Get Warped!

Ahh springtime again! And what comes after spring? Hopefully, you recognize summer as the next step in the process, which brings me to today's topic, one of my favorite and highly anticipated summer music festivals, Warped Tour.

Warped tour is a summer festival featuring a wonderful mixture of genres such as post-hardcore, ska, alternative, metalcore, reggae, hip hop, electronicore, and pop-rock. It was dreamed up and founded in 1994 by Kevin Lyman, SideOneDummy Records partner and producer of the Taste of Chaos
 and Mayhem Tours. Originally the tour was created as a skate punk/ska tour, but in more recent years they have been letting a multitude of genres on the tour. Other than music, the tour features some extreme sports and is and has been sponsored by, but not limited to, the skateboarding and shoe company Vans. People shorten the name to Warped Tour, but technically it is called the Vans Warped Tour (tomato, tomato, right?).  It is also flea market-esque, with all of the bands and other vendors selling anything from food to instruments.

Going to Warped Tour is something that must be prepared for. It is a gritty, sweaty, and extremely hot all day event (11am-9pm), usually featuring 100+ bands across 10 or so stages. Everyone plays at once since there are so many acts and only 10 stages, so it's always a tough choice to pick who you want to see, especially if they're playing at the same time. Trust me, getting from one stage to another can be a battle! But the beauty of it is, you can pretty much see all of your favorite bands in one day.

Like I said, Warped Tour has been one of my favorite events since I started going in 2005. My best friend and I make it a yearly tradition, although we did miss last years tour due to an unimpressive lineup, in our opinion. But this year, I am more pleased with the bands, and the lineup isn't even complete yet! I am going to make it a point to see 3OH!3, Attack Attack!, Family Force 5, Foxy Shazam, I Set My Friends on Fire, and The Devil Wears Prada. The full tour schedule can be found here. Don't be scared off by the heat and the hoards of hardcore kids, Warped Tour is a must for your summer!

Fallin'

Its time for another favorite! This is a popular, christian post-hardcore band that hails from Phoenix, Arizona. And yeah, they definitely bring the heat. If you haven't guessed it yet, I'm talking about Blessthefall.

The band was born from the high school days in 2004 of Mike Frisby (guitarist), Miles Bergsma (guitarist), Matt Traynor (drummer), Jared Warth (bassist/screamer).  Craig Mabbitt (original vocalist) was then added to the mix a little bit later and in 2005, Bergsma left for college at Berklee and Eric Lambert stepped in to solidify the fab 5. They released a three track EP that same year and toured with names like Greeley Estates and got recognition for their religious stadpoint, getting them a deal with Science Records.  They stepped up, touring with Norma Jean and Alesana.  Then in April 2007, they debuted His Last Walk and completed an entire stint with Warped Tour.  They've also played with some amazing bands like A Skylit Drive, Dance Gavin Dance, Escape the Fate, From First to Last, and Before Their Eyes to add to their repitoire.  

But towards the end of 2007, Craig left the band's european tour for "personal reasons", which were said to be with his son and girlfriend. Mabbitt tried to come back, using his personal myspace as a message board. But the boys said "no". They had other things in mind and, I assume, didn't have time for someone to flake out again. Jared filled in with vocals, getting some help from Aiden Louis of Dear Whoever.  Then in September of 2008, after a rumored request for Craig to return to the band (which he refused after joining Escape the Fate), Blessthefall announced Beau Bokan as the new lead singer. On October 6, 2009, they released Witness, toured a bit, and released a video for "What's Left of Me" in December.

Sadly, Blessthefall will not be at warped tour this year, but will be reording their third full-length album, starting in May. But they won't be joined by Frisby, who left to pursue other things, so Elliot Gruenberg (ex-Legacy and Before Their Eyes) is helping out on guitar. Its sad to see Frisby go, but I'm super stoked for the band's next album.

I'll be honest, when Craig first left the band, "for personal reasons" (ruining Escape the Fate?), I didn't think I would like them so much anymore. Craig was a good frontman. But after seeing him in Escape the Fate, I turned up my nose. No one can replace Ronnie Radke, no matter how many times he goes to prison (right?). So I looked back to Blessthefall for some musical enlightenment and I was pleasantly suprised. Although Beau doesn't scream like Craig did, his voice is strong and evokes a great deal of emotion into the band's songs. And besides, Jared did most of the screaming before anyway. If it isn't broken, why fix it?

I've seen this band numerous times, but not with Beau as frontman. I've seen them at Warped tour and in Charlotte at Amos Southend. I plan on going to see them at Bamboozle in April, and hope they play "To Hell and Back", one of my favorite songs. I don't think I'll be disappointed!

Everything's Louder in Texas

So this week, I thought we would get a little more...gritty. Let's take a trip down south to Dallas, Texas to kick up some dust with the boys from Memphis May Fire.

Don't take 'em lightly, this ain't your grandpa's band. Take a heaping helping of southern swag, a pinch of Underoath, and a little bit of Attack Attack! and you get Memphis May Fire. They seamlessly combine southern-rock, metalcore, and post-hardcore vibes to create the perfect storm of hard-hitting, shout-at-the-top-of-your-lungs madness.

This five man band consisting of Kellen McGregor (vocals, lead guitar, piano), Ryan Bentley (rhythm guitar), Matt Mullins (lead vocals), Cory Elder (bass), and Jake Garland (drums/percussion) will knock your socks off. But like any band, MMF has dealt with some change in their lineup, like loosing Tanner Oakes, Chase Ryan, and Eric Molesworth in the past. But now, I think they have the recipe just right.

I am a fairly new listener to the band, with recommendations from some of my favorite music buffs. So after searching around Grooveshark for awhile, I've concluded that "North America Vs North Carolina" is my personal favorite song. Sleepwalking is a great album all around, certainly something to get the blood pumping. But one full-length album just isn't enough right?

MMF recently switched from Bullet Tooth Records to Rise records, with big names like Emarosa, Miss May I, and The Bled. They are set to release their second full-length album, The Hollow, with the label this April according to the Alternative Press.  It's supposed to be heavier and a bit more electronic than their previous albums. So if you're into music from Underoath, then it will probably be right up your alley.

While they're finishing up with that, MMF only have two tour dates posted in Texas. Maybe they'll be added to Warped Tour soon? That would be fantastic,  but until next time, the promo for The Hollow is below, hope you enjoy it!