Warped Tour: Variety is a nice spice

The Warped Tour seems to be evolving musically, but some rituals never go away. Photos by Timothy Finn/The Star 

A few years ago, the Warped Tour felt like a communion of 100 similar bands. Nearly everything sounded like a slight variation on the mix of pop and punk that filled a narrow spectrum from the Ramones to the Clash. These days: Not so much.

Wednesday's all-day festival at Sandstone Amphitheater included plenty of bands who could be called Rancid spin-offs. But there were plenty of alternatives, too, like the pop band Jack's Mannequin, the dance-pop band Cobra Starship, a hip-hop stage, a Top 40 pop star (Katy Perry) and several screaming hard-core bands that would fit in at Rockfest.

Paramore, it seems, is getting too big for Warped Tour's modest britches.

As usual, the festival comprised two main stages and five satellite stages. Two of those were on the big stage inside the amphitheater, which was split into two venues. Also as usual, the organizers kept the schedule on time (though it appears the day's early bad weather forced them to start things a little later than planned). There was no "headliner," but several bands drew huge crowds, none bigger than Paramore's. The area in front of their stage was packed before they started setting up their gear, while Jack's Mannequin was playing on the other main stage.

Another big draw: Katy Perry, the former Christian/gospel singer turned faux bad girl, who drew a big crowd to the main stage inside the amphitheater (and/or didn't chase away fans waiting around to hear August Burns Red, like the guy in a Lamb of God T-shirt). Here's what I saw/heard:

Against Me!: One of the bands I came to see. They're hard, fast and grass-roots militant -- anarchy-in-a-can. They cram their political outrage and rebellion into taut, fist-pumping rock anthems that stir up a frenzy, even in thick heat and humidity. On the setlist: "White People for Peace," "Stop!" and "Don't Lose Touch."

If you work in the horn section of Reel Big Fish, eyewear is required. Headgear is optional but recommended.

Reel Big Fish: Every festival needs a clown and they were it -- in a good way, like They Might Be Giants, not Weird Al. They abruptly altered the mood, from fiery political punk to poppy, horn-fested party numbers, including "You Don't Know (The F*** Off Song), which ignited a big, unleash-your-loudest-f-bombs sing-along. They finished with a dandy cover of Aha's "Take On Me."

Above: Andrew McMahon banged a Baldwin and drained a few Buds at the Vans Warped Tour 2008.

Jack's Mannequin: There's nothing punk about this band, which has more in common with the Fray and Ben Folds than Orange County's most famous music export. Andrew McMahon runs the band and writes its material, which is primarily poppy piano anthems, ballads and ditties. They drew a big crowd that was very familiar with several songs on the set list, like "The Mixed Tape," "Holiday From Real," "La La Lie" and "Dark Blue." Not my thing, but lots of kids were eating it up.

Above: Don't let her size fool you. Hayley Williams can take on a big crowd and wrap it around one of her diminutive fingers.

Paramore: A couple of years ago, My Chemical Romance played the main stage at Warped and it was obvious then that they'd outgrown the festival and its modest digs. It seems like Paramore is at the same place in 2008: ready to graduate to big-time, big-venue status.

Hayley Williams is the charismatic star of this very good band, one that has managed to draw the attentions of a diverse fandom: pubescent girls, college students and even some hard-rock musicians (two guys from the Leo Project were there to show some appreciation).

Williams is 19, but she has the big voice and glowing personality of a seasoned performer. She also has the exuberant moves of a teenager who seems to loves rock music as much as she does rock stardom. She coaxed the crowd into a few sing-alongs from a set list that included "Let the Flames Begin," "That's What You Get," "Crushcrushcrush," "Pressure" and "Misery Business." She tends to eclipse the rest of the band, which is tight and taut and eases through music that is more complicated and progressive than it sounds. However, Jeremy Davis pulled off one of the more spectacular stage tricks of this set (and maybe the entire festival): a running forward flip while playing his bass.

Every Time I Die: A punk-metalcore band from Buffalo. They're relentless and incendiary: Lots of screaming and shrieking. They call their fans ETIDIOTS, affectionately, and their fans responded by cranking up the mosh pit and even singing/screaming along to lyrics. Brutal stuff, and three songs was enough for me.

Above: Her guitar is pink, but there's not much girly about Katy Perry.

Katy Perry: She has the No. 1 song on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, which must be the first for a tour and a community that sees membership in the Top 40 as something akin to treason.

She played one of the stages inside the amphitheater to a crowd that easily exceeded 1,000. Some of those people looked like they just needed a place to sit, but the GA section was crowded with fans (mostly teens) who knew her songs, and not only "I Kissed a Girl."

Her all-male band came out dressed identically: in white shirts, white shorts (with light blue ties), white socks and white deck shoes. They looked like a dorky-ass version of the Knack. She toyed with them and made it clear who was boss. She also put on this tough/crass act -- she dedicated one song to the "douche-bags" in the crowd -- that seemed forced and false and insincere. She played rhythm guitar on a couple of songs. When she was done, she removed her guitar not by slinging it over her head but by lowering it and stepping out of it, like it was a piece of lingerie.

She has hired nearly all the successful songwriting machines (the Matrix, Max Martin) to help her craft hits, and it paid off: Her songs are shiny and catchy, but I hear Katrina & the Wave more than I hear Avril Lavigne or anything close to punk. During one of her songs, Angelo Moore of Fishbone came out and played sax. I guess that gives her some sense of legitimacy. Her setlist included "Fingerprints," "One of the Boys," "If You Can Afford Me," "Waking Up in Vegas" and the big hit, "I Kissed A Girl." During her set, the skies spit some rain, which was a warning and an omen.

As Cobra Starship finished its set, a party broke out on stage.

Cobra Starship: They play bubbly dance-rock and have lots of manic fun with it. They finished with "Guilty Pleasure" and "I Came Here to Kick Some Ass!" During that one, they were joined by an MC who rapped a bit. Near the end of the song, they fired some confetti into the crowd and bounced around the stage joyously. By then the skies in the west were turning dark and forboding. I headed downtown for a free show that wasn't going to happen, with or without a roof above.

| Timothy Finn, The Star

Comments

[-phil.]

Tim...did you happen to catch the mighty Street Dogs?

[Tim Finn]

I caught about a song and a half. They were good -- pretty traditional street punk with a harder edge. I listened to the new album on my way to Sandstone. It came out Tuesday. Good stuff, too.

[Gabriel]

How can music be "more complicated and progressive than it sounds?" seems like a paradox. Awesome overall review though! I'd never be able to handle braving those tween masses to catch a few good acts. Sounds like Against Me! turned in their usual kickass performance though.

[brent anderson]

In addition to Against Me, who were great, and some other notables you touched on, I would respectfully also submit The Bronx, who we busted ass to get out and see at 12:20. Bad slot, great set. Ferocious. That's a hard rock band that knows how to milk a groove and scream with character, not cookie monster grunts. Just a fierce band who would blow the roof off a place like the Bottleneck. Hope they get back here on their own.

[Tim Finn]

Really wanted to see the Bronx but got there too late. Didn't figure on them playing so early.

[Missed it!]

How were the Horrorpops and the Lordz?

[Tim Finn]

I saw one track from the Horrorpops and wished I'd seen more. Didn't see the Lordz but I know someone who did and he said they were one of the best acts he saw all day.