Thursday, September 17, 2009

Vans Warped Tour 2009 - Milwaukee, WI

Vans Warped Tour was a plethora of non-stop raw talent. With 7 stages running at different intervals, there was always some sort of crazy anti-lucid affair transpiring for all those in attendance.

TAT
Sassy and sharp is an understatement for this female fronted punk rock band. Lead singer and guitarist, Tatiana DeMaria, is a force to be reckoned with! The U.K. band started out in 2003 as a quartet and by 2004 had released two singles, "Peace Sex & Tea" and "Pessimist", independently through EX Records. In 2006, TAT landed an eight day spot on the Vans Warped Tour where they came and conquered. The tour after seeing their mind blowing performance offered TAT the rest of the tour totaling 28 days in all. TAT since has given supporting performances for notable musicians such as The Bouncing Souls, NOFX, and Alice Cooper, and was even brought back in 2008 and again in 2009 to play the entire Warped Tour.

Their energy was booming from the moment they walked out on the Hurley stage of the Vans Warped Tour 2009. TAT's performance was raw and offensive, their song lyrics painfully real and succinct. The audience, although admittedly unaware of the band prior to this day, was captivated and absorbed into this provoking performance. But it didn't stop there! TAT kept the momentum going throughout the entire performance and continued to bring forth the pain and reality of this world we call earth.

Tatiana DeMaria has proven to be fierce and passionate on the mic and mind blowing on the guitar. When backed by Nick Kent on bass and Jake Reed on the drums, the trio is unstoppable. TAT was very reminiscent of Joan Jett, and had the ability to bring forth the indecency and rage that many modern day punk bands lack.

Be sure to check out the band's debut album, Soho Lights. Out now!! And be on the lookout for their U.S. tour with Social Distortion in September 2009!


Anti-Flag
With enough energy to light up any stage, Chris #2 aka Chris Barker and Chris Head with original members Justin Sane and Pat Thetic took over the main stage of the tour. Their performance was all but boring and well entertaining. Jumping from speakers and trashing across the stage, it is no wonder Anti-Flag has become so notorious for their savage music and outrageous performances. The music screamed across the park as fans thrust their bodies against each other. With numerous members of the crowd running in unison around in circles, we aimed to get the largest circle pit in Wisconsin! There was never a dull moment during this performance.

Be on the lookout for Anti-Flag’s tenth album, The People or the Gun, recently released on June 9, 2009.


3OH!3
With little to no introduction needed, this duo, Sean Matthew Foreman and Nathaniel Warren Set Motte, is quite possibly one of the quickest rising groups in America today. With only first joining forces in 2004, these two have hit the charts fast and hard with platinum-certified single “Don’t Trust Me.”

These Boulder, CO natives brought their well known uncouth pick-up lines along with their riveting bass lines to the stage and rapidly had the entire crowd moving to their coarse performance. As hands flew in the air remarking the infamous “3OH!3” icon it was apparent the lust and envy that radiated from this massive crowd. Be on the lookout for their latest hit “Starstrukk” bringing it back to the hip hop roots we all know 3OH!3 for.

And for the record, 3OH!3 does not stand for the Roland synthesizer TB-303. As rumor has it, it is the Boulder/Denver area code 303!


Bad Religion
The last and final performance of the day was about taking it back to a time when punk was new and experimental. Vans Warped Tour left us with quite possibly, in admittance from the band, the last Wisconsin performance from this highly innovative band. They brought us one of our own, Greg Graffin, from Racine, WI alongside original members Brett Gurewitz and Jay Bentley, and accompanied by Greg Hetson, Brian Baker, and Brooks Wackerman. They brought us Bad Religion.

As I watched the brightly colored outfits of the younger attendees of the tour walk away from the tour’s main stage, a part of my heart sank. I knew we wouldn’t be here today had it not been for the following band about to perform. A band that quite possibly may have taken the leading roles of the revival of what we could call the punk movement.

Formed in 1980, Bad Religion released their first full-length album, How Could Hell Be Any Worse?, in 1982. They were quickly recognized for their vocal synchronization and complex vocabulary. As they grew as a band, their music became more and more understood as the leading force for punk. Today they are one of the widest recognized punk bands around, and well deserved for the title. It was performance that was highly irreplaceable.


Quotes of the Day:

“I like you so much better when you’re naked!”
– random sticker on the floor of the main stage mosh pit

"It smells like dude toots in here!"
- Nick Thompson, Hit the Lights

"It all depends on what you say and how you look."
- Sean Foreman, 3OH!3

For more pictures see: www.myspace.com/lil_Jean

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