Yesterday, the Vans Warped Tour made its annual stop out at Darien Center, NY, which is 30-45 minutes outside of Buffalo. So of course, my friends Ian, Rachel, Chelsea, and I make the trip and see the show like last year. This was the second time I had ever gone to Warped Tour and, as expressed from a former article I wrote, I was pretty excited and had high expectations.
Warped Tour has a charity that goes along with it called Feed Our Children Now. By donating three canned goods or $5, you got cut passes and got to enter the venue early. This was a definite plus because even though we got there at 9:30, the line was massive.
We get in at 10:30 and then rush to find out the set times. The first band on the main stage just happened to be my favorite on the tour, August Burns Red. So Ian and I ran as fast as we could and got a spot FRONT ROW!
Nice view huh?
The guys then came on to the most awesome entrance EVER! It was a techno piece that got everyone excited. They played all of my favorite songs from “Composure” to “Meddler” to “Poor Millionaire”and ending with “Back Burner.” It was 35 minutes of some of the most awesome music I have heard live in a long time. JB Brubaker hit all of his notes to perfection and Matt Greiner was a beast on the drums like he always is. They were my favorite band of all time going in to the show and they still are today.
After that, we went down to the main pavilion which was cut in half to hold two of the stages to meet up with Rachel and Chelsea. The Dangerous Summer was playing at that time. Since we got there late and the others had left early, we weren’t able to hear much of it. What we did hear was far from bad but it was not much memorable.
At 1:30, Jake Luhrs, the lead singer from August Burns Red, was signing autographs at the booth of his record label, Solid State/Tooth and Nail Records.For those who do not know, Jake is a huge role model to me. When he has the chance to, he gives spiritual talks and writes very powerful articles about living life as a Christian. He is a great person to look up to as a fellow Christian myself. He not only signed my poster, he took a minute to say a prayer for my Grandma (who is in a nursing home right now so please keep her in your prayers). Just that little act of kindness meant the world to me and reinforced the reason why I love this band.
Jake Luhrs and I. You want a role model? Here is your guy.
When that was done, I reunited with the group at the main stage again where we saw Attack Attack!. They were a band I missed last year at Warped Tour unfortunately so I was grateful I was not going to miss them again. Losing their guitarist/backup vocalist just before the tour began, they played very well. I thought they sounded better than they do on their albums. Another good decision to catch them.
At 3:00, I had the chance to meet A Day to Remember at the AP tent which was AMAZING! It was just by the main stage so I could hear D.R.U.G.S. perform. This is Craig Owens’ new band and they kicked butt. The only problem I found, though, was that despite the fact that Owens was right on pitch vocally, he did not do enough singing. He let the fans sing too much which took away from the performance a little bit. Nevertheless, it was still good.
No one else was on immediately after so I met back up with the gang and we went to the different merch booths. As we were observing what was going on, Moving Mountains was playing in the background. Now I know nothing on those guys but it was definitely not bad to listen to. Hey, it was much better than I Set My Friends on Fire, who played after them.
The next band we saw at 5:00 was 3OH!3, on the main stage. I was suppossed to see them earlier in the school year at SUNY Geneseo with Ke$Ha but I could not make it down there in time. I originally got the tickets as a joke but they KILLED it. It was great music to bang your head to and, at the same time, easy to sing along to. One of my favorite performances from the day easily.
After them, we made our way back to the pavilion to see Simple Plan. While I do not listen to these guys all of the time, they are absolutely a fun listen. Everything, from their new stuff from their older songs like “Shut Up” and “Welcome to My Life,” was spot-on. Them ending with “I’d Do Anything” just put the icing on the cake.
Up next, we went to the Advent Stage to see one of Rachel’s favorites, Black Veil Brides. Now let me say one thing, I am not a huge fan of these guys AT ALL. Honestly, they were far from bad. I was actually singing along at certain points. It sounded exactly like their albums (except singer Andy had 3 broken ribs so he did not do as much as he could). As good as it was, though, it could not touch any of the big ones from earlier.
Ian and I stayed at the stage to hear Set Your Goals next. Again, they were a band I missed last year as well. I was in the mosh pit the longest for these guys. It was a brutal one as there were circle pits galore for the pop-punk geniuses. For their heaviest song and my favorite “Gaia Bleeds,” the crowd and the pit were especially nuts. It was, again, a great show by a great band.
But that was not all. To cap the night off, A DAY TO REMEMBER took to the main stage. (The Word Alive was on the Advent stage at 8 and I wanted to see them BUT it is ADTR so… yeah.) Starting off with “I’m Made of Wax Larry…” Mike from The Devil Wears Prada came out to help with vocals. It felt like 90% of the people who came to Warped Tour were all packed around the stage. “Heartless” had the biggest “wall of death” I had ever partaken in. After they ended with “The Downfall of Us All,” the crowd was nuts in applause. It was the perfect way to end the night.
In the end, if you are interested in seeing the Warped Tour and it is around your city, GO! It was the best concert of the year and I had the time of my life! A perfect rating from me.
If you have any Warped Tour stories you want to share, feel free to comment. Thanks for stopping by!! 
(Thanks to Youtube user “irishdrunk211″ for the videos)
