Images: ThreadzFest feat. Crown The Empire, Palisades and more April 4th 2015 in Pahrump

Vegas is supposed to be the entertainment capital of the world, and while that doesn’t always translate to the kind of music I listen to (there aren’t many Donny and Marie fans on PIV) I certainly never expected to travel out to Pahrump for a gig, even if their city motto is “Your Base Camp to Adventure.” But then along came Threadzfest, a Pahrump-based music festival that made its return this year to help fill the void left by no Warped Tour and no Extreme Thing. And with performances by bands including Crown the Empire, Palisades, and Survive This! – I knew I couldn’t miss it.

Threadzfest vets and Pahrump natives Survive This! were the first signed act of the night, coming out to a crowd already sufficiently warmed up by locals Before Giants, I Am Of Terra, From Where We Came and Leave This World Blind. I’d heard mixed reviews of the band, but honestly never took the time to check them out and form an opinion for myself. I went in with an open mind and can say by the end of the set, they gained a new fan.

Vocalist Shawn Zyvoloski and bass player Mike Sahm kept the crowd entertained as they jumped around the small stage, and kids packed in towards the front to get as close to the action as possible. By the third song, “The Seed,” Zyvoloski found his way into the crowd, sticking his mic out and encouraging everyone to sing along. Clean vocalist Daniel Ingram sounded just as good as he does on the records, and high points of the set came when the band played their popular single “Where I Belong” and “The Life You’ve Chosen.” The six-song set was finished off with “Sail Away” from Epitaph debut The Life You’ve Chosen.

Next up was Palisades, a band I’ve been a fan of since 2009, before they were signed to Rise and before they were even called Palisades. It’s crazy that it has taken me nearly 6 years to finally see these guys perform live and they sure didn’t disappoint. Their earlier material was more in line with the now-typical post-hardcore sound, but since signing with Rise Records, the New Jersey outfit has slowly transformed themselves into more of what I would call an “electronicore” band. Their set had lots of energy, with the band’s DJ, Earl Halasan, getting the crowd pumped as he played samples over the sound system which led into “Player Hater’s Ball” from the band’s Mind Games LP to start the set.

Palisades setlist consisted mostly of their newer synth and EDM beat-driven material from Mind Games, but it was great to hear older material peppered in like “The Reckoning” from 2008’s Outcasts. Towards the end of the set, bass player Brandon Sydney gave up bass duties to join frontman Lou Miceli on vocal duties for the Mind Games’ title track, a song that also featured prominent use of on-stage sparklers. The entire crowd was on their feet jumping up and down to the synth beats, and Palisades ended their high energy set with another old hit, “High and Low.” I absolutely can not wait for the guys to come back to – or near – Vegas soon.

I was able to catch Threadzfest headliners Crown the Empire during last year’s Vans Warped Tour but had to leave after only 2 songs. This time around, they got my full undivided attention. Like Palisades, the young band is also part of Rise Records’ roster and has exploded in popularity since signing in 2012. Concertgoers behind me burst into cheers as drummer Brent Taddie emerged from side stage motioning to the crowd to get louder. The rest of the band followed quickly behind him as they kicked off their one-hour set with “Initiation.” Dual vocalists Andy Leo and Dave Escamilla bring a great dynamic to the band with Andy covering most of the cleans and Dave taking over unclean vocal duty.

The band powered through “Machines” and “MNSTR” from their sophomore full length The Resistance: Rise of the Runaways. All of the band except for Andy briefly exited the stage for the beginning of “Satellites” where Andy truly showed off his voice, and the fans showed off their best “cell phone, lighter, sway back and forth” prowess. Then without missing a beat, Crown the Empire went right into title track hit “Rise of the Runaways.” We were also treated to the Johnny Trilogy, which is a 3-song medley based around a character by the name of Johnny Ringo. The band then led into “Makeshift Chemistry” with guest vocals by Lou Miceli (Palisades), which was a treat. I was happy to hear oldest hit “Voices,” from 2011’s Limitless EP, and it was cool seeing Leo lead the crowd in an acapella intro until the rest of the band came into the verse. The night ended with the band’s latest single “Bloodline” which left smiles dispersed throughout the crowd and on all of the band members faces.

I hope this is a start to a new chapter for Threadzfest that will continue every year, or at least until Vegas has a stop on the Vans Warped Tour again, or an Extreme Thing of our own.

-Tylor Thuirer | https://www.flickr.com/photos/thuirermedia/