Digital Diversion

If Sunday started a little slow, then Monday’s festival took a few bands to even get out of the gate.  It’s a shame too, because San Francisco’s Stagger and Fall opened the day with a killer set that very few got to enjoy.

Compared to the other days, Day 3 definitely had a tenser vibe which no doubt was at least partially brought on by an increased police presence. Not that anything bad had transpired so far during the weekend but I imagine that the reputations of some of the bands may have brought them out. And if you know your punk rock history, you’d know that things always seemed to go okay until the cops show up. Fortunately, while things always felt a little on edge, there were no incidents.

With a Tuesday morning flight head of me, what better way to close out a long weekend than with Punk Rock Karaoke. Steve Soto (Adolescents) on bass, Stan Lee (Dickies)and Eric Melvin (NOFX) on guitar and Derek O’Brien (lots of bands that you’ve heard of) on drums made for the perfect backing band for drunken revelers. Lucky for those in attendance, the song list was full by the time I got there but it was nevertheless pretty cool to see the band joined by Sean Stern (Youth Brigade), Karl Alvarez (Descendents, ALL) and Dick Lucas (Citizen Fish, UK Subs) belting out some punk classics. Normally I would spare you from the pictures but this set is worth checking out.

I’m already looking forward to next year.

• Stagger And Fall
• Reducers
• Citizen Fish
• Manic Hispanic
• The Dwarves
• Leftover Crack
• Agnostic Front
• Cock Sparrer
• Punk Rock Karaoke

Be sure to check out highlights from Day 1 and Day 2.
© 2011 Alan Snodgrass | www.digitaldiversion.net. Please do not use without express permission (contact). If you like what you see, leave a comment below and subscribe so you can be notified of new posts. You can also become a fan on Facebook for access to exclusive photos.

After an epic Saturday night, Day 2 of Punk Rock Bowling kicked off a little slower than the first. Maybe the excitement had worn off a little. Maybe the hangovers were still being nursed. But if you missed out on Larry And His Flask, you missed out on the biggest surprise of the day. Take a bunch of guys equipped like a folk band and let them loose and you get what was without a doubt one of the most energetic sets of the weekend. I’ve never seen a guy rock a stand-up bass like that in my life and am looking forward to catching them again at Warped.

Sure, there were some other cool bands on the line-up but I was singularly focused on one band and one band alone. And while Me First and the Gimme Gimmes certainly primed the capacity crowd with their punked-up covers and powder blue tuxes, there was a singular reason that Sunday nights show sold out first. It was the same reason that a who’s who of punk rockdom filled the edges of the stage as guests … the Descendents. I’ve waited many years to see these guys live and Milo, Stephan, Karl and Bill did not disappoint. They played so tightly that it’s hard to imagine that they’ve only played a smattering of shows over the last decade. Truly an incredible night worth waiting for all these years.

Photos:

• Johnny Madcap & the Distractions
• Larry And His Flask
• American Steel
• Black Pacific
• Undertones
• Bouncing Souls
• Me First and the Gimme Gimmes
• Descendents

Be sure to check out highlights from Day 1 and Day 3.
© 2011 Alan Snodgrass | www.digitaldiversion.net. Please do not use without express permission (contact). If you like what you see, leave a comment below and subscribe so you can be notified of new posts. You can also become a fan on Facebook for access to exclusive photos.

What better way to spend a long Memorial Day weekend than in the seedier parts of Las Vegas with some of the best punk rock bands on the planet. Sure, it’s billed as “Punk Rock Bowling,” but the bowling is only a small part of the goings on. Three days of the music festival plus another thirteen club shows over the course of the weekend and there was plenty to do without setting foot onto a bowling lane.

The festival kicked off on a hot, windy afternoon … the line of patrons waiting to get in huddled in the shade around the corner from the entrance. Dirty Filthy Mugs and The Grim got the crowd primed for the day and by the time Austin-based Krum Bums hit the stage, things went bananas in large part due to their front man’s antics and who managed to soak me with beer no fewer than three times in the course of their first three songs. Exactly what I needed … something for the desert grit to stick to as it blew uninterrupted down 6th Street before hitting the Punk Rock Bowling festival stage.

Photos:

• Dirty Filthy Mugs
• The Grim
• Off With Their Heads
• Krum Bums

Filthy Thieving Bastards (members of Swingin’ Utters) and Aggrolites (dirty reggae) brought a bit of sophistication back as the sun set on the desert and before Stiff Little Fingers blew the crowd away. Don’t get me wrong, Dropkick Murphys are a force and seeing a stage packed with women belting out Kiss Me is something to behold, but SLF absolutely stunned. Here’s a band that’s been around since the dawn of punk, still delivering a blistering performance more than three decades later.  Certainly the biggest surprise of the day.

Photos:

• Filthy Thieving Bastards
• Aggrolites
• Stiff Little Fingers
• Dropkick Murphys

The festival wrapped up at 11 pm … 8 bands and a long day in the sun behind me. Time to pack it in? Oh, hell no. Four tempting club shows ahead but there was no debate which one I’d be at … ALL reuniting with all three singers playing with Dave Smalley’s Down By Law and Karl Alvarez’s Endless Monster. A truly awesome way to end the day that was certainly more meaningful for those in attendance than any single band they may have seen earlier in the day.

Photos:

• Endless Monster
• Down By Law
• ALL

Be sure to check out highlights from Day 2 and Day 3.

© 2011 Alan Snodgrass | www.digitaldiversion.net. Please do not use without express permission (contact). If you like what you see, leave a comment below and subscribe so you can be notified of new posts. You can also become a fan on Facebook for access to exclusive photos.

© 2011 Alan Snodgrass | www.digitaldiversion.net. Please do not use without express permission (contact). If you like what you see, leave a comment below and subscribe so you can be notified of new posts. You can also become a fan on Facebook for access to exclusive photos.

© 2011 Alan Snodgrass | www.digitaldiversion.net. Please do not use without express permission (contact). If you like what you see, leave a comment below and subscribe so you can be notified of new posts. You can also become a fan on Facebook for access to exclusive photos.