Just a Smile for your Scrapbook

I have decided to comprise a detailed list of some of my favourite "underground" bands that many of you may have never heard of before. I love to share my music with all of my friends so here you go!

Name: Rides Again
Location: Oshawa, ON
Fave Song: "Let Down"
Sounds Like: Three Days Grace meets Switchfoot
Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/ridesagain

Name: There For Tomorrow
Location: Orlando, FL
Fave Song: "Pages" (side note: their cover of Omarion's "Ice Box" is SICK!)
Sounds Like: Valencia meets Silverstein
Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/therefortomorrow

Name: UhOh! Explosion
Location: Orange County, CA
Fave Song: "Jenna Jameson"
Sounds Like: Old The Pink Spiders
Myspace:  http://www.myspace.com/uhohexplosion

Name: Teeter
Location: Toronto, ON
Fave Song: "Kiss Me and Kill Me After"
Sounds Like: Old All Time Low meets New Found Glory
Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/teeter

Name: Mercy Mercedes
Location: Greensboro, NC
Fave Song: "The Perfect Scene"
Sounds Like: Farewell meets All Time Low
Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/mercymercedes

Name: Settings
Location: Buffalo, NY
Fave Song: "Creatures"
Sounds Like: Scaring Kids Scaring Kids meets Forever The Sickest Kids
Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/settingsband

Name: A Kidnap in Color
Location: Chicago, IL
Fave Song: "The Rumours Are Flying"
Sounds Like: The Audition meets All Time Low
Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/akidnapincolor 

Name: Go:Audio
Location: London, UK
Fave Song: "Made Up Stories"
Sounds Like: You Me At Six meets Old Cartel
Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/goaudioband

Name: The Friday Night Boys
Location: Fairfax, VA
Fave Song: "High School (Acoustic)"
Sounds Like: Forever The Sickest Kids meets Holiday Parade
Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/thefridaynightboys

What are some of your favourite "underground" bands? Share your faves in the comments of this blog!

Taken from my MySpace blog.

Lately I've been getting a lot of "omg ur so lucky, how do you get to meet all these people?!" questions in regards to meeting people from bands. I figured I'd share some tips on how to make your show experience better and give you the chance to meet some awesome people! :DRead How!

Taken from my Myspace Blog.

I figure I might as well add a guide to Warped Tour seeing as Warped is in a whole league of it’s own and there’s a lot of stuff that you should know!

GENERAL INFORMATION

1) Stages:
On Warped Tour there are usually around 9 various stages throughout the park. There are 2 main stages with several smaller stages and a couple battle of the bands stages. The names and number of stages changes every year depending on sponsors and size of the tour. When you get inside the park, get yourself familiar with where all the stages are.

2) Set Times:
Set times change every day for all the bands and are chosen the day of the show. There is no way of knowing when your band will be playing until you get into the park so I suggest showing up early and staying the whole day. To find out when bands are playing, look for a giant inflatable sign that will list of all the stages and the times that each band is playing.

On the large inflatable sign, there will be one band that will be circled in orange. This means this band has won the chance to play a 10 mins longer set. Sets are always 30 mins long unless they have the orange border, then they are 40 mins.

3) Bands:
The band lineup changes every year, getting bigger and bigger. There are usually several "headlining" acts who play the main stages while the other bands play the various other stages. Also bands are added/drop off the tour at various points througout the tour. Just because a band may say they are on the tour does not mean that they will necessarily be playing your date. Keep checking the band list on the Warped Tour website (http://www.warpedtour.com/warpedtour/bands.asp) to be up to date on what bands are playing when.

Note to Canadians: a lot of bands drop off before entering Canada or get stuck at the border. Don’t be too crushed if one of the smaller bands you wanted to see doesn’t show up the day or your show. Most of the time the problem has to do with VISAs and is completely out of the band’s hands. Most larger bands get across, it’s the smaller ones that tend to have more problems.

The main point of Warped Tour is to experience not only your favouite bands but to get introduced to newer bands as well. This means don’t spend your whole day just at the main stages! Go out and explore! You never know where you may find your next favourite band!

3) Merch and Merch Dudes
Each band gets it’s own merch tent on the tour. The mass number of tents can usually be like a maze and it can be hard to find specific bands’ tents right away. Merch can range anywhere from $10 for a t-shirt to $35 for a t-shirt. The bigger the band, the more you’re going to pay. Merch tents are also the best place to find out if any bands are doing signings or acoustic sets. Usually they’ll post signs saying when and where any signings or acoustic sets will take place.

Bands aren’t the only ones to be selling merch! There are also various clothing companies and organizations supporting various charities on the tour.

Always tip the merch dude! Even if it’s only 25 cents, it’s still worth it! Like I’ve said before you never know what free stuff you’ll get out of it and most likely you’ll get a hug or a high five. If you don’t have enough money to tip all the merch dudes you buy from make it into a contest! Who ever has the best tip-me sign gets the tip. Trust me, some of the signs are HILARIOUS! Also don’t constantly bug the merch dudes asking where the band is. Most likely they’ll have no clue as the parks are huge and a lot of stuff is going on all at once.

After sets a lot of bands like to hang around their merch tents so you just might be lucky to run into a few people here and there.

If you’re going to buy merch, be sure to bring plenty of money with you. The parks will prob. have ATMs but the lines for them will be insanely long! You don’t want to end up missing a band’s set due to the fact you were waiting to get money for half an hour.

NOTE: Most merch tents start getting torn down around 6-7pm so don’t wait until the very last minute to buy stuff. Also they can sell out of stuff at dates so if you really have to get something, don’t hesitate!

4) Arriving at Warped Tour:
Arrive early! If you arrive right when the gates open you will most likely not get inside the park for another hour and a half. I am not even joking. I got stuck in traffic this year and arrived right when gates opened at 11am and didn’t get inside until 12:35! Bands usually start playing 30 mins to an hour after gates open so you want to make sure you get in in time. Usually getting in line 2 hours early is good enough.

A lot of smaller bands will be walking the lines telling you when they’re playing and where. Also a lot of them will ask you to listen to their CD. If someone asks you to listen, be nice and give them a listen! You don’t have to necessarily buy the CD (although you will be helping a struggling band out) but at least tell them what you think of their music after you’ve listened. Plus some bands will give you major discounts if you buy their CD right then from them!

HOW TO SURVIVE

1) Bring a bottle of water with you if your park allows and if not, buy water when inside the park. Yes it will be expensive (usually around $4) but you will need it! Make sure you drinks LOTS during the day because it will be hot and you will get dehydrated! I have seen many people pass out from dehydration and I’m pretty sure it isn’t that much fun.

2) WEAR SUNSCREEN OR YOU WILL BURN AND DIE!
I am being completely serious. SPF 50 or high quality sunscreen is best. Don’t cheap out on sunscreen because you WILL regret it and you WILL be in pain and I WILL laugh at you for looking like a lobster!

3) Eat. Eating is important. Your body needs food to function and if you don’t eat you will die. Food at the park will most likely be really expensive but you don’t want to pass out from lack of nutrition. If your park allows, pack yourself a paper bag lunch to eat during the day.

4) Wear clothes you don’t really care about and tight shoes that don’t come off easily. It’s going to be sweaty, dusty, dirty and possibly bloody in the crowd not to mention packed. You don’t want to ruin your favourite clothes and you don’t want to lose a shoe in a crowd because you will most likely never find it again. DO NOT WEAR SANDALS for obvious reasons as well as the fact that you could contract scabies (bugs that burrow under your skin aka crabs but not in that "area") from wearing sandals or being barefoot at Warped. I am telling the truth. If you don’t believe me, ask Luther of Crush Luther and he’ll confirm it. Also don’t wear any jewerly because necklaces and rings could end up getting ripped off/caught on things or people and many injuries could occur.

Girls: Don’t wear shirts with huge amounts of cleavage or skirts. That’s like putting up a neon sign that says SEXUALLY HARASS ME! Well, unless you like being groped by slightly drunks dudes in mosh pits.

5) Rest when you aren’t doing anything. Find a shady spot and relax between you favourite bands’ sets. It’ll allow you to have energy later in the day.

6) Don’t go into mosh pits if you don’t want to be pushed around or hit.

7) Bring a bandana to your show. No, it’s not so that you can look "scene" or "hardcore" it’s so that you don’t suffocate on dust. Some of the parks Warped Tour take place in are extremely sandy and once you get a couple thousand people running around the dust really starts to fly. If you wet your bandana a bit and keep your mouth and nose covered your throat and lungs will be thankful. If you choose not to wear a bandana be prepared to be sneezing or coughing up black stuff for the next few days. It’s not pleasant.

8) Avoid bringing in anything you don’t 100% need. The more you bring the more you have to get lost or stolen. I’ve seen many bags get ripped open in mosh pits and you will never get the contents back. If you have to bring a backpack I suggest those mini-backpacks, you know they were cool back in like the early 90’s? I’ve been using mine every year and it’s never let me down.

MEETING BANDS AT WARPED

See my guide on How To Meet Bands.

HAVE FUN AND SEE YOU AT WARPED NEXT YEAR!

2007 is coming to an end. Most albums have been released and only re-relases are left before Chirstmas. Most tours have come to an end leaving only a vast amount of Christmas shows to be held. It's time to sum up everything in 2 lists: Top 10 Albums and Top 10 Shows of 2007.

Top 10 Albums:
10) Fall Out Boy - Infinity On High
9) The Rocket Summer - Do You Feel
8) The Used - Lies For The Liars
7) New Found Glory - From The Screen To Your Stereo Part II
6) Four Year Strong - Rise or Die Trying
5) Farewell - Isn't This Supposed To Be Fun?
4) Armor For Sleep - Smile For Them
3) Cobra Starship - iViva la Cobra!
2) All Time Low - So Wrong It's Right
1) We The Kings - We The Kings

Top 10 Shows:
10) The Black Parade Tour - My Chemical Romance, The Bled
May 12 - The John Labatt Centre - London, Ontario

9) Marianas Trench, Faber Drive
April 14 - The MOD Club - Toronto, Ontario

8) The Epitaph Tour 2007 - The Matches, I Am Ghost, The Higher, Vanna
February 25 - El Mocambo - Toronto, Ontario

7) Canadian Music Week DriveThru Showcase - Hellogoodbye
March 10 - The Reverb - Toronto, Ontario

6) Motion City Soundtrack, Sherwood, The Higher, The Forecast
August 7 - The Opera House - Toronto, Ontario

5) Cartel, Cobra Starship, Boys Like Girls, New Atlantic
March 14 - The Phoenix - Toronto, Ontario

4) Projekt Revolution 2007 - Linkin Park, My Chemical Romance, Taking Back Sunday, Placebo, Julien K, Mindless Self Indulgence, Saosin, The Bled, Styles of Beyond, Madina Lake
August 21 - The Molson Amphitheatre - Toronto, Ontario

3) Honda Civic Tour - Fall Out Boy, +44, The Academy Is..., Paul Wall, Cobra Starship
May 31 - The Tweeter Center - Mansfield, Massachusetts

2) Tourzilla - Boys Like Girls, All Time Low, TheAUDITION, Valencia
November 28 - The Opera House - Toronto, Ontario (end of tour show)

1) Warped Tour 2007
August 11 - Park Place - Barrie, Ontario (aka the dustiest show ever known to man)