Images: Pennywise, GBH, Hot Water Music, 7 Seconds, Youth of Today, Dead Ending, Toys that Kill, Union Hearts, The Bots
It was time for Punk Rock Bowling 14 to come to a close, but not without the best day show of the festival. Hot Water Music, 7 Seconds, Youth of Today and Toys that Kill all on the same bill? It’s pretty much a dream lineup for me.
But first I need to talk about the headliners of the night, another band I remember fondly from my early teen years of blasting the latest Punk-O-Rama comp while attempting to skate – Pennywise! This was not only my first time seeing the band in about ten years, it was my first time seeing them with new vocalist Zoli Téglás (who many know as the lead singer of Ignite). And you what? The band sounded just as good with Téglás as they did with Jim Lindberg, maybe better since they seemed to have found a resurgence in energy, likely brought about by the need to reassert themselves as skatepunk kings after a drastic change in the lineup. I had wrote off the band some time ago but their performance here was enough to bring me back into the PW fold.
Youth of Today and 7 Seconds famously taught the Hold Steady frontman “some of life’s most valuable lessons” and did the same to those of us who got there early to see the two hardcore legends play back to back. 7 Seconds vocalist Kevin Seconds was invited on stage to perform the final song of Youth of Today’s set, but even with “weeks of rehearsing” (according to YOT frontman Ray Cappo) Seconds took the wrong time for a bathroom break and the band had to stall before launching into a cover of 7 Seconds’ “Young ’til I Die.” 7 Seconds would later play the same set with the same song, whipping the crowd into a frenzy before ending with their cover of “99 Red Balloons.”
My highlight of the day festival should come as no surprise to anyone who follows this site regularly – Hot Water Music! We are spoiled in Vegas by Hot Water Music’s Chuck Ragan, who makes frequent stops in our town every year to perform his solo material, but it’s been since 2010 and Punk Rock Bowling 12 that he’s brought Jason Black, Chris Wollard and George Rebelo along with him. There seemed to be a decent portion of the crowd there solely to sing along with the Gainesville punks and we were not disappointed. They kicked things off with Caution opener “Remedy” and never let up after that, mixing tracks from their latest record Exister with classics like “Trusty Chords” and “Wayfarer” (which is even better with a few hundred fans throwing their arms in the air or linking up with the closest nearby fan to shout the epic “whoa-ohs” along with the band). Alkaline Trio frontman Matt Skiba, decked out in a Dan Andriano in the Emergency Room tee, teetered at the edge of the stage for his friends’ whole set, with many that spotted him expecting a cameo during Alkaline Trio-covered track “Rooftops,” but unfortunately that never happened. The band ended with “Turnstyle” and left the audience wanting more (which we’ll get October 1st when they come to The Joint with Gaslight Anthem and Rise Against).
-Emily Matview
Photos by Emily Matview | https://www.flickr.com/photos/holdfastnow/
and Tyler Newton | http://500px.com/spottedlens
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