Photo: Justine Trickett
Us UK folk have had to sit back and watch the Americans lap up all the awesomeness that is the Vans Warped Tour for quite some time now. However, over the past few years the tour has been bought over to Europe, allowing pop punkers and emo’s everywhere to rejoice. Split over two days, four stages and over 50 bands, 2013 brings an even bigger line-up than ever before. Fist pumps at the ready.
Held at London’s Alexandra Palace, you couldn’t really ask for a more majestic location. The only downside is that the walk up to the venue consists of a gigantic hill, which was a rather embarrassing fitness test for some, leaving crowds sweaty before they’d even entered the venue. All was forgiven once at the top of the hill though, as the spectacular views over London are pretty much unparalleled. We’d certainly give them an A plus for incredible festival setting.
But will the second year installment of the Warped Tour UK live up to expectations? Once we’d finished admiring the scenery and mopping up our slightly awkward sweaty brow we headed into the venue to find out…
Day One
Saturday’s line-up was the day that saw slightly heavier acts grace the stage. Arguably the main attraction for Saturday-goers was Aussie hailing metalcore band, Parkway Drive. The general consensus implied that today was mainly for metallers and pop punkers, when you see metalcore acts on the bill, you know it’s going to be in your own interest to practice your head banging.
The great thing about indoor festivals is the fact that it’s easy to maneuver strategically around from stage to stage, meaning you can catch as many bands as possible – score! So first on our agenda was UK hailing pop punk band Neck Deep, playing the Jagermeister stage. Since emerging in 2012 these boys have managed to cause quite a ruckus in the ranks of punk, where their single ‘A Part Of Me’ has been most notably popular. The Wrexham hailing quintet don’t disappoint as lead vocalist Ben Barlow wastes no time in interacting with the crowd. So far it’s been a very good start to the Warped Tour indeed.
Meanwhile, over on the Monster Energy East Stage the music is a completely different kettle of fish entirely. Japanese metalcore band Crossfaith have quickly established themselves as a force to be reckoned with, after supporting Bring Me The Horizon on their 2012 UK tour. At first glance they may come across as slightly laughable, leather clad from head to toe and with stage movements completely over exaggerated at all times. But you know what? They sound incredible. This is a prime example of why you shouldn’t judge a book buy it’s cover. Tracks ‘Monolith’ and ‘Quasar’ get the crowds truly riled up and for the opening act of the East Stage they’ve certainly set the standards high. We expect to see a lot more from this band in 2014.
It wouldn’t be a proper festival without a band for girls to swoon at now, would it? Well if that’s the kind of thing you’re looking for, then The Maine are a safe bet for Swoonsville. Well-chiseled and poetically poised John O’Callaghan and co have quickly built up an avid array of UK fans, thanks to their transatlantic American charm and heartfelt love songs. Off to a shaky start with a few technical issues from O’Callaghan’s microphone, there’s an obvious lacking in confidence from the quintet, where things are looking slightly unpromising for one of the most mainstream bands on the bill. Hit songs ‘Misery’ and ‘Love and Drugs’ manage to pull them out of the red though, where it’s impossible not to like the charisma and charm pulled quickly back by O’Callaghan. In fact, one of the funniest moments we’ve probably ever seen on stage is when the band bring out two random crowd members, who are obviously oblivious to whom The Maine are and O’Callaghan thrusts a microphone into their faces. The two jokers sing along to the chorus of ‘Girls Do What They Want’ extremely out of tune and time, which has the band and audience alike in fits of laughter.
Remember that band with the violinist, who sang the song ‘Ocean Avenue’ and were forever on repeat on Kerrang TV? Well that was Yellowcard - and apparently they’re still around. Playing both nights of the Warped Tour, it’s evident that the band are hoping for a comeback. That’s not to say they don’t have a following because they do, it’s just that we’re mainly interested in them playing old stuff. Nostalgia kicks in when they play ‘Lights and Sounds’ and you can see why there was definitely an appeal for the band to hire a violinist, as it’s the main appeal and differentiator from other acts out there. However after a while a few audience members start yawning and are becoming restless for the set to end. Unfortunately, the violin is nothing more than a novelty and you’d have more fun yawning your way through the rest of the set.
This is more like it - bursting on to the stage with all guns blazing, Billy Talent do well to wake us from our slumber. Opening track ‘Devil In A Midnight Mass’ absolutely blows every other band of the day out of the water. Such power, energy and precession from the Canadians, where it’s clear to see that they’ve grown from strength to strength over their 10-year reign. A nice little infusion of old and new tracks keeps everyone happy, where Benjamin Kowalewicz bounds around on stage to ‘Try Honesty’ and ‘This Is How It Goes’. With crowd surfing and mosh pits galore, fans have never looked so appreciative all evening to finally get things moving. It’s refreshing to see a punk rock band having stuck around for the test of time and Billy Talent prove they’re of the best bands of the night.
Headlining the Kevin Says Stage down in the basement is where you’ll find English rockers Canterbury. After the success of their debut album Heavy In The Day, it’s unsurprising to see why Kerrang have latched on to these prevalent twenty-something charmers. Competing with Parkways Drive's timeslot leaves the basement disappointingly empty, where you can’t help but feel sorry for the obliviously chirpy lads. ‘Wrapped In Rainbows’ and ‘Calm Down’ are obvious crowd pleasers, with lead vocalist Luke Prebble showcasing his neat little falsetto range. However the room itself is half empty which unfortunately ruins the acoustics, causing the band to sound empty and flat at times. Whatever - it’s clear to see that they have a strong leg to stand on when it comes to longevity and we’ll definitely be expecting bigger and better things to come in the future.
Day Two
Ah boy, are we ready for this? Rumors of a secret set from A Day To Remember, multicolored mohawks and a generally more mixed vibe meant that there was plenty more surprises still to come.
Awash with blurry-eyed faces, the first band of the day always have that difficult task of waking everybody up from their hangover. So Decade (whether they like it or not) have that task set upon them. Surprisingly tigh-tknit the band kick things off nicely, with high amounts of energy and plenty of guitar swings later, we’re feeling a little more vigorous already. Set opener ‘Callous’ is a fierce rock track, which allows lead singer Alex Sears to swagger around the stage and get the crowd moving. This really is proof of why it’s often worth catching the opening band slot.
If you were asked to define a talking point of the weekend then it would definitely be the shocking antics from Watsky + Wax. Crowds were left in dismay when lead singer George Watsky clambered up to the top of the stage riggings and jumped into the crowd, breaking an audience members' arm in the process. The rest of the band looked on in horror as Watsky fell to the floor and remained there for a long period of time before medics were called to the scene. We quite literally witnessed a career killing moment.
Watch footage of Watsky's jump below:
After a serious mood killer, the atmosphere was subdued for quite some time, but the show had to go on and the staff did well to try and keep the ball rolling after the appalling incident. A way to lighten the mood was to finally head over to watch the not so secret, secret set from A Day To Remember. Crowds clobbered their way through to the Jagermeister Stage, where brute force was the only real way to gain entry, as the room was closed off early due to full capacity. Clearly everybody wanted to watch ADTR. The Florida hailing rock band treated us to a short but sweet four-track acoustic set. Promoting their new album material with tracks such as ‘City of Ocala’ and ‘Right Back at It Again’ they gave us a sample of their fresh direction, with a greater presence in pop punk sound. Classic track ‘All I Want’ allowed the audience to have a nice little sing along, where it was almost impossible to see past all the smartphones recording the set.
Coheed and Cambria were one of the main inducements of the East Stage, and of course the chance to see Claudio Sanchez’s infamously fabulous hair up close and personal was also a main draw. Opening the set with ‘No World For Tomorrow’ the band surpass our expectations with their ability to play a face melting guitar solo. Other tracks included ‘Ten Speed’ and ‘Welcome Home’ which flaunted the bands impressive stance on prog-rock.
Main headliners on the West Stage Enter Shikari most certainly attracted the crowds for the final slot on the bill. After constant touring and building up a reputation for their crazy stage antics over the years, Shikari have cemented themselves firmly as one of the best live acts around. Tonight was no different to any other night with lead singer Rou prancing up and down the stage, swinging his arms around like a lunatic. Crowds were clearly impressed to hear the track ‘Solidarity’ from the album Common Dreads, which proved to be a popular choice indeed. Other classic crowd pleasers included ‘Mothership’ and ‘Sorry, You’re Not a Winner’. The energetic electro post-hardcore band certainly knew how to end a night on a high.
So a weekend filled with secret sets, an idiot jumping off stage riggings and of course plenty of skateboarding action along the way left us with an entertaining conclusion to the weekend. Let’s just hope that Watsky’s idiotic antics haven’t put a stop to Warped Tour 2014, because this year’s stellar line up provided us with one of the most memorable festival weekends to date.
Below: Exclusive photos of Rise Against, Enter Shikari + more rock Vans Warped Tour
