I spent yesterday with my teanaged daughter serving as bodyguard/chaperone to her and two of her friends at the Vans Warped tour. Quite a feat really, but she was thrilled when she saw that it was coming and that some of her favorite bands woud be so close to home. She saved up and even paid for gas to get there. The overall lineup was what you might expect...that is; full of bands I never heard of. Save one. I was amazed when I read the concert lineup and saw that the Vandals were scheduled to play. That's right. The Hungtington Beach, California; formed in 1980; second band signed to Epitaph records Vandals. A genuine Punk band.
I know....it's not exactly 1980 and punk doesn't mean now what it did then, and there have been some band member changes...but still! I was there for my daughter and her friends, but I was determined to see these dudes play. They did not disappoint. Two minute blasts of classic sonic retreads...and even my daughter loved them (although her lame friends were busy wandering aimlessly...more on that later). They were clearly dudes in mid-life but they brought the noise. They played a healthy bunch of their own classics and even threw in a Ramones cover (Sheena is a Punk Rocker) and closed with a showy Queen tune (Don't Stop Me Now).
My daughter had a couple of bands on her mind (The Academy Is...Cobra Starship). I was impressed with her taste. Of all the bands on this crazylong bill. These were clearly the best of the rest and duly reinforced my pride in my little girls rocker cred. What was interesting was learning how the other girls that came with us were not really quite her "homies". As the day went on I became more and more aware of this and prouder and prouder of her. It is a bit of a shame really to go to a show like this and see the state of American "girlhood" - at least for some. It looks like quite a minefield out there and these two tagalongs have definitely stepped in something. It was very satisfying to watch my girl outclass these little lost girls without even meaning to - but a little sad too.
In any case...it was an adventure and an experience. Another interesting phenomenon was a band that the tagalong girls were totally hyped to see. They are called 3oh!3 and they seem to be essentially two white guys from Colorado rapping their best "street cred" rhymes about nothing in particular over some trendy "housified" beats. They were on one of the smaller stages but they were met by one of the clearly most enthusiastic receptions of all the performers. The whole crowd seemed to know a little hand symbol for the "band" and welcomed them warmly. I did not know what to make of any of this since their music sounded to me essentially like a hair product commercial with the word ass thrown in for good measure. It was truly mystifying and reinforced my disappointment at our tagalong kiddies. I guess the moral of that part of the story is:
"You can never underestimate the taste of the American Youth Market"
or maybe it's: "Rock and Roll is really REALLY Dead"
oe maybe it's: "It's a white horny, desperate to be hip, teenage thing, you wouldn't understand."
or maybe it's: "If it's too loud, you're too old".
But really...who gives a fuck? There was some good music and some shitty music and my little girl has genuine rocker understanding and a very firm grasp of what it means to be a young woman who respects herself for herself. Punk rock or not...shit like that makes a daddy proud!
PS...Right after the Vandals a grizzled looking band took the stage called GBH (I had never heard of them). When they came on loud and fast they caught my attention. They looked like thirty year veterans - grey hair and spiked leather. I was totally ignorant of them - but they are even older than the Vandals - hailing from England and formed in 1978. They rocked and another discovery was the Aggrolites - not quite as old (formed in 2002) but they seem to understand real ska-punk and thumped out a nice groove.
I know....it's not exactly 1980 and punk doesn't mean now what it did then, and there have been some band member changes...but still! I was there for my daughter and her friends, but I was determined to see these dudes play. They did not disappoint. Two minute blasts of classic sonic retreads...and even my daughter loved them (although her lame friends were busy wandering aimlessly...more on that later). They were clearly dudes in mid-life but they brought the noise. They played a healthy bunch of their own classics and even threw in a Ramones cover (Sheena is a Punk Rocker) and closed with a showy Queen tune (Don't Stop Me Now).
My daughter had a couple of bands on her mind (The Academy Is...Cobra Starship). I was impressed with her taste. Of all the bands on this crazylong bill. These were clearly the best of the rest and duly reinforced my pride in my little girls rocker cred. What was interesting was learning how the other girls that came with us were not really quite her "homies". As the day went on I became more and more aware of this and prouder and prouder of her. It is a bit of a shame really to go to a show like this and see the state of American "girlhood" - at least for some. It looks like quite a minefield out there and these two tagalongs have definitely stepped in something. It was very satisfying to watch my girl outclass these little lost girls without even meaning to - but a little sad too.
In any case...it was an adventure and an experience. Another interesting phenomenon was a band that the tagalong girls were totally hyped to see. They are called 3oh!3 and they seem to be essentially two white guys from Colorado rapping their best "street cred" rhymes about nothing in particular over some trendy "housified" beats. They were on one of the smaller stages but they were met by one of the clearly most enthusiastic receptions of all the performers. The whole crowd seemed to know a little hand symbol for the "band" and welcomed them warmly. I did not know what to make of any of this since their music sounded to me essentially like a hair product commercial with the word ass thrown in for good measure. It was truly mystifying and reinforced my disappointment at our tagalong kiddies. I guess the moral of that part of the story is:
"You can never underestimate the taste of the American Youth Market"
or maybe it's: "Rock and Roll is really REALLY Dead"
oe maybe it's: "It's a white horny, desperate to be hip, teenage thing, you wouldn't understand."
or maybe it's: "If it's too loud, you're too old".
But really...who gives a fuck? There was some good music and some shitty music and my little girl has genuine rocker understanding and a very firm grasp of what it means to be a young woman who respects herself for herself. Punk rock or not...shit like that makes a daddy proud!
PS...Right after the Vandals a grizzled looking band took the stage called GBH (I had never heard of them). When they came on loud and fast they caught my attention. They looked like thirty year veterans - grey hair and spiked leather. I was totally ignorant of them - but they are even older than the Vandals - hailing from England and formed in 1978. They rocked and another discovery was the Aggrolites - not quite as old (formed in 2002) but they seem to understand real ska-punk and thumped out a nice groove.
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