2006's "Most Improved" award goes to Bamboozle. While the number of performing bands this year was still staggering and only slightly less than 2005's, the bands actually played on time (for the most part), and with their full given time slots. This allowed me to at least see portions of a number of sets, even if all but one were on less than intimate stages than the ones that offered bands like Say Anything, Moneen, and Gatsbys American Dream last time.
As Cities Burn bring a pretty familiar sound to the Solid State roster, offering up a steady mix of Beloved and Changing of Times-era Underoath. The album they're supporting, Son, I Loved You at Your Darkest is decent, so I expected their live show to be at least somewhat entertaining, and it was. The backup vocalist who I enjoy so much sang his few lines a bit shaky, but everyone was alive and well; the singer was rarely in a static position, while one guitarist randomly started throwing his guitar straight up into the air a good 20 feet at one point. I recognized "Thus From My Lips, By Yours, My Sin Is Purged" and "Bloodsucker Pt. II," but not too many others.
It was weird hearing the Number Twelve Looks Like You's chaotic grind coming through such monstrously sized and capable speakers.
Moneen started early, so I was able to catch a few songs. Does this band have fans? It seemed like a very select few from the audience were into it, let alone even mouthing the words. I'm sure the band was warmed up by the time their set was in its later stages, but they seemed a bit lost on a stage that big; it looked like their usual energy just wouldn't be enough to cover the field they were running on. I was disappointed they didn't open with " Don't Ever Tell Locke What He Can't Do," but I did get to hear " This Is All Bigger Than Me," "Are We Really Happy with Who We Are Right Now?," and most of "Bleed and Blister (Version 3)."
Speaking of blistering, it was then time for Paint It Black. And even on a stage that large, greatness ensued. Dan Yemin's hand motions cut through the open space that surrounded him song through song in the solid half-hour set while the band filled out the rest of the necessary intensity. From their actions and reactions, it seemed like a few in attendance were experiencing hardcore punk for the first time, but I don't think they could've gotten an entirely better modern introduction. Yemin explained (mostly to them, I'd imagine) how festivals like such didn't quite represent punk and hardcore, but rather basement shows and DIY methods do. He motioned to the Giants Stadium banner and mentioned how the country offers things like sports to keep us as citizens distracted from actual, pertinent issues (a point I've noticed and thus adapted away from considerably the last several years). On top of that, he sent out a blatant "fuck you" to anyone disagreeing with the stance on his T-shirt, which read "I SUPPORT SAME SEX MARRIAGE" (said shirt being sold at He Is Legend's merch table, I believe, interesting since that band does not seem to have a political stance but is outright Christian affiliated); he was proud to declare his band as the counterpart to the "Christian right dominating the stage[s] today." And ah yes, the songs; as usual, a steady mix of CVA and Paradise rounded out the set to the joy of a surprising number in the crowd, including "Cannibal," "CVA," "Head Hurts Hands on Fire," "Pink Slip," "Exit Wounds," "Ghosts," "The New Brutality," "Labor Day," "Burn the Hive," "Angel," and closer "Memorial Day," which the band closed out electric.
He Is Legend's brand of dirty Southern rock 'n' roll-inflected post-hardcore was next. They sounded awfully static and noisy at first, but the mix soon settled in. The singer was decked out in true Lynyrd Skynyrd fashion; bare-chested with a sleeveless denim jacket, long, unkempt hair and facial hair that would make Grizzly Adams proud. The half-set I caught was solid, which included "The Seduction" and "Eating a Book."
Strike Anywhere must be one of the most consistent live acts around. Like PIB, they didn't seem too distraught by the huge stage (one of the two main ones, in fact). Even from a far distance I was able to get into the set, which included all the fan favorites (opener[s] "Blaze" / "Amplify," "Sunset on 32nd," "Timebomb Generation," "Chorus of One," "You're Fired") and the new, somewhat predictable one they've been playing live with the annoyingly catchy line "we'll take back what they steal." Good/great catch.
I don't like to hate on positive hardcore, but Stretch Arm Strong's last album has some really forced elements about it, and I think anyone who's listened to it knows what I'm talking about. Unfortunately, these are really their only songs I know at all, so they were the ones I recognized from the short portion of them I saw (which seemed to dominate, since I recognized almost them all). They were a solid, tight live act, no question, but their recent musical styles are simply questionable.
I'm not as into I Am the Avalanche as I am the Movielife or their other resulting band, Nightmare of You, but IATA do write pretty decent sorta pop-punk / Piebald-style emo songs. While I caught some great performances of "Murderous" and "Symphony," the surefire highlight was the new song they played -- holy fuck was it good. Granted there was the band's fairly standard mid-tempo chorus in place, but surrounding it was an opening of furious drum fills and charged energy seeming to reference Everything-era Glassjaw, while they even dipped into some double-time/skatepunk territory later on. The number of flawless tempo changes and unusual amount of energy present was enough to get me excited for the possibility of a crazy good album later down the line.
"THROW YA HANDS UP! THROW YA HANDS UP!" Method Man was, uh, interesting. I know next to nothing about him or his past endeavor, the ever-loved Wu Tang Clan, from which several members were on stage, and I doubt too many others in the crowd did, but there was plenty of audience participation regardless. The irony was so thick I could spread it on some bread for a pretty delicious lunch.
I left halfway through to catch the end of the Fall of Troy's set. They were in the middle of one of the considerably nuttier cuts off Doppelgänger, and the crowd reflected that. Kids were MANIC. I believe there was plenty of push-mosh as well, which really shouldn't have been surprising, but sort of ruined the fact that the band closed with an efficient rendition of "Rockstar Nailbomb," a song I hadn't heard them play at either of the shows I'd seen them at earlier this year. They looked like they were putting good energy into what will be their last set for quite a bit before the hiatus begins.
Kids really are forming some sort of cult for Say Anything. As soon as Max Bemis's soft warble and the overtly cutesy keyboards from "Wow, I Can Get Sexual Too" began its venturing through the speakers, everyone seemed to slowly drift forward as in some sort of trance. It was a really, really strange sight; some serious children of the corn shit I'd say. They played pretty solid, but you could really hear the pop-anthem elements quite well. Set list inclusions were "Alive with the Glory of Love" of course, "Woe," "Belt," and it was pretty fortunate to get to hear "Admit It!!"
Underoath is so unexplainably huge that even in the far back section of the crowd that I'd place myself in initially, there was much, much moving around. I would definitely file them in some sort of guilty pleasure folder, but I felt like I wasn't getting as much enjoyment out of them as usual by the end of the new song they played, which simply seems to take from the same Botch-style metalcore a few of their labelmates play. The other two I saw were "It's Dangerous Business Walking Out Your Front Door" and "I Don't Feel Very Receptive Today."
I'd also left early in hopes of checking out at least some of the Riverboat Gamblers' set, and boy, that was the best decision I made all day, as the band put on a wonderfully entertaining set of punk 'n' roll. They made such an impact that we recently got a user submission from a fellow named DJGootch who reviewed solely the band's set. I'll let him take over to describe it, as he sums it up pretty well:
Mike (vocals) has energy to spare with his constant jumps, climbing fences and running through the crowd with the mic. It started off with a frightening bang as Mike fell off the stage and broke 2 fingers on the guard rail, but the band didn't stop, Mike got up, dusted himself off and put on what could have been one of the best performances I've seen in a long time.
Running through the crowd, doing double dutch with the microphone cable, singing right in peoples faces making sure EVERYONE was part of the show... One of the most energetic and fun shows I've ever seen. The entire band is a ball of energy making it SO much more entertaining for people unfamiliar with the band to get into it, while at the same time making it even better for the long-time fans.
When the Gamblers wrapped up, I went to catch the end of the Bled's set. Aside from a small pit to the left center, the crowd was pretty much dead. I hadn't seen this lack of a response to the 'bigger' bands all day, but I guess people (aside from myself) just really didn't like Found in the Flood, despite pretty terrific cuts like "My Assassin," "Red Wedding," and one other from Pass the Flask.
I'm really, really hoping Nightmare of You's Brandon Reilly was wearing those white oversized sunglasses in jest to a festival audience who probably consisted of 20% doing the same (I mean fuck, they have a song titled "Dear Scene, I Wish I Was Deaf"). I was over it quickly though, because they sounded rather fantastic; their crowd looking on was rather large as well, even as only a handful seemed to know the words. They opened with "The Days Go By Oh So Slow" and, as I was walking away "Thumbelina."
I've heard people saying they were disappointed with Saves the Day, but I thought they put forth a really good if not relatively predictable set. It was certainly Sound the Alarm-heavy with a few older gems thrown in, but I couldn't ask for much more. The set list consisted of "At Your Funeral," "Holly Hox Forget Me Nots," "My Sweet Fracture," "The End," "Head for the Hills," "Don't Know Why," "Anywhere with You," "Firefly" (which I was quite happy about), "Cars and Calories," "Shattered" and "Bones."
Gutter Phenomenon was disappointing, no doubt, so I was skeptical about how Every Time I Die's set would play out. Luckily, it was pretty fun (at least, the end). The band leaned on Hot Damn! material for the duration of my stay; "I Been Gone a Long Time" and one other was played, plus "The New Black."
So Anthony Green had either lost a bet or was tripping balls, because he came out on stage in a skin-tight gray dress that stopped about halfway down his thighs. Oh yeah, he had makeup on too. And yet, Circa Survive was sounded incredible. Their dreamy placesetting coming through the expensive sound system was beautiful, and while Green was stumbling over his words a bit, the whole thing provided one of the most enjoyable sets of the day, even though I only saw "Holding Someone's Hair Back" and "In Fear and Faith."
However, you would soon find me in the middle of a bunch of crazed, ecstatic kids, unable to wipe the smile off my face with an ammonia soaked rag. Lifetime was playing. It didn't even matter that Ari Katz did have that overly calm, sedated stage mannerisms like fellow Jersey resident Greg Attonito of the Bouncing Souls, which was both expected and disappointing (the former because I'd seen videos of recent performances, disappointing because I figure he has to kick it up a notch at some point) -- it was fucking Lifetime. While it's been 9 years since the release of their last proper effort, 1997's practically eponymous Jersey's Best Dancers, the band played the songs exactly like on record. Everyone bounced along to spectacular opener "Turnpike Gates," and then in no order "Theme for a New Brunswick Basement Show," "Rodeo Clown," "Neutral Territory (Gym Is)," "Knives, Bats, New Tats," "Ostrichsized," "Young, Loud, and Scotty," "Francie Nolan," "25 Cent Giraffes," "Hey Catrine," "Bringin' It Backwards" (AWESOME), and "The Verona Kings." "Danyeursim" sounded fantastic in the live setting, giving reason for plenty of hopping around. It was unfortunate that a small legion of Taking Back Sunday fans took up residence just behind the barrier, meaning all Lifetime fans were forced back even further. The band announced that they'd be coming out with a new record "when [they] finish writing it," so I suppose that's simply a refreshing update that it's still in progress at least. Despite a serious lack of intimacy, the fans were unified and enthusiastic to see the band who likely influenced the majority of bands playing Bamboozle that day. And it should make it all the better for when they play a smaller club around these parts.
AFI's grandiose set included the opening tandem of " Miseria Cantare (The Beginning)" and "The Leaving Song, Pt. 2," "Girl's Not Grey," "Silver and Cold," "Miss Murder," "Dancing Through Sunday," and "God Called in Sick Today." They also played a few others I can't remember, but one was definitely "Totalimmortal," which I was stoked on. I couldn't see much from the distance I was standing, but they sounded good.
You could say the same for Taking Back Sunday. They played most of the songs I wanted to hear in front of a flashing 'LOUDER NOW' cinema-style sign, and from far in the back the crowd wasn't tooooo annoying. Set list in no order and probably incomplete, as they played for about an hour including encore: "Cute without the 'E' (Cut from the Team)," "Liar" (stoked!), "MakeDamnSure," "Where You Want to Be," "A Decade Under the Influence," "Bike Scene," "Great Romances of the 20th Century," and "Error Operator."
Kudos to Bamboozle for getting it right this time, and even throwing in a few actual punk bands for good measure as well as an overall solid lineup (well, Sunday at least...).
What are the benefits of having a Punknews.org account?
Share your opinion by posting comments on the stories that interest you
Rate music and bands and help shape the weekly top ten
Let Punknews.org use your ratings to help you find bands and albums you might like
Customize features on the site to get the news the way you want.
Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 8:02 PM (EDT) My Score:
hojeebus. Bamboozle was the best day of my life. Why no Aiden?! I met them. Yus. And Anthony Green's whole wardrobe choice was the funniest thing I saw all day. =]
Posted by Anonymous on Monday, May 15, 2006 at 5:20 PM (EDT)
It's cause moneen is still tryign to break out into the US music scene.... thats probably the reason behind the lack of fans.. and knowlede of there music.... but when they play anywhere in canada.... every is there for them
"It sounds like Dan is being dragged into the Lifetime reunion. Honestly, how can you expect people to believe what you say about "DIY basement shows" or whatever when you're on the Decaydance roster? You have to back your words up with actions. None of this "let's reform the band because some of the members need some money."
what makes you say that? what is it about decaydance that everybody is so riled up over? I didn't get any negative vibes or expressions of regret or reluctance from anything he's said in interviews or even things he said at the paint it black show a few weeks ago.
It sounds like Dan is being dragged into the Lifetime reunion. Honestly, how can you expect people to believe what you say about "DIY basement shows" or whatever when you're on the Decaydance roster? You have to back your words up with actions. None of this "let's reform the band because some of the members need some money."
They played in New Brunswick. Get your finger on the pulse.
I meant from this point on, and within reasonable driving distance from central Long Island.
Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, May 13, 2006 at 2:03 PM (EDT)
a black dude rapping to thousands of clueless white emo kids? wait, that doesn't sound like irony to me.
i am really missing how this is ironic ( i am guessing that is sarcasm in your second sentence). unless method man talks alot of shit in his songs about white emo kids (which he might, i really dont know and which is also the reason i am asking) then i dont see how a "black dude rapping to thousands of clueless white emo kids" is ironic in and of itself
Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, May 13, 2006 at 1:14 PM (EDT)
can anyone who went to bamboozle tell me about streetlight manifesto's show? easily the best band there
Posted by Anonymous on Friday, May 12, 2006 at 3:54 PM (EDT)
TBS performed horribly! just not the same since that guy left, but it was cool that that kid climbed that hudge ass poll but then it wasnt kool when they had 20 security guards dragging him out
Posted by Anonymous on Friday, May 12, 2006 at 3:51 PM (EDT)
To the comment below about what lifetime said about tbs and saves the day, I blieve he said, "If it wasn't for them we wouldn't be here" not "wouldn't be a band"
Really, the only bummer about this entire weekend was that a dude died. That kind of cast a pale shadow across a lot of the proceedings. But since word of that didn's spread too fast, most people still had a good time, regardless of the brutal heat.
-Scott
Posted by Anonymous on Friday, May 12, 2006 at 9:42 AM (EDT)
The Riverboat Gamblers are the new New Bomb Turks. There, I said it.
-Ken
Posted by Anonymous on Friday, May 12, 2006 at 9:22 AM (EDT)
I know this sounds like the generic "cool punk" thing to say...but did anyone else think that paint it black, strike anywhere, saves the day, and lifetime should've just played all day???
senses fail and tbs suck live, sorry.
- kevin
Posted by Anonymous on Friday, May 12, 2006 at 7:35 AM (EDT)
Only watched Lifetime and Paint It Black.
Was at the Court Tavern show the day before.
Most amazing thing I've ever witnessed.
"Stretch Arm Strong's last album has some really forced elements about it, and I think anyone who's listened to it knows what I'm talking about. Unfortunately, these are really their only songs I know at all"
If their most recent album (which I haven't even heard) is all you're familiar with, I strongly recommend Rituals of Life. One of my favorite hardcore records of all time.
Posted by maverick on 2006-05-12 00:51:38 My Score:
For as many Fall Out Boy fans in homemade "I Love Pete Wentz" T-shirts there were on the first day, there were just as many AFI and HIM fans appropriately decked out in all-black ensembles, leather pants and smeared mascara included. And while their cadre of fans would have to wait a number of hours in the blazing heat to see their heroes, fellow goth-punks Aiden welcomed the pasty-white clans in with open, fishnet-stocking-covered arms as they kicked off the main stage. Frontman wiL may be borrowing his stage persona liberally from Gerard Way and Davey Havok, but it was incredibly hard not to get goosebumps at the end of their set as he descended into the crowd, then ascended above them just as quickly, being held aloft by the masses. Very impressive.
Canadians Alexisonfire were up next across the parking lot, and sounded a bit rusty. The band attributed this to the Bamboozle being their first show in four months, as they've been writing a new record. They debuted a song from said new record, as well, but be warned -- it's main riff sounds nothing less than completely lifted from Refused's "New Noise." So, uh, if plagiarism is your thing...
Fellow countrymen Moneen played next, and were by far one of the tightest, most energetic and all-around best sets of the day. Too bad most of the attendees ignored the quartet due to lack of makeup/screaming/(insert cliche here). Oh, well -- I still went right up to the railing and sang along with every word of their set, which was comprised mainly of tracks off their new album, The Red Tree, but wrapped up with an epic rendition of "The Passing Of America," which was capped off with frontman Kenny Bridges surfing his guitar across the massive stage. Well done, dude.
Luckily for fans of good music, the main stages were running about 10 minutes ahead of schedule, meaning after the completion of Moneen's set, I was able to run to one of the side stages to catch the majority of Paint It Black's set. Let me just say this: Dan Yemin is a modern-day Henry Rollins (minus the TV talk show). He left nothing on the stage, which was impressive, considering his other band (y'know, Lifetime), were on the main stage in a few short hours. Among the set's highlights were "The New Brutality" and "Exit Wounds."
He Is Legend began as soon as PIB finished up, opening up with "I Am Hollywood" from their 2004 album of the same name. The crowd for the band was much bigger than I would've figured, and they were launching through the air with the greatest of ease. I could only stay for a few minutes, though, as Strike Anywhere were up next on the main stage.
A quick run back to the left main stage and I settled in for Strike Anywhere. The band seemed a bit uncomfortable on a stage that high and far from the crowd (seriously, you could've driven a car through the space between the barricade and the stage), but they still brought it hard for the handful of songs I had time to watch (including "We Amplify," "Infrared" and "To Live In Discontent"). I wish I could've stayed longer, but I had to run all the way across the grounds to catch Envy On The Coast.
Simply put, if you're not listening to Envy On The Coast, you're missing out on the brightest diamond in Long Island right now. (Heck, they were even one of AP's AP&R bands a few issues back.) The crowd turned out in droves for the local band's set, and singalongs with their Glassjaw-meets-Incubus-meets-Something Corporate sound were abundant. Seriously, check this band out.
After EOTC's set, I found myself with a fraction of downtime and decided to relax inside Giants Stadium. The organization was nice enough to open part of the upper deck inside the stadium -- concession stands and working bathrooms included -- for those of us lucky enough to find it to have a little rest and relaxation.
A six-dollar chicken fingers basket and three-dollar bottle of water later, I was back in action, hauling myself back to the second stages, where I Am The Avalanche were finishing up their set to a rather large, but rather apathetic crowd (seriously, can't people even bob their heads anymore?). Closer "I Took A Beating" woke some people up, but it was nothing, compared to what happened next on the adjacent stage.
On that adjacent stage? None other than the massively buzzworthy post-screamo trio the Fall Of Troy. While the band have had a rough week or so, none of it seemed to affect their chops, as they broke into their hard-and-heavy set with fervor, and the absolutely massive crowd responding word for word. Pit after pit after pit broke out all throughout the crowd, causing those of us who don't enjoy dancing like morons to crowd closer and closer together to avoid the stupidity. Luckily, the band played my personal favorite jam, "F.C.P.R.E.M.I.X.," second in their set, and I used the ending of that as my cue to exit, stage left.
As I wandered again back into the main stage compound, I heard Method Man off in the distance, delivering a set of Wu-Tang favorites. While it was rumored the whole Clan would be joining Meth for the performance, the only member to turn up was Raekwon for "C.R.E.A.M.". I won't hold it against ODB for not showing up, though.
The highlight of last year's Bamboozle was definitely Say Anything's outdoor performance on Sunday; and slightly over a year later, the band (with a brand new lineup, including Parker Case, formerly of JamisonParker) took the stage to a crowd easily 20 times as big as last year (and that's saying something). The performance, while solid, seemed to be lacking the magic that makes Say Anything so special. It's possible the gigantic outdoor venue stripped away the ambiance; it's also possible that hearing thousands of underage girls sing, "I called her on the phone and she touched herself" just creeped me out a little bit too much. Either way, as much as I love Say Anything, I can only give them a B for this performance, opposed to all the A 's I've doled out in their favor over the past year or so.
The next few hours -- including Panic! At The Disco, Underoath and Senses Fail -- all blurred into one continuous song for me (which is bizarre, considering those three bands have virtually nothing in common musically). Were my ears just getting burnt out? (Well, they were already burnt from the sun, so...) Was I too tired to carry on?
I discovered the answer to that question was a resounding "No, idiot!" as soon as homestate boys Saves The Day took the stage. Opening with "At Your Funeral," the band surprisingly loaded up their set with mostly new songs, including "Don't Know Why" and "Shattered," causing some of the crowd to grumble about the lack of oldies. They got their wish with set closer "Firefly," though; but by that time, I was already booking it back to the second stages to see the end of Every Time I Die's set, as well as the phenomenon known only as Circa Survive.
The band's crowd was absolutely enormous (to the point where you couldn't have walked around it even if you would've wanted to), and they all got to witness frontman Anthony Green in rare form, both vocally and, er, personality-wise. Basically, dude came out in a short leather dress, leopard-print bra, fishnet stockings, and plenty of makeup. It was, er, something, alright. While the PA had issues handling Green's vocal theatrics, the crowd couldn't have cared less and rocked themselves into oblivion with "Oh, Hello."
Normally, I wouldn't miss a note of a Circa set, but this was different -- Lifetime were up next on the main stage, and there was no fucking way I was going to miss them. Making my way through the throngs of Taking Back Sunday fans who dutifully camped out in front of the stage all day, I prepared for some face-melting rock. What I got was a pretty good set from a pretty amazing band crippled by a pretty lame crowd, a pretty big barriciade and a (presumably) pretty tired lead guitarist in Dan Yemin. Regardless, I still had the time of my young life singing along to "Turnpike Gates," "Daneurysm," "Rodeo Clown," "(The Gym Is) Neutral Territory," "Knives Bats New Tats," "Irony Is For Suckers," "Young, Loud And Scotty," "Hey Catrine," "Bringing It Backwards," "Theme Song For A New Brunswick Basement Show" and closing anthem "Ostrichsized." There might've been a few more in there, but my mind's hazy. The point is, they ruled, even with all the hinderances previously listed. Frontman Ari Katz also had the best, most inadvertant zinger of the day, saying, "Do you guys like Taking Back Sunday? Do you like Saves The Day? Well, if it weren't for Taking Back Sunday and Saves The Day, we wouldn't be a band." He probably meant it sincerely, but all of us jaded-types sweating it out in the crowd had a good laugh.
After expending my last bit of energy during Lifetime's set, I sat with my friends in Empire Clothing at their booth. Check 'em out, because they deserve your hard-earned cash (especially since I ate a majority of their trail mix without paying for it).
But to sum it up -- AFI were AFI, and Taking Back Sunday were Taking Back Sunday. Both bands put on stellar shows, both setlist-wise and stage-show-wise, and I didn't hear a single grumble from anyone on the way out unhappy with either's performance (except for the fact that TBS ended 15 minutes early, which was slightly odd).
All in all, it was a hugely successful weekend, and what the '06 Bamboozle lost in atmosphere from moving from Asbury Park, they more than made up for it in overall organizational skill. There were no massive delays (most stages were always on time, if not slightly ahead of schedule), plenty of parking and no stage-capacity issues, so everyone got to see every band they wanted to.
I gotta say, this sounds like it was actually a good time. You saw a number of good bands that I myself would've loved to see. Usually these giant East Coast festival lineupes don't do too much for me. Good review.
![[staff]](/images/icons/staffsticker.gif){kind=icon}
