[This is part three of a four-part series on the 2009 Vans Warped Tour. Part Four is coming soon. Read Part One here and Part Two here.]
Now that I had a chance to charge my batteries (both literally and figuratively) I was ready to pick up where I left off. Since I was over at the Old School stage yet again, I decided to stick around and catch the Adolescents, who had put on a great show opening for Rancid when I had seen them a few months earlier. I'm happy to report that they did not disappoint this time around either. Blasting through a thirty minute set that included "Amoeba," their seminal song that pretty much defines early eighties Southern California punk rock, The Adolescents proved that just because your band may have been around longer than other bands' members have been alive, it doesn't mean you can't rock just as hard, if not harder than any band on the tour.
After the Adolescents, I literally ran back over to the main stage where Bad Religion, who somewhat ironically cite The Adolescents as a major influence, were just about to take the stage. Unfortunately I can't really give Bad Religion a proper review, other than to say that Fat Mike of NOFX briefly joined them on stage, because after shooting two songs I had to get my ass back over to the old school stage yet again this time for another one of my favorite punk bands from back in the day, Flipper.
And talk about a flashback. Bruce Loose, Ted Falconi, and Steve DePace—along with former Frightwig bassist Rachel Thoele—put on a set that made me feel like I could have been back at The Farm, circa 1984. Bruce Loose sounded great, and with the signature drone-y sound of Falconi's guitar the band ripped out a set of classic San Francisco punk rock like only they could. Not only was it nice to see this band back, but it was also pretty cool to see all the kids that had come to witness a bit of history.
Following Flipper's set I was on my way over to catch Black Tide when I realized that Shooter Jennings, son of legendary country singer Waylon Jennings, was setting up his gear on the Skull Candy stage, and having never heard his music before, I decided to stick around and catch a few songs. I'm glad I did.
While playing both guitar and electric organ, and with a three piece band behind him, Shooter delivered a brief set of pretty killer country inspired rock, and after all the bands I had seen today, it was nice to hear something totally different than anything else. Both he and his band sounded great, and I was left totally impressed their set, as it was just what I needed to keep me going for the rest of the day…
Artists:
Shooter Jennings – www.shooterjennings.com
Flipper – myspace.com/flipper
Bad Religion – www.badreligion.com
The Adolescents – www.theadolescents.net
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
