Images: Punk Rock Bowling Day Three feat. Flogging Molly, Face to Face & more May 30, 2016 at Fremont East

It’s usually pretty obvious which day is the finale of Punk Rock Bowling. Do you see more water in hands than beer? Are there punks sporting flaccid liberty spikes making a mad dash to the airport? How about when there are more than just crusties napping in the crevice between two food trucks? That’s Monday for you.  But that wasn’t to be the case this year, as Flogging Molly, the night’s headliners, took the stage with a promise to send us off dancing and singing drunken lullabies.

The Celtic punk band kicked off their set with “(No More) Paddy’s Lament,” the exuberant second song from 2008’s Float, and the dancing began immediately. Suddenly PRB became a punk rock hoedown, with fans locking arms and slapping knees to the beat. Somewhat on the cute side were the high amount of children perched on parent’s shoulders, turning PRB into a family affair. Those without young ones could be found dancing to “Requiem For A Dying Song”on the beer-slicked pavement or with their phones suspended high in the air, hoping to get a decent video of new song “John L. Sullivan,” a track the band promised would come packaged with a new album released on – when else? – St. Paddy’s Day 2017.

Flogging Molly was one of many returning favorites picked to wrap up the festivities on a fun, final day of PRB 2016. Also returning were California punk rockers Face to Face, whose drunken promise to The Stern brothers while on the Fat tour meant they spent their PRB set time playing their self-titled record all the way through. The fans, many of whom were decked out in either Billabong or Face to Face shirts, might be a bit grayer and a bit heavier than when they first kickflipped to album opener “Resignation” almost 20 years ago (who of us isn’t?) but the band sounded timeless on the big stage. This is despite frontman Trever Keith’s self-deprecating claims to the contrary, who joked “This one sounds so 90s, like the Gin Blossoms or something” before the band played “I Won’t Lie Down.” (note: Late period Replacements fans, check out Gin Blossoms debut Dusted. You won’t be sorry).

Face to Face’s Fat Wreck brothers in arms Strung Out also used their set time to play a 20 year old record in full – Suburban Teenage Wasteland Blues, turning PRB into vintage Warped Tour for a brief moment. It was nice to finally see the perpetual club show headliners make the jump to the mainstage and when I say “jump,” I mean that very much literally. These guys never stay on the floor for more than a few seconds, inspiring their fans to climb up on friends and crowd surf to the front. Dag Nasty, who played in between the two Fat bands, infused the festival with a healthy dose of vintage, DC hardcore. The band looked so stoked to be playing and got their best crowd response when they played tribute to the band members’ other bands, including a cover of “Ghost,” a song by Dag Nasty vocalist Shawn Brown’s band Swiz and “Little Friend,” a song by Dag Nasty guitarist Brian Baker’s band Minor Threat.

By the time Off With Their Heads made their triumphant return to the PRB stage, I had eaten more burgers than Hasselhoff (thanks, Chuck Wagon!). But that didn’t stop me from making my way up front to sing along to “Drive,” “Idiot” and “Focus On Your Own Family,” the latter of which was dedicated to people who stand up for the disenfranchised without being “PC internet babies” about it. Dave Krum Bum regaled a crowd that was predominately bearded and plaid (in spirit) with jokes and a birthday song to Shawn Stern while OWTH tuned. Frontman Ryan Young got in his own yucks, mainly at festival sponsor Fireball (“the world’s greatest resource…for assholes”), though he did relent a little, agreeing that he’d rather have a shot of Fireball in him than a priest before launching into “Altar Boy.” The best part of their set was when Young gave up his guitar to Old Man Markley’s Joey Balls and jumped off the stage to shout “God damnit, I’m falling apart” against the barrier, fans climbing over each other to scream those lyrics into the mic.

The short, fast Midwestern pop punk of Off With Their Heads was in stark contrast to Giuda, who are best described as the punk personification of Bachman Turner Overdrive’s “Taking Care of Business.” The Italian (as in, actually from Italy) band had a very 70s, very classic rock feel with a bit of a punk edge, and they could easily be touring the states with the likes of Sheer Mag.  Also a bit retro in style and from across the pond was singer/songwriter Louise Distras. While lyrically a bit too on-the-nose for my taste, her Billy Bragg-inspired folk punk songs acted both as a rallying cry for the disenfranchised and as the soundtrack to Felony Records taco eating contest, which pitted the day’s two openers against each other at the label’s tent.

But before Sic Waiting’s Dave Bartlett and Rayner’s Many Panda could enter the Taco Eating ring, they had to preemptively burn calories by playing to the punk rock early birds. Sic Waiting recall memories of early String Out, with sunny harmonies and fast riffs. Locals Rayner lean towards the pop side of punk, ala Iron Chic and Bouncing Souls and appeared to be more than a little stoked to be playing chronologically after Descendents, who closed out the night before.

-Emily Matview

Photos by Anthony Constantine | https://www.facebook.com/anthonycphotography

Next: Don’t go anywhere! PRB may be done, but we have plenty more show coverage to come.