This is part one of a three-part series on the 2009 Vans Warped Tour. Parts two and three are coming soon.
After a totally stellar experience at last year's tour stop in San Francisco, to say that I was stoked about covering this year's installment of the Vans Warped Tour would be a gross understatement. Now in its fifteenth year, the tour has blossomed into something way beyond a Punk Rock Festival, and this year's line up is by far one of its most diverse and most intriguing. The list I made of bands I wanted to see seemed to be a mile long, and included many trips to-and-from the Old School Stage, which, needless to say, I was ecstatic about being brought back this year. It was shaping up to be a pretty eventful day, and here is how it all went down…
I had pretty much just woken up and was in the process of getting myself properly caffeinated for the day in front of me when I happened to see the Twitter feed of Gallows, which read "We're playing at 11am today on the Hurley Stage in San Francisco. Everyone's still asleep hahaha." After my initial reaction of "Holy Shit!," I, without even thinking, jumped in the shower, packed up my camera gear, and grabbed a cab down to pier 30/32, where I found myself standing in front of the Hurley Stage at 10:45am, a mere 25 minutes after being at home still half asleep and screwing around on Twitter. Gallows was my one "Do Not Miss At Any Cost" band, and thanks to modern day social networking, I was able to witness and document what is so far my favorite set of live music of 2009.
Hitting the harshly lit by the sun stage at precisely 11am, Gallows quite simply OWNED the entire day, even though they were one of the first bands to play. After opening their far-too-brief set with "Come Friendly Bombs," brothers Frank and Stephen Carter jumped over the barricade and into the crowd, where they played the next four songs on the asphalt, surrounded by the growing number kids who had come to witness what may have very well been their first taste of real Punk Rock. It was a flashback to the punk shows of days gone by, and Frank had the entire audience wrapped around his little finger. Then, when he he called out the bands who he felt didn't deserve to be on the tour, I knew right then and there that no band was going to top Gallows on this day—and I was right.
The band's short setlist was a nice mix of new and old, and both "Leeches" and "London Is The Reason" (which was changed to "S.F. Is The Reason" for the occasion) were nothing short of fucking spectacular. After "In The Belly Of A Shark," Gallows wrapped up their set with "The Great Forgiver," and although I was left wanting more, I was totally amped and ready to catch as many bands as possible.
Now that I had seen Gallows, the rest of the day became as open as a book; aside from the Old School Stage and the Beer Garden, I had absolutely no priorities, and decided I would walk from stage to stage in hopes that a band would catch my ear. The first one to do that was Civet.
Hailing form Los Angeles, these four young femme fatales rocked the Kevin Says Stage with their version of sleazy and melodic (and I mean that in a good way) punk rock that was kind of a cross between L7 and The Distillers, with just a slight guitar-driven touch of The Runaways thrown in. It's always a pleasure to see a band who can back up their image with some kick ass music. It had been a long time since I had seen an all female band rock like Civet did, and I was pretty stoked to have checked them out, and will definitely go see them out when they return to San Francisco.
Lucky for me, the next band playing the Kevin Says Stage was Dommin, who were a last minute addition to this show and on my list of bands to check out. I had been hearing a lot about them recently, and any band playing the Warped Tour whose members are not hipster kids with shutter sunglasses will get my full attention. And although the setting of the Bay waters in the back of pier 32 was not ideal, especially with the sun beating down upon them, the four men in black made the most of it, and delivered a nice 30 minute set of 80's inspired guitar and synth rock. Kind of a cross between The Cure and Danzig, Dommin impressed me, and as I watched them I couldn't help but compare them to a non-metallic Type O Negative, which is not a band thing in the least. Like Civet before them, Dommin were another Warped Tour surprise, and I am looking forward to seeing them in a proper setting.
Only 12:30pm, I was already three for three, and I hadn't even visited either The Main Stage or Old School Stage. So far Warped Tour for me was a total success, and I had a strange feeling it was only going to get better….
Artists:
Gallows – www.gallows.co.uk
Civet – www.myspace.com/civet
Dommin – www.dommin.com
Related Articles:
Interview w/ Warped Tour founder Kevin Lyman – [feature]
2008 Vans Warped Tour Part 1
2008 Vans Warped Tour Part 2
2008 Vans Warped Tour Part 3
Warped Tour Information:
www.warpedtour.com
