This summer’s concerts have been heating up for sure. Friday July 27 was no different when four time Grammy winner, Pat Benatar and her long time husband/guitarist Neil Giraldo co-headlined the Vine at Del Lago along with another 80’s icon, Rick Springfield.
Pat and Neil have been performing together since 1979 and have been an unstoppable husband and wife team since 1983. Together they have written and produced many gold and platinum and multi-platinum hits including “Hit Me With Your Best Shot”, “Love is a Battlefield”, “We Belong”, and “Invincible”.
At just about 9 p.m., the seasoned musical veteran performers hit the stage with their band and kicked right off into “All Fired Up”, “We Live For Love”, and “Invincible”. The dynamic duo of Pat and Neil had the sold out audience at Del Lago fired up for sure, as no one was quite sure who would be performing first on the bill, Rick or Pat and Neil.
Their sound was like pure vinyl. If you closed your eyes, it was as good as a recording. Flawless. Pat’s vocals were simply powerfully amazing as she hit all the high notes effortlessly, especially on “We Live For Love. Neil’s guitar work is just plain brilliant. His technique and playing style that has defined the Benatar sound for nearly 40 years remains perfect never missing a lick, bend or nuance.
Their set included a stripped down, acoustic side as well when they performed powerful “Shine” intimately for the audience. “Shine”, released in 2017, was written in support of the women’s rights movement, and the record reflects the Shine Together Movement, which is her voice to hopefully affect positive change in the world and government. This was a beautifully performed acoustic number.
Finishing out the twelve song set, was a very cool rendition of “Heartbreaker” with a few twists thrown in including a medley of Cash’s “Ring of Fire”, Hendrix’s “Purple Haze”, The White Stripes “Seven Nation Army”, and a cool little “Godfather Theme” instrumental.
After nearly forty years of making hit after hit, Pat and Neil have pretty much proved that they are in fact invincible.
Setlist: All Fired Up, We Live for Love, Invincible, Promises in the Dark, We Belong, Disconnected, Hell is for Children, You Better Run, Hit Me With Your Best Shot, Love is a Battlefield (Encore: Shine, Heartbreaker
What started out as a rainy day in Troy led to a beautiful night of music with Rubblebucket, And the Kids, and Onlyness. Rubblebucket band leader Kalmia Traver and Alex Toth lead the group with a mix of dance rhythms with colorful costumes and props. Check out their new album Sun Machine, due out on August 24.
Music festivals are great places to get a sample of a ton of different music in a short period of time. Get a taste of this band, then that, and on and on without much rhyme or reason. At the Newport Folk Festival, each set felt less like a singular unrelated moment and more like a continuum of a story that was unraveling in real time. Over three days, on a small parcel of land jutting into Narragansett Bay, each artist added their piece to the story, culminating in a grand climax during the final act of the weekend. It was choose-your-own-adventure style, to be read however one wanted.
Across four different stages and multiple pop-up opportunities, there were plenty of twists and turns to take, but never a wrong way or false ending. There were no bad choices, just hard ones. To stay at the Fort Stage and continue listening to Brandi Carlile turn to page 59. To walk to the Harbor Stage to hear what Langhorn Slim is playing flip to page 18.
It played out chronologically, but the memories are a blur of highlights that transcend space and time.
Champion of the festival, member of the inaugural 1959 lineup and subject of a now yearly programming tribute, Pete Seeger is an important figure for the festival. He inscribed his banjo with: “This machine surrounds hate and forces it to surrender.” These words emerged as a theme over the weekend, as they have in other tumultuous times. As Bob Dylan famously did way back when, and many other since, artists more often than not, opted for the strength of electricity in their “machines” at this year’s festival.
Sturgill Simpson abandoned any semblance of country and played a full-throttle set of heavy rocking jams with his four piece that was more Zeppelin and Hendrix than Jennings or Nelson. Twain, played an electrified acoustic guitar, which helped push his soft speaking voice into an exuberant howl, bursting with emotion when used in song. He and his trio played meandering songs that were mellow but moving, groovy and captivating. Moses Sumney, with just his voice and guitar, used layers of loops and effects to create vast sound tapestries that blanketed the crowd at the Harbor Stage.
Don’t fret (pun intended), others took the more traditional route, using just voice and acoustic instruments to convey their messages. Charlie Parr played acoustic guitars, along with a percussionist, on songs, both autobiographical and otherwise, that felt both fresh and timeless. Supergroup Bermuda Triangle, Brittany Howard, Becca Mancari and Jesse Lafser, had a bit of a song circle vibe, passing each others songs around, playing guitars, banjos and an upright bass. They also worked in some new group originals, including a self-titled theme song that centered on their stunning three-part harmonies.
Some took unexpected turns toward stripped down acoustic music. Nels Cline, known best as the off-kilter guitarist of Wilco and for his avant-garde jazz outings, performed classic country, blues and even a raga-esque instrumental on a resonator guitar with Brandon Seabrook joining on mandolin and guitar. St. Vincent, dressed in a stunning red dress, and joined only by Thomas Barton on piano, managed an even bigger left turn. Her rhythmic electro-pop songs like “Prince Johnny” and “Masseduction” were stripped down to their bare bones and performed as jazzy lounge vocal workouts. The songs showed their inner strength, holding up to their massive reinterpretations.
Others found strength in numbers. Hiss Golden Messenger boasted three guitars for a big energy set that begged the crowd to boogie along. The nine members of Tank and the Bangas held an on-stage party, pushing the envelope of the festival’s history with a mix of rap, funk, metal-style shredding. Twerking and Outkast weren’t off-limits for this “folk” set. Low Cut Connie matched the Bangas energy in a set of high-octane bar boogie that had lead singer Adam Weiner jumping atop his piano every chance he could get. Nicole Atkins “had the best afternoon of her life,” leading a ten-piece through her soulful catalog and beyond, including a wonderful cover of Carole King’s “Road to Nowhere.” Hamilton Leithauser and Rostamg led a ten piece that included a string quartet, on songs from both their collaborations and their solo careers. This is the Kit also played with a string quartet to close their set, topping off lead woman Kate Stables’ quintet. They split the difference between folk jazz and rock with intricate and multilayered compositions like “Bulletproof” and “Moonshine Freeze.” Glorietta, a band formed by festival alums, yo-yo’d from up to nine members down to two, playing sounds ranging from country ballads to raging party rockers.
Guest artists are the norm at Newport, whether they were already playing at the festival or not. Nels Cline invited up Warren Haynes for takes on “Walking Blues,” “The Last Thing On My Mind,” and lastly, with apologies to Jeff Tweedy, Cline took the mic for Wilco’s “White Light.” Margo Price called up John Prine for a duet of “In Spite of Ourselves” and then Brandi Carlile to help her rip through Dolly Parton’s “9 to 5,” a song deemed “very important to the times.” The incredible talent at the festival was used by artists like a toolkit. Female voices were especially in high demand. Carlile, Lucius, Maggie Rogers and the Watson Twins showed up more times than we can count. Eric D. Johnson led a special set entitled Beneath the Sacred Mountain that was built with special guests in mind. The Shin’s James Mercer came out to sing a few including “Helpless” with the Watson Twins, Laura Veirs and Matthew White joined together on “You Ain’t Going Nowhere” and Johnson led the house band on “Deal.”
Perhaps the biggest surprise guest appeared late on Friday when Jason Isbell invited David Crosby to the stage for powerful renditions of “Wooden Ships” and “Ohio.” According to Isbell, “these are the songs we need to be listening to right now.” Becca Mancari echoed that sentiment in her set at the intimate Museum Stage with Jesse Lafser. They played a more bare version of “Ohio,” but the words carried the same weight. “It’s so important at this time to have hope,” she said, and Neil Young’s words, though specific to a time and place, resonate strongly still.
Surprises weren’t limited to special guests. Unplanned stripped-down sets occurred throughout the weekend at the Kids Tent with everyone from Spirit Family Reunion to Hiss Golden Messenger to This is the Kit. Passenger followed up his Fort Stage set with a up-from-nowhere set on a small stage thrown together in the back of the Quad inside the fort walls where he graced a gathering crowd with Springsteen’s “Dancer in the Dark” and a first-time performance of an original still in the works. One artist remained completely unannounced on the schedule. Saturday’s final act remained a mystery up until the very moment they took the stage. The crowd gathered in anticipation for waiting for the reveal. Excitement erupted when Mumford and Sons finally took the stage, immediately joined by guests Jerry Douglas, Brandi Carlile and Maggie Rogers for “Awake My Soul.” The guests would continue throughout, with Phoebe Bridgers singing on a cover of Radiohead’s “All I Need,” Douglas and Carlile returned for SImon and Garfunkel’s “The Boxer,” and Mavis Staples came out to finish with “The Weight.”
Despite being held around the walls of a fort, the festival eliminated borders. The themes were universal and the lineup international. All were welcome to join in on the story being told. Khruangbin imported Thai-inspired funk for a slinky soul-soothing set that wordlessly dissolved borders. Sidi Toure brought their ngoni-led Malian fare for more East meets West infectious grooves. Sweden’s Daniel Norgren wowed with slow-burn folk rockers featuring crunchy guitar wails. Courtney Barnett slashed and burned with her grungy guitar style in both her own set and as a member of fellow Melbournian Jen Cloher’s band, who played her first-ever American festival. Toots and the Maytals brought Jamaican’s folk traditions and Glen Hansard a heavy dose of Ireland’s.
Shakey Graves concentrated on his just-released material, songs of reassurance in troubling times. He spoke of the bubble that is created at Newport. It’s a bubble of inclusion and love that exemplifies the idea that all who play and attend are a part of the folk family. Many others echoed this sentiment throughout the weekend, Lucius expressing “Newport enables a sharing of love, and we need to help it spread.”
There was also plenty of actual family love spread throughout the festival. Amanda Shires invited husband Jason Isbell for a few tunes and also joined him for his entire set. Margo Price had her husband, Jeremy Ivey, playing guitar and harmonica in her band, including a moving duet on “All American Made.” Valerie June, playing her “irridescent, sparkly” music dedicated a song to her mom who was in the audience. Husband and wife band War and Treaty urged the audience to hug each other amidst an uplifting gospel revue that celebrated “the greatest race ever… the human race.” Brandi Carlile brought her four-year-old Evangeline onto the stage for the song she inspired, “A Mother”. “There’s not just one kind of family, this is about Evangeline but really it’s about everyone’s Evangeline,” Carlile explained. Langhorne Slim brought his mother on stage to sing along on her first favorite song of his, “Diamonds and Gold.”
All chapters of the story, regardless of how the pages turned, told the same tale. And they all concluded at the Fort Stage early Sunday evening for a set listed as “A Change is Gonna Come.” Jon Batiste, backed by the Dap Kings, hosted a superstar blowout finale centered on the great American songbook. Patriotic songs, protest songs and gospels. A solo piano Star Spangled Banner contrasted immediately with the Dap Kings interpretation of “This Land Is Your Land.” Leon Bridges and Gary Clarke Jr. came up for yet another take on “Ohio,” this one slow and oozing, searingly powerful. Valerie June and Ben Jaffe joined for “Ain’t Nobody Gonna Turn Me Around.” The remainder of the Preservation Hall Jazz Band entered the stage with Chis Thile and Leon Bridges for “I’ll Fly Away.” Thile remained on the stage for a duet with Batiste on the Punch Brothers’ “My Oh My,” that meandered around classical and jazz themes in a delicately intricate dance of sound. Brandi Carlile and Maggie Rogers got up for “Times They Are A Changin’”, Rachel Price on “A Change is Gonna Come,” and finally Mavis Staples returned once again for “Jesus on the Mainline.” Any musician still on the grounds got on stage for a huge playing of “Freedom’s Highway” that no one ever wanted to end.
The magical weekend was coming to an end, but the change will only come if everyone keeps the spirit alive beyond the Fort. Artists continually included the crowd with sing-alongs, clap-alongs, dance-offs, scream-offs and more. More than any rally or march, the Newport Folk Festival provided a platform to inspire a path forward from the darkness. The festival welcomed at its entrance with another Seeger quote, “We’re stronger when we sing together.” Though it might just be this story’s moral to walk away with.
Oliver Kennan, a New York City-based indie-soul artist and bandleader, has become known in the NY music scene for his infectious energy onstage and his remarkably tight seven-piece contemporary soul band. Oliver is a retro-soul performer with one foot planted firmly in the 21st century, with influences ranging from Otis Redding to Arcade Fire, Betty Davis to Radiohead, and Wilson Pickett to Amy Winehouse. Give a listen to his first single, “Waiting,” just released via Hornblow Recordings.
“Waiting” is a modern take on the rock and soul of the past and a classic story of a young man searching for love in the loneliest big city in the world, NYC. It’s one part Tower of Power’s up-tempo funk with a contemporary swagger where Oliver plays the lonely loverboy with conviction and good humor. The band channeled the vintage sounds of their favorite records while recording live to tape at The Bunker Studios and Thump Studios in Brooklyn. “Waiting” was written by Oliver Kennan, is published by Easy Coast Music (BMI) and was produced by Graham Stone and mastered by Bob Ludwig.
Warped Tour made its last stop at Darien Lake Performing Arts Center on Wednesday, July 25. Despite the heat and humidity, fans came out in droves from all over Central and Western New York for one last Warped Tour experience.
Ice Nine Kills
NYS Music Photographer Meredith Snow and I started the day off catching Warped alums Ice Nine Kills. Even in 79 degree heat, the horror-core band from Boston played the entire set dressed as horror movie icons like Freddy and Jason, with full costume and makeup. The highlight of the set was hearing their new song “The American Nightmare,” from their upcoming album The Silver Scream.
Ice Nine Kills
The next stage over featured As It Is. The British band doesn’t make it stateside often. I first heard band leader Patty Walters when he was a teenager doing solo cover songs on YouTube. Now he’s backed by a full band and performing original songs. Gone is the wholesome “boy next door” persona. In its place is an edgier look and sound. After singing “Hey Rachel,” from last year’s debut album, Walters introduced the band as My Chemical Romance and welcomed everyone to 2005 Warped Tour. They launched into a couple new songs, “The Stigma” and “The Wounded World,” off their new album The Great Depression which comes out in a couple weeks.
As It Is
It’s impossible to catch everything at a festival with eight stages, and sometimes we just caught snippets as we raced from stage to stage. We saw the tail end of Tonight Alive’s set, as front woman Jenna McDougall told us in her Australian accent, “You have the right to lose your minds,” before launching into one of their new songs. I took a much needed break from the heat at the Reverse Daycare tent while my photographer snapped a few pics of Buffalo’s Every Time I Die.
Every Time I Die
Then we were off to see The Maine. A whooshing sound filled the air as they filed on stage in their signature matching outfits. They started with a cover of Blur’s “Song 2” which got the crowd singing along. The rest of their set was all originals from their eleven years as a band. On “Girls Do What They Want,” they called a random audience member up on stage to help sing the song. This guy Brian came up in his tank top and shorts and made the most of his five minutes of fame, nailing the lyrics and vocals.
The Maine
It wouldn’t be Warped Tour without ska bands. Reel Big Fish was crushing it on the main stage with their signature sound and antics, and the sun had dried out the muddy ground enough to make it possible for fans to dance in the fields. Over on the Korner Stage which featured regional acts, Buffalo band The Toy Box Brigade was putting on a fantastic performance. Their set included a ska rendition of The Bloodhound Gang’s “The Bad Touch.”
One of the bands on my must-see list is Las Vegas’ Palaye Royale. These darlings of the Vegas art rock scene are originally from Toronto. The three brothers named the band after the dance hall where their grandparents met. Their last album payed homage to the bands who played The Boom Boom Room and they are set to release a Part B soon. They played the song they just released this week called “You’ll Be Fine” as well as a gritty cover of My Chemical Romance’s “Teenagers.” The high-energy set included singer Remington Leith climbing up to hang upside down from the stage rafters during the song “Get Higher” and crowd surfing on a coffin-shaped raft.
Palaye Royale
Asking Alexandria was a band I’d never seen before, but the consensus from the faithful fans around me was that this was not their best performance. We then headed over to catch Simple Plan’s set. It was late afternoon and attendance had peaked; I could barely see the stage as the audience sprawled around behind tents and trailers. Despite the poor visibility, the sound was cranked to full volume and people young and old were singing along to hits like “Addicted.”
Asking Alexandria
I popped back over to catch some more locals. On The Cinder made their return for a second year at the Korner Stage. The three-piece punk rock outfit drew a lively crowd which danced and moshed throughout the entire set. Some locals were on the Full Sail Stage, too. Lucky33 from Syracuse was upgraded to the larger stage for the day. They put on an energetic set that included a version of CCR’s “Bad Moon Rising.” Between songs, bass player Red talked about attending his first Warped Tour in ’96 and being inspired to start playing music himself.
Following Lucky33 was Rochester’s Kaiser Solzie. Rochester native James Jackson has been performing under the moniker Kaiser Solzie for years, and has recently built a full band. Jackson was the driving force behind the creation of the local Korner Stage last year. And all local band members and their fans had migrated to Full Sail to rock out to Kaiser Solzie’s set. Donning his pink guitar, Jackson belted out song after song, from one about actor Bill Murray to “Punk Pop Hip Hop” and “Ordinary Average Day,” the songs paired a raw punk energy with catchy feel-good messages.
Kaiser Solzie
On the way to see 3OH!3, I ran across With Confidence. The Australian pop punk band was finishing their set with hits from their last album, “Voldemort” and “Keeper.” They signed off with a promise to return to the states by the end of the year. Over the hill, 3OH!3 was in full swing. The massive dance party spilled out from under the amphitheater tent and into the expansive lawn. For their grand finale, they brought the members of Simple Plan onto stage to join in on their hit song “Don’t Trust Me.”
We ended the day at the amphitheater tent with a performance by Waterparks, a Texas trio who are more on the pop side of the pop/punk spectrum. When I saw them at Warped Tour a couple years ago, they were playing songs from their EP Cluster. They’ve since released two full-length albums.Their set list included songs from both, including the acoustic “Lucky People.” They ended with the the catchy little love song “Stupid For You.”
Waterparks
Photographer Meredith Snow caught a few sets that I didn’t, including Motionless In White, Digital Afterlife, Doll Skin, Great American Ghost, Of Night and Light, Pros & Icons, and Every Time I Die. See the full photo gallery below for these pics and more.
All in all it was a memorable day, although tinged with sadness about the end of the Warped Tour era. Throughout the day, I spent time with friends from as far flung as Syracuse and Buffalo. I saw people I met at Warped Tour in previous years,and I met some new people. We swapped stories while making new memories. This touring festival successfully brought together some of the greatest alternative musicians from around the world and made them accessible to millions. But it also brought people together and built communal experiences that defined an entire generation.
Christian Lopez, will once again return to Syracuse for a spectacular outdoor show at the home of Ed and Ellen Griffin Friday July 27 at 7:00 p.m.
Currently touring in support of his second album, Red Arrow, Lopez is quickly making a name for himself with his high energy soulful sound. Red Arrow features rock, pop and country vibes, featuring guest appearances by the legendary Vice Gill and Kenneth Pattengale of the Milk Carton Kids.
Last year over 100 people attended Christian Lopez’s first outdoor house show where he and his band rocked at a fast pace featuring songs from his first album, Onward, a preview of a few songs from Red Arrow, and great covers from Bill Withers and Levon Helm. This young man has been featured as one of Rolling Stone’s “Best Newcomers” and continues to collect fans as he makes his way across the nation.
For only $20, attendees are welcomed into a comfortable and beautiful home setting with food, drinks, and evening of amazing music in this private showing. For more information on how you can attend this year’s must-see performance, visit https://runsignup.com/Race/NY/EastSyracuse/ChristianLopezBandConcert.
As the first note was played during the Tedeschi Trucks Band Wheels of Soul show at Artpark on July 17, it became an international endeavor. Our Canadian neighbors across the Niagara river hopefully gained a taste for the southern rock sound if they weren’t already familiar.
Although the amphitheater rests beside the bank of the river, the water is mostly hidden by trees that surround the venue, giving it a very lush sense of seclusion. The layout feels a bit jagged, as the GA lawn doesn’t directly face the stage, but is located on a slightly steep hill to the side. A large screen facing the lawn projecting the concert helps to remedy this, but it’s easy to feel slightly disconnected from the music.
This disconnect was triggered before even setting foot in the venue, as finding parking became a scramble to get a spot before missing the opening band. The Artpark signs for additional parking seemed to be leading us farther and farther from the venue, so in a panic we parked in a side yard patrolled by a middle aged man who rolled up to our window on a BMX bike, and in exchange for $5 pointed at the grassy hills in front of us exclaiming, “walk ten minutes that way and you’ll see it.” With eager anticipation and only a smidge of skepticism we hightailed it through the hills, quickly being immersed in a sea of waving yellow grasses that surrounded the path in every direction. We were soon joined on the path by flocks of other concert goers en route to the show, which combined with the beautiful scenery helped put our frantic minds at ease. Although some venues provide VIP parking for media personnel, this parking adventure definitely made for a better story.
We came through the upper entrance, where an immense flight of stairs beckoned us to descend toward the amphitheater where Marcus King Band had opened and Drive-By Truckers were now mid-set. The scene felt a little overwhelming between getting a lay of the land and navigating the throngs of humans scattered across the property. After nestling in a spot halfway up the grassy hill, it was time to go barefoot and settle in for the show.
Tedeschi Trucks Band started their set with “Bound for Glory,” an easy going but powerful tune off their first album. TTB kicked things up a notch with “Made up Mind” from their second album followed by a feathery flute intro to the lovely and triumphant “All That I Need.” Derek Trucks peppered the song with some trademark guitar work before the band quieted way down to build it back up to a full throttle jam like they do so well.
Susan Tedeschi put full force into her vocals for the ballad “Ball and Chain.” “Don’t Know What it Means” was once again concluded by a similar avant gard jam as the CMAC show, but the saxophone was definitely less abrasive this time. A powerful tidal wave guitar intro crashed into Tedeschi’s soft and sandy vocals for “Shame.” Tedeschi added a haunting echo effect to her mic that resonated through the park for a gripping end to the song. TTB brought Marcus King back to the stage for the bluesy Elmore James cover of “The Sky is Crying” where he wailed on guitar and vocals conjuring cheers from the crowd.
TTB elicited more cheers as they played the opening notes to John Prine’s “Angel from Montgomery.” More applause followed as they executed a flawless transition into Grateful Dead’s “Sugaree,” with another gorgeous solo from Trucks midway through. That familiar opening guitar riff on “Laugh About It” led the band into the uplifting and empowering song before closing out their set with “I Want More,” a bouncy tune with a lyrical backbone. The song broke down a little at the end as it devolved into a somewhat muddy jam that did not serve as a strong ending.
Luckily TTB returned with a meditative intro into “Midnight in Harlem.” They closed out the night with Patterson Hood from Drive-By Truckers assisting on the Paul McCartney and Wings cover of “Let Me Roll It.” The TTB setlist overall provided a satisfying musical journey, dismantling and rebuilding the energy in a way that makes people fall in love with the band a little more every time they perform.
Setlist: Bound for Glory, Made up Mind, All That I Need, Ball and Chain, Don’t Know What it Means, Shame, Going Down Slow, The Sky is Crying, Angel from Montgomery/Sugaree, Laugh About It, I Want More
The special Sunday welcoming of Vans Warped Tour to Hartford, CT’s Xfinity Theatre was a long, hot day of nostalgia and nearly-controlled chaos. As temperatures rose into the eighties, attendees piled in around 11am in massive numbers, sectioning off sides of the neighboring overpass and crowding the front entrance gate. Upon entry, a cloud of dust and an array of color greeted each guest on the festival grounds. Brightly printed advertisements and booths lined the front pathway, and attendees showed off tattoos and spiked their hair in anticipation of Warped Tour’s last official year in operation.
The lineup for the summer represented several decades and genres, from the adored 2000’s rock band Bowling For Soup to the driving force of Australian metalcore band The Amity Affliction, taking up the 2010’s and beyond by storm. After scanning over the printed artist schedule for the day (decided day-of in true Warped Tour tradition), the Buffalo natives of Every Time I Die came onto the Monster-sponsored Mutant White Lightning Stage. They opened with the abrasive “Decayin With the Boys” from the 2014 album From Parts Unknown, and followed with songs from their 2016 album Low Teens, driving a powerful pulse behind their performance of “Glitches” and “Map Change”. It wasn’t long before guitarist Jordan Buckley made his way into the crowd to meet the mosh pit that formed in the center.
With some built up anxiety to have the best final Warped Tour experience, the day of music hosted several extreme disappointments. From not enough parking to generally poor attitudes from festival staff members, the large amphitheatre setting of Xfinity was surely not fit for this kind of endeavor. Many of the bands people were excited to see on tour also weren’t included on the Hartford bill, including Warped Tour success stories All Time Low, English rock band Asking Alexandria, tour veterans August Burns Red, and the popular ska band Less Than Jake. To make matters worse, venue security guards barricaded the aisles of the main theatre as the crowd size expanded, pushing back anyone who tried to walk up to the front pit area, even when there was plenty of room. Beyond the safety concern of being trapped on both sides by a massive crowd, photographers could not get a proper glimpse of artists that played the Main Stage without being aggressively escorted out of the area. Many fans took to Facebook after Warped Tour posted that the pit had been at capacity for the entire day. With upwards of 20,000 people attending the festival, it’s no surprise that these areas filled quickly, and with better preparation from the venue, crowd control could’ve been handled in a safer and more professional fashion.
After a few snafus and some set times cut short, some great performances served as a saving grace throughout the afternoon hours of the fest. The Boulder-based electronic duo 3OH!3 played the Main Stage at 2:55pm, where a nearly-filled theatre was waiting for them. After bringing us back to 2008 with their charting single “DONTTRUSTME”, the dance duo welcomed Travis from We The Kings to join their performance of the 2008 pop dance track, “STARSTRUKK”. 3OH!3 couldn’t get Katy Perry or Kesha to join them on set for their collaborations, but the earworm melodies and dance beats came back to everyone nonetheless.
After a raging set from Falling in Reverse, including their reckless anthem “Just Like You”, Bowling For Soup set up on the left side stage to pick up on the energy left brewing in the audience. Along with their chipper charm and catchy songs, BFS was the most honest while bantering in between songs, with singer Jaret Reddick admitting the band as “a bunch of 40 year olds singing about high school”. In addition to getting a laugh from the audience, this truth could be another reason Warped Tour just couldn’t survive in the same fashion. While the millennial generation jumped around to the 2004 smash hits “1985” and “Ohio”, many of the younger concert attendees seemed to lose interest and move elsewhere, a true testament to the cultural and musical shift of rock music. For those present for the remainder of Bowling For Soup’s set, a surprise visit from Simple Plan singer Pierre Bouvier kicked the crowd’s energy into high gear to close out their set, reminding the audience of the festival’s glory years, back when we thought “High School Never Ends.”
As set times came and went, life outside the stages remained lively, with an array of food and drink choices, a hydration station, and vendor pop up shops. Tucked in the back of the bustling festival city was the owly.fm stage, which booked some of the biggest surprise bands of the festival – Warped Tour newcomers. Earlier in the day, young girls fled to this stage for Story Untold, a five piece pop punk band from Montreal. In addition to some really catchy originals in their set, they made a creative mashup of multiple legends that make up the Warped Tour family, including hits from Green Day, Linkin Park, Boys Like Girls, and more. Later in the evening, the owly.fm stage brought an unapologetic entrance from British punk sensation Dominic Harrison, under the stage name YUNGBLUD. Known for his high intensity and rebellious lyrics at only 19 years old, he and his backing band took control of the surrounding crowd, encouraging everyone to sing along and move. First gaining notoriety for his musical contribution to the Netflix show 13 Reasons Why, YUNGBLUD has since released a debut album with rebellious rock mixed in with hip hop, punk, and whatever else inspires him at the time.
YUNGBLUD’s incredible stage charisma was only outshined by his music, with the British punk-influenced “Tin Pan Boy”, and the outcast anthem “My Medication.” Like many organizations and artists on the Warped Tour stage, there was no fear in talking about complex issues. As YUNGBLUD shared on his experiences through music, there were a few speeches from other artists, encouraging people to reach out and ask for help when times get tough. It was interesting to see other rockstars throughout the day scream out a grindcore thrasher about hatred, then opening up about sensitive and personal experiences shortly after, but it was still refreshing to see a positive message get across to so many people.
After a brisk walk to the Main Stage area after being blown away by YUNGBLUD, We the Kings set up on their half of the Main Journey’s stage, and the audience count (and difficulty entering the theatre) doubled. We the Kings has always had a massive following, and you can certainly tell the band’s superfans from those who remember hearing them on the radio for a few years. Either way, the band coerced a wild chorus to sing as they went into the 2007 charting single “Check Yes Juliet” and the 2011 beach jam “Say You Like Me”. The band also dove into their latest album, named Six, to sprinkle in some variety in their set. It wasn’t until the 2013 pop anthem “I Feel Alive” that the band asked everyone to mimic a dance move that Travis’ daughter inspired, getting the audience of thousands to shake down low right before jumping up for the song’s chorus.
To add some variety to an otherwise punk sphere, Reel Big Fish took to the Main Stage for an audience-interactive, fun-filled set. They opened with an awesome cover of “Take On Me”, before diving into their own rebellious songs, including the 2012 “Everyone Else is An Asshole”, and the 2005 “Your Guts (I Hate ‘Em)”. The Main Stage performance space simply wasn’t big enough for this band, and it was clear when members of Reel Big Fish moved to different parts of the audience, only to get caught on monitors and equipment. Even trapped in a small space, Reel Big Fish brought a massive sound that kept the energy level up and ensured people stayed dancing, even after a long We The Kings set.
After a rather short set from the Maine on the Main Stage, Mayday Parade took control of the Main Stage and caused a large flock of people to rush to the inner theatre. They chose songs that truly represented their nostalgic ‘emo rock’ style, including the 2007 track “Jersey”, which lead a wave of audience members to sing along in perfect unison. The band also covered the Blink 182 classic “The Rock Show”, made famous for its reference to Warped Tour. It was a treat to have several headlining bands recognize the impact of Warped Tour’s popularity, giving bands like Blink 182 a chance to meet a diverse audience. Throughout all 24 summers of the Warped Tour, so many bands have risen in popularity and matured in music, and it’s a least partially, if not completely thanks to Warped Tour. There’s no better example of this growth than the festival’s late night performance, Canadian rock band Simple Plan.
For all the crowding issues faced throughout the day, the venue staff was not prepared for the onslaught of fans that drenched the Main Stage area in anticipation of Simple Plan. As the band came on stage, a thunderous applause rung throughout the entire concert space. Simple Plan paid homage to their many years performing at Warped Tour, playing hits like the 2002 rock ballad “Perfect” and the 2004 anthem of angst “Welcome to My Life”. For their performance of “I’m Just A Kid”, the band made a brilliant decision, bringing Travis from We the Kings and YUNGBLUD on stage to sing the song with them. This was truly a pivotal moment of Warped Tour, showing a contrast of genres, ages, and even generations coming together to perform the same rebellious music to gets you through your teens and twenties.
Seeing these contrasting, yet iconic artists celebrating Warped Tour together was a bittersweet moment, and as lyrics to Simple Plan’s remaining songs came from the library in your head to your tongue, everyone surrounding you sang along. People of various ages and backgrounds (not to mention BAC levels) came together to end the night with joy and nostalgia in remembrance of endless summers, and celebration for the next concert that will fill the void of Warped Tour for each person. Although this is Warped Tour’s last official year, there have been floating rumors of a celebration show in 2019. Details will likely be announced on the Warped Tour facebook page, and for anyone still looking to submerge themselves in the Warped Tour experience, there’s a few more tour stops coming up, including a show at Jones Beach in Wantaugh, NY on July 28. Thank you Warped Tour, party on!
Area fans of Rich Robinson, Marc Ford, and all of their previous musical projects, had eagerly anticipated the first Central New York appearance of their latest collaboration, The Magpie Salute at del Lago Casino in Waterloo, New York on July 19. In addition to Robinson and Ford, the band includes Sven Pipien on bass, Joe Magistro on drums, Matt Slocum on keyboards, and John Hogg on vocals, guitar, and harmonica.
Del Lago Casino’s first class, state-of-the-art, 2400-seat theater, The Vine, hosted an enthusiastic crowd with many people up and dancing, or advancing to the stage. The opening song, “Mary the Gypsy,” set the tone with Magistro’s booming, manic drums, with layers of guitars and keyboards energizing the entire room. Later in the set, the band raised the bar even higher with a full-throttle version of Jeff Beck’s “All Shook Up.” The band displayed remarkable range by switching immediately from that powerhouse high-tempo blues rock number to covering the alt-country tune “Hot Burrito #2,” a love letter of sorts from the iconic Gram Parsons and the Flying Burrito Brothers.
It was interesting to see a few of the band members smile as they recognized familiar faces in the crowd. Robinson made mention of this, stating that such continuing support of he and Ford over all the years meant a lot. He made it a point to say that this was a new venture, with new ideas, and in the face of the world being “batshit crazy these days,” it was important to focus on now, and maybe not so much on the past. That notion was reflected in the set list. Though there were a few songs from Ford and Robinson’s previous individual side projects, any fans expecting an evening of Black Crowes covers were left empty-handed on this night, which emphasized that this was indeed a new sound and a new direction.
One element from the past that did remain evident was the effortless interplay between Ford and Robinson. It can be argued that the two of them were the equal of any guitar duo of the nineties. Though they had separated for a number of reasons, and hadn’t played together for over a decade, their decision to reunite in The Magpie Salutehas found that their old magic still exists. That connection was never more evident than during “For the Wind.” This is a sweeping song that begins with a light melodic line from Robinson, and builds to a muscular crescendo with Pipien keeping the bottom end on his familiar blue Fender jazz bass while the guitars soar and seem to draw from each other. As Robinson has stated, “Marc Ford and I have this thing and it’s something you can’t put your finger on and understand, but he and I just go to these places when we play together. The older I get, the more I realize how important that is.”
Hogg, Robinson, and Ford each took turns on lead vocals, with Pipien adding backing vocals and harmonies. Most of the evening’s one hour and forty minute set was from The Magpie Salute’s upcoming release, High Water I, available August 10 via Eagle Rock, Mascot Label Group, and Sony Japan. Pre-orders are available here. The band will continue to tour in support of the album, with scheduled U.S. dates through September.
The Magpie Salute Setlist: Mary the Gypsy, Comin’ Home*, Walk On Water, I Remember, Take It All, Shalimar Dreams, All Shook Up ^, Hot Burrito #2~, Open Up, Hand In Hand, You Found Me, Goin’ Down South, For the Wind, Devil’s In the Details, I Don’t Hear the Sound of You, Colorblind, Can You See, High Water, Send Me An Omen
The Long Island music scene is incredibly fertile and diverse. It is rare to have an event that brings everyone together in one place, from the hardcore kids out east to the classic rock loving dads from Glen Cove, to celebrate music, art, and unity. Great South Bay Music Festival achieved this in strides with their incredibly colorful lineup of popular acts ranging from Sublime with Rome to Electric Hot Tuna. Located directly on the water of the south shore of the island at Shorefront Park in Patchogue, NY from July 12-15, the festival grounds is the optimal place to see live music on a hot Long Island summer day.
Festival Guide
Unlike other festivals around the nation which focus in on one single genre of music, Great South Bay is a family-oriented festival that mixes up the genre of music played each day to give everyone a chance to enjoy themselves. Music lovers who attended each day went through a journey of seeing hardcore/punk bands on Thursday night to ska/reggae groups on Friday night to jam bands on Saturday night with blues/classic rock acts capping off the weekend on Sunday night.
The overall vibe of the festival was incredibly relaxed, despite how many people attended, and festival goers had the option to sit back on the grass in their lawn chairs and blankets or head up front to stand in the pit if they wanted to get closer to the music. Because of how drastically the music changed from night to night, the crowd tended to change with it, creating a different feel for each day of the festival.
Jim Faith, the man responsible for putting the event together, started Great South Bay Music Festival to create a Long Island music festival which would keep the spirit of music alive, positively change people’s lives, and create a space safe for people of all races and ethnicities to come together and celebrate different kinds of music. His goal is to inspire people to listen to new music as well turn younger folks onto legendary artists they might not have heard. The festival is not designed to be an over the top production, but rather a place to bring people together and get to the heart and soul of the community- which it certainly achieved.
Happy Festival Goers
Thursday, July 12:
The first night of music kicked off with a bang with an assortment of punk and hardcore groups who played to an energetic crowd of generally younger fans. When Get Up Kids took the main stage at 6:10 pm, the crowd was antsy and ready to go. The 90’s rock/emo band got the crowd going with an injection of high energy punk-esque songs which kept up the entire set and established the first big mosh pit in front of the stage of the night, but certainly not the last.
Eddie Breckenridge of Thrice
Thrice followed at 7:30 to the excitement of many attendants, and picked up exactly where Get Up Kids left off. The veteran alternative rock band’s heavy riffs incited headbanging, fist pumps and mosh pits in the crowd close to the stage, while those who were hanging back danced to themselves. Thrice was a treat to many festival goers as they had recently released new music and came back from a three-year hiatus, so it was many fans first time seeing them since they returned. An incredibly polished, hard rocking band, their set was played with such precision it sounded as though it was recorded in a studio.
A half hour after Thrice finished their set, the headliners of the night, The Front Bottoms, took the stage and treated the crowd to an energetic hour and ten minute set of twists and turns. Playing with the “Legendary Uptown Horns,” the set featured an animated setlist of melodic arrangements. The band sounded like a mix of Mumford and Sons and Streetlight Manifesto, and produced incredibly positive and vibrant music. By the end of the set there were people jumping, crowd surfers bouncing, and heads banging: a magnificent end to the first night of the festival, which would set the stage for the next three nights.
Front Bottoms
Friday, July 13:
Friday night was all about the ska and reggae scenes, and featured an impressive assortment of some of the nation’s top touring acts for the genre. The crowd began to fill up after 6 pm as they made their way over to the festival grounds after work, and included a very diverse crowd of fans old and young.
Less Than Jake
Less Than Jake started their set right on time at 6:30 and jumped right into a fast-paced, rocking ska song to the crowd’s delight. The band seemed to be in a great mood as they played a set of many of their hits from their most recent albums to older crowd favorites, and played around heavily with crowd participation. In between songs they made jokes, brought people up on stage to dance, and even had a beer chug off with people from the crowd who they brought on stage. They had the crowd in the palm of their hands as they encouraged sing-a-longs, jumping in unison, and moshing. While they were very playful they were also an incredibly tight band who clearly had been playing together for a long time.
Dirty Heads
The Dirty Heads followed at 8 pm as the smell of marijuana filled the air in anticipation. The Dirty Heads are a great, chill summer band, and the beach is the ideal place to catch one of their sets. The band played a very diverse setlist from hip-hop beats and rapping to slow, bouncing reggae tunes which saw the massive crowd swaying in harmony like the waves of the sea behind them. Everyone sang along when they played their hits, and Rome even came out to perform a song he’d recorded with them for one of their earlier albums, to the crowd’s delight.
The appearance by Rome in the Dirty Heads’ set was only a taste of what was to come, as Sublime with Rome followed in the headlining spot. The band got the crowd going right away with a few classic Sublime songs, each featuring an echo of the crowd singing along. The band was able to emulate the sound of the original Sublime lineup with ease, while at the same time staying fresh with many of their new songs. Some of their new songs sounded like something from a vintage Sublime album, while others strayed genres a bit and became much heavier. Overall the night was exactly what the crowd came for as they left smiling and hazy.
Sublime With Rome
Saturday, July 14:
Saturday’s show featured an array of artists from the jam scene, ranging from cover bands to some of the top touring acts of the scene. JGB Featuring Melvin Seals brought heat with a set of Jerry Garcia music that would make Jerry proud. Seals still has the chops he had while playing with Jerry, and put together a band of world class musicians to keep the spirit alive. The set mirrored that of a ‘90s JGB show with original Garcia tracks and some of his favorite covers played with emotion and soul. Each member of the band came to play, and every note played was treated with dignity and respect, whether it was a fast-paced rocker or classic ballad.
Photo of The Great South Bay Music Festival courtesy of their website.
Papadosio followed and began their set with a jam on middle-eastern chord progressions, which piqued the interest of the crowd. Their hour long set featured mild twisting space-funk, dangerous peaks, and breezy, floating jams which exploded like the waves on the nearby jetty. Although the band normally plays indoor shows or late night time slots, having them play in the afternoon was a treat because despite the lack of light show, the crowd was able to see that the band was dancing on stage and as into the set as the audience, which only pushed the music further.
Pigeons Playing Ping Pong
With the crowd loose and ready to jam, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong took the stage at 7:30 and impressed the crowd with a show that they played like it was their last. The upbeat funk-rockers explored different areas of jam music from ‘70’s disco-esque grooves to dark, gritty jams. The entire crowd grooved along as the non-stop set kept everyone dancing and on their toes for what they would play next. At the end of their set the crowd didn’t seem to want them to leave, as they didn’t want to either, and gave the band an ovation which was heard a town over.
The half hour time slot in between bands gave festival goers a chance to sit down and collect themselves before they were thrown back into the madness with a dynamic set by jam band giants Umphreys McGee. Umphreys McGee quickly dove into a high-energy rocker, each note played with sharp precision. For the first time that evening, it was dark enough for a band to incorporate a light show, and it did not disappoint as the lights added another layer to the improvisational machine on stage. The band shined effortlessly through difficult progressions and raging peaks with an incredibly fun set of music. The band left the stage before their time slot ended only to come back and deliver a rendition of Pink Floyd’s “Shine On You Crazy Diamond” that sounded like a crisp studio recording of the song until they put their own spin on the jam which amused and exhilarated the attentive audience.
Umphrey’s Mcgee
Sunday, July 15:
The final day of the festival seemed to attract the largest crowd, as well as the oldest crowd. From Thursday to Sunday the average age of the crowd seemed to jump nearly a decade, with the old boys coming in and finishing things off right. The Devon Allman Project featured impressive guitar work and blues jamming by sons of the original Allman Brothers Band, Devon Allman (Greg Allman’s son) and Duane Betts (Dickey Bett’s son). Looking the carry on the family musical tradition, the band did not disappoint and put a fresh spin on bluesy, rocking tunes. Some might have thought that the band was only there because of the last names of the performers, but had their names been John Doe the band would have been incredibly impressive with their set of high quality musicianship.
Festival Goers, Old and Young
Little Feat came next to the crowd’s excitement, and the classic rock legends played a set full of fun and hits. The large band of musicians played with incredible gusto, and communicated with each other musically on stage as if they were speaking a language the crowd instinctively knew. Their soulful singing and silky jams showed that they are a band worth continuing to see as they segued from song to song with their eyes closed.
After a short break, Electric Hot Tuna took the stage to an ovation unmatched by any other of the weekend. Practically ignoring the applause, they dove into a sneaky, haunting blues jam featuring impressive guitar licks and full band modulations with ease. Each song featured a notable jam of its own right, and the versatile rockers changed genres on the turn of a dime with each song. The sound was ideal as the bass was up in the mix, which is exactly what you want when Jack Casady is on stage.
Dickey Betts Band
After Electric Hot Tuna’s set, the crowd was antsy to hear the final headliner of the night, Allman Brothers Band guitar player and founder Dickey Betts take the stage with Dickey Betts Band, however they were forced to wait an additional half hour due to sound issues. The crowd was overjoyed when the band finally took the stage and jumped right into the Allman Brothers material Betts wrote. Betts was a bit rusty throughout the set, but still reached many highs on well-known Allman Brothers Band solos, and the crowd was happy to hear the music they grew up with.
Overall the festival was a great success, with attendants raving about the music they had just seen as they made their way to the parking lot on the final night. With sunlight and a cool ocean breezes, you couldn’t ask for a better weekend as people from all walks of life joined together to celebrate love and music.
