Shawn Sixx with Black Veil Brides
A Wrap Up of Warped Tour
Shawn Sixx checks in with some of the bands that make up the diverse cross section that is the 15th year of Warped Tour!
Photo by Evil Robb
After 15 years, the Vans Warped Tour has changed the music scene as we know it. New bands and anything associated with music culture is being schooled to tens of thousands of rabid fans at 40+ stops covering two nations. From the beer swilling punk bands preaching about solidarity through brotherhood to the neon colored poppy dance groups, the Warped Tour screams that the summer tour festival is alive and kicking. The individual genres aren’t the draw to this summer staple though. The experience of an ocean of vendors and merch, the drenched crowd pressed up against the barrier, the sheer bedlam of a table signing, the memory of a person’s first show and the hope for music is the draw. This is one of the longest running tours in the country for a reason! So as the school year starts up again, here are some of the classmates in detention with me:
Black Veil Brides
Channeling the ghosts of the glam metal past, Black Veil Brides are trying to do the “cool shit” again. Hailing from Hollywood, this group seems not to be concerned about all the breakdowns, trends and the so called brutality in heavier music. It’s more along the lines of just getting up on stage and kicking ass and giving the fans a true “show.” That’s what rock-n-roll is all about isn’t it? Comprised of “Andy Sixx” Biersack (vocals), Ashley Purdy (bass), Jake Pitts (guitar), Jinxx (guitar) and Christian “CC” Coma (drums), this band set out on a path of a visual and sonically rich metal back in 2006. The thing is though, even with all the black- sprayed hair and makeup, this band can really play! Drummer Christian “CC” Coma responded when I asked what has happened to metal bands nowadays, “It’s been a while since there has been that larger than life band… we are trying to give the fans something extra.” The band’s new and 3rd album Set the World on Fire is being supported by non-stop touring straight through till next summer, which says a lot of this band’s mentality to give it all for the fans out there looking for the excitement of the show. To all the critics that think these guys are all make up and fluff: guitarist Pitts seems to be gracing a few guitar magazine covers as of late, make up and all. As Pitts says, “…it was my dream when I was a little kid. (I) first picked up a guitar and started telling people I was gonna be a rock star one day and everyone laughed at me…so fuck em!” Rock-n-Roll dreams do come true I guess.
Venetia Fair
This band is like a schizophrenic fit! It is so not what you would expect. They are all over the place, erratic, chaotic and that is the best part. They are punk, pop, screamo- and a whole lot of theater. Hailing from Boston, the band Venetia Fair has touched on something that just might be so infective that it got them to escape their hometown. As soon as their first album The Venetia Fair presents: The Circus was recorded they hit the road. Band members, Benny Santoro (vocals), Mr. Chark (guitar), Joe Brown (keys), C-Vegas (drums) and Mike Abiuso (bass) started on the Vans Warped Tour by not even playing, but passing out CD’s and flyers to everyone there. The concertgoers didn’t even have a clue who they were even dealing with then…but they sure do now! Singer Santoro doesn’t own an Ipod or any CD’s but just “blasts around” listening for things he likes to help draw upon to create their own music. “It’s kinda what our songs are like, blasting around with different things till something works,” commented Abiuso. This band wants you to come to a show and watch music getting played in front of you. They wanna give you a show! The new album, The Pits, is sure to exude the high energy, theatrics and full on craziness that this band has to offer. They are touring around the country whether you like it or not, so to speak. They actually admit, “We crash our van all the time. Our van gets towed all the time. We don’t take care of ourselves, each other, or really anything. The only thing we care about is that after you see us play, you tell your friend(s) that you have no idea what you just watched.” What’s better than that?
Lucero
What do you get when a band takes the essence of the Memphis Mafia, classic rock, British punk, and country twang, mixes it all together and then hands you a beer? Lucero is what you get. Starting at the end of the 90′s, this band has been on a mission to get home to what they knew and grew up on. Made up of Ben Nichols (vocals), Roy Berry (drums), John C. Stubblefield (bass), Brian Venable (guitar), Rick Steff (piano, organ, accordion) and Todd Beene (pedal steel), the band has touched even deeper on their sixth and latest offering 1372 Overton Park. There is no pretense, no bullshit, god they don’t even make a set list most of the time! “In this day and age of things just being heavy and this and that, and more and more and more, sometimes stripping things back and actually playing the spaces between the notes rather than trying to play all the notes is a little more ballsy, to a certain degree,” commented John C. When your home had been the old martial arts dojo of Elvis himself at 1372 Overton Park in the crosstown section of Memphis, you need to uphold some expected standards. This is basic stripped down music that strikes a resonance and transcends across a widely diverse crowd. This band plays a lot of shows- around 150-200 a year. You will surely get them someplace near you. They love to play small venues and get you close to them so you can get the real experience of what the mid south has to offer. They are currently playing around the country and writing new material. Catch them and maybe you will sit next to the King…
Larry and his Flask
Where the hell is Larry?! Well I couldn’t find Larry, but I sure found a bunch of purposeful chaos. This mish-mash straight out of Oregon has progressed from a raw apathetic punk styled group to a band that is complex and rich with tonal quality that captivates even the most distracted audience. The band started back in 2003 but made a few changes to be currently made up of Ian Cook (vocals/guitar), Jamin Marshall (vocals/percussion), Jeshua Marshall (vocals/double bass/baritone/harmonics), Dallin Bulkley (vocals/guitar/not guilty), Andrew Carew (vocals/banjo/trombone) and finally Kirk Skatvoid (vocals/mandolin/trumpet). The most apparent thing is that every player credits vocals… “It’s just six dudes getting together with tons of different influences and we all put it in a big melting pot and see what comes out,” says Cook. This band is a living breathing thing, “…we try it, we see what we can do with it, sometimes it doesn’t turn out so good and we scrap it. What you see is what did work,” added Cook and Carew. Well what did stick you will hear on their first full- length album All That We Know that was just released this year. These guys say they will play anywhere at any time so you should be able to catch them and surely be as surprised as everyone else has been. If you can find Larry, let me know….
Ionia
Based in New York City, Ionia is a dark melancholy over-toned alt-rock group resisting the machine as we know it, ironic as it is considering the over-developed metropolis they call home. The groups’ namesake comes from an ancient culture near the Aegean Sea who were peaceful during good times but brutally marauderous when things got chaotic. The same could be said of this 5 piece. They say still waters run deep ya know… This tribe, Blaise Beyhan (vocals), Freddy Epps (bass), Chris Ahkao (guitar), Kyle Walters (guitar) and Curtis Collazo (drums), has performed their manifesto three years in a row on the Vans Warped Tour starting off with winning a spot on the Ernie Ball stage. Blaze states, “…much less like you putting the work in or not putting any work in and being some kind of machine for a label, to make money, that is despicable to me. How do you look at your self in the mirror, how are you OK with that?” Is there really any do it yourself band out there now a days that says, “We work hard and give you an honest performance, if we don’t then we shouldn’t be in front of you? There’s got to be some line between what you think is cool or what your perception is cool and what is practical.” Ionia has a new full length Moral Hazard out and is currently touring nationwide to support this DIY offering. They are also entering the studio to turn and burn another album. Look for them if you seek to hear an honest opinion in a sea of false prophets.
Blacklist Royals
Nashville has more than just pop country and the mid-south version of L.A. with less pretty girls. The Blacklist Royals are a true grit punk rock influenced band that has come out swinging with a never quit, quiet country cool swagger. Band members Nat (vocals), Rob (drums, vocals), Eric (bass), Jamie (guitar) started at the Vans Warped Tour in 2006 playing outside the gate for the lined up crowd. Since then, the band has been on a mission to play everywhere from Europe to your neighbor’s back yard. Their sophomore album SEMPER LIBERI was a long process that was going for, “…the kind of vision we have is the 60′s punk rock band, not like the Ramones but like Rolling Stones meets Motown meets the Clash,” according to Rob. Lately they seem to be working on allot more substance to their lyrics though, “…it’s tough to write really personal songs because you put it on paper and then you play it for somebody and its just a fucking song, it can be the deepest shit and they don’t give a fuck.” added Nat. Their new material (being featured on a 7″ split with the Street Dogs) is lyrically and emotionally so personal that people won’t be able to avoid connecting in someway. They will be touring feverishly all fall and working on producing the most honest thing you have heard. If you see them, offer them a beer, they have earned it.
Street Dogs
Well you can take the man out of Boston but you can’t take Boston out of the man. The Boston punk rock band the Street Dogs have graciously paid homage to their hometown and all the flavor it has imparted on their music and band. Current band mates, Mike McColgan (vocals-ex Dropkick Murphys vocalist), Johnny Rioux (bass), Marcus Hollar (guitar), Tobe Bean III (guitar) and Paul Rucker (drums) have gained massive success through their pro neighborhood, pro family, political, working class themed punk styled rock. The honest gritty tone is hard not to feel since its something we can all relate to. McColgan comments that, “…to each their own but I feel like at the end of the day, legacy… of where you stand down the line with your music is more important than immediate success. Look at bands like Black Flag and the Descendents for example, both are bands that have a legacy. They have respect from all sorts of different music critics or bands. That’s what’s important to me. I feel like some of the younger bands need to focus on writing better songs and be less fashion conscious and more music conscious.” As utopian of an idea that is, it is what we all look for. McColgan adds, “I want a song to stand up over time.” I think maybe more bands should think this way. The Street Dogs will be sharing a spit 7″ album with the Blacklist Royals and will be playing all over the world including Europe, U.S., Australia and beyond. They are shattering their dreams of living Rock and Roll. Get out and see them and shatter yours….
After the dust has settled and the ringing in my ears has faded, I think back to what just happened. Almost getting trampled by thousands of fans, coming close to dying of heat stroke, consuming more beer than I should mention, raiding every single stage, and various issues with a porta potty, I just experienced what a summer break tour should be. What I learned during my summer vacation with the Vans Warped Tour 2011 is that there is a real effort to learn the real values of music, regardless of the influences you pull from. The genres make no difference anymore. This traveling musical summer school is teaching diversity and hoping you or the bands don’t flunk out.
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