved up close to get a better look and there he was, Frank Carter, signing his heart out in the middle of the pit with the fans. After one of the tracks he stated that they got paid a lot of money and that everyone should buy their CD so the band could make more money.
They blew through their set but not without inciting the largest circle pit I have ever seen. The kids were basically doing laps around the soundboard area as they covered a Black Flag song. This was the highlight of my day. I made a note to myself to go buy their CD next time I go shopping.
Article comments
1 - Shirtless Dan
I was at the Warped Tour in Cleveland last year. I was one of those 18-year-old fans that was stuck under the bridges during the bulk of the storm. When the storm let up for that brief period, my then girlfriend suggested we make a break for Tower City because we were wearing shorts and tank tops, sopping wet from the rain. We made it out of the main gate when the hail started blowing sideways. We were both being pelted with dime to quarter sized pellets while trying to make our way to the parking garage. Several other people our age were trying to do the same thing but they weren't getting very far. We made it to the road but it was impossible to see the cars coming down the road until they were less than thirty feet away. When we made it into the main area of Tower City, I took my shirt off to change into something dry and I noticed that my entire body was covered in welts from the hail and harsh rain and winds. I still felt cold even after an hour of warming up. I was trembling and I started to panic after it wouldn't stop. I ended up getting hypothermia from exerting myself to carry my girl up through the streaming waters coming down the sidewalk. I ended up missing Bad Religion, the one group I went to the Tour to see. Looking back, I would have risked the hypothermia to see the show but now all I can do is hope that they return to Cleveland so I can see them perform. Here's to the future of the Warped Tour.
2 - Kevin Mangun
Badass review!! I was right beside the blowup stage schedule when it blew over, and tried to help hold some tents back from hitin' the fans. It was INSANE.....FOR REAL.......EFFING INSANE!!!!
I'll never forget it