Are you ready to rock?
VCReporter’s picks for Warped Tour 2011
By Michel Cicero 06/30/2011
The annual onslaught of amped-up youth in Seaside Park is upon us once more. High on weird music, vitamin D and energy drinks, they spill into the streets of downtown Ventura screeching like rabid monkeys, the smell of skate foot, sunscreen and Axe Phoenix lingering in their wake. The potential for anarchy is compounded this year vis-à-vis the hungry parking meters and salivating police that now dominate the landscape of our once charming borough. The “punk rock summer camp,” as organizers like to call it (every word of which is debatable), is celebrating its 17th year of bringing mayhem and questionably talented musical acts to small towns across the nation. It claims responsibility for introducing audiences to the likes of No Doubt, Sublime, Eminem and, uh, Katy Perry. This year’s lineup features two local acts and the usual stew of veteran and up-and-coming bands representing the ever growing spectrum of nonsensical punk offspring genres from screamo-core to crust punk, and we’ve selected a few that we believe are worthy of your sunburn and $32 ticket.
Foxy Shazam The best live performance you will see all day, this year, and maybe even in your life will be from the glam-informed, spastic elastic, critics’ rejects whose front man, Eric Nally, has been known to eat half-smoked cigarettes on stage. Nally could be Bruno’s rock god alter ego; and if the band doesn’t make it, a career on Broadway surely awaits him.
I Set My Friends on Fire Started by two kids with a wicked sense of humor and questionable musical ability who recorded an “electro grindcore” version of Soulja Boy’s “Crank That” and promptly got signed to Epitaph, if nothing else, they have the best name on the entire tour. Their label calls them “experimental metal,” which is probably giving them way too much credit, but even if their music doesn’t rock socks, with record titles like Can’t Spell Slaughter Without Laughter and Astral Rejection, you know where to go for cheap laughs. (Which is the only thing you’ll be able to afford by the end of the day.)
Bad Rabbits For this song title alone — “Girl, I’m Like Damn”— this band deserves your attention. Imagine diet Temptations (insert wiki link for the youngsters here) jacked up on Prince’s pancakes and you’ll understand why you’ll need a foot massage after this set.
Big D and the Kids Table Ska done right with a touch of punk and a nod to soul. This Side One Dummy band has been around for, gasp, 14 years. Ever heard of them? Didn’t think so.
Sound the Sky Fronted by Camarillo promoter Cassie Purtlebaugh, this band is getting some well-deserved buzz. A four-piece alternative act with solid riffs, a post-punk sensibility and a feminine side, go see what talent lurks in the corners of our fair county.
Rue-Lynx Simi Valley band fresh out of high school save for its 15-year-old singer, Rue-Lynx has been playing the L.A. area for more than a year, and has already lived the dream of being stalked by drooling producers and then having its recordings shelved. With a mom manager, some good connections and decent songs (’80s-style metal), they are poised to do something.
michel@vcreporter.com
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