Photo by Ian Witlen

Hey Monday's Cassadee Pope performs at Vans Warped Tour 2010 at Cruzan Amphitheatre, West Palm Beach

​Vans Warped Tour
With Pennywise, Sum41, Reel Big Fish, Alkaline Trio, Andrew W.K., We the Kings, VersaEmerge, Mayday Parade, Hey Monday, and many more.
Cruzan Amphitheatre, Pompano Beach
Saturday, July 24, 2010

View part one of our slideshow here.

Better than: Going to Warped Tour as a 15-year-old.

The review: Though there's definitely something to be said for attending your first music festival as a naive teen with your arms and stomach covered in "free hugs" marker scribbles expecting to hear "real punk music," one can be or act like a teen for only so long. I thought my years going to Warped Tour were long gone after I graduated college -- after all, I was too old to mingle with the masses, and I wasn't one for sporting green hair or a mile-high Mohawk. Boy, was I wrong.

Warped Tour 2010 decided to mix up the schedule, spreading out well-known bands and newbies throughout the day, making me miss highly anticipated shows like the Dillinger Escape Plan, the Pretty Reckless, and Breathe Carolina and making me run to catch Andrew W.K. and just miss Hey Monday once I finally figured out where each stage was, thanks to the handy $2 stage map I purchased.


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​Thus far we've informed you on what some of your favorite bands think about Warped Tour, but with Tropical Storm Bonnie projected to hit South Florida this weekend, we're thinking you might want to be extra prepared for the show today.

You're lucky we're overpackers. We've come up with a comprehensive list of every possible thing we think you might need to enjoy the festival -- and to avoid walking around drenched. There may be too much stuff we think you should bring, but hey, better safe than sorry, right?

Oh, and just for being a good sport and battling the rain tomorrow, we're giving you a free Warped Tour Digital Sampler with 10 free songs to jam out to while you're headed over there. You're welcome.
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Our Countdown to Warped Tour continues with another veteran band that's been around for 20+ years, punk rockers Pennywise. They formed back in 1988 and helped cause a resurgence of the punk scene in California along with Bad Religion and NOFX, and have continued to do what they do best -- stay true to their sound while remaining individuals.

They still know how to party, too, and New Times caught up with lead guitarist Fletcher Dragge to talk Jim Lindberg's departure, their new singer Zoli, and the current state of the punk rock scene.

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​One of the biggest bands headlining this year's Warped Tour are ska masters Reel Big Fish. They're known for their love of cover songs and their '97 hit single "Sell Out," but they couldn't be further from that song title.

They stick to their genre and just want to make "happy music" that people can dance to -- and they don't need to be meaningful. New Times caught up with Reel Big Fish frontman Aaron Barrett, to talk the ska movement, guilty pleasures, and... his urge to perform naked?

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​Our Countdown to Warped Tour in South Florida continues, with power-pop five-piece the Summer Set. They covered Usher's "Love in This Club" with more energy than probably Usher himself while sticking to their guns and keeping their rock edge intact, making the hip-hop hit less about picking up girls and more about wooing them with sweet, smooth vocals.

The Arizona natives write such cutesy lyrics that even Disney princess Chelsea Staub was smitten -- no, seriously, she ended up dating lead vocalist Brian Dales because of a song he wrote about her. But what really sets them apart to us is their chick drummer, Jess Bowen. She comes from a family of drummers and doesn't want to be seen as just another Meg White. New Times caught up with Jess and talked Warped Tour, Saved by the Bell reruns, and the band's Beatles undertones.   

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​We've saved the best for last in our Countdown to Warped Tour. During what we'd like to call "Warped Week," you can expect to get to know chick drummers and some of your favorite Warped Tour veterans. But today, it's all about our favorite Gossip Girl. 


Taylor Momsen is not afraid to tell it like it is. She's transformed her good girl, "Little Jenny" image into a grungy, lingerie-wearing, speak-her-mind rocker, and her sultry voice and power ballads don't sound like they're coming from a 16-year-old. She's gotten a lot of press for the way she dresses and what she says, and her latest conquest is being named a spokesmodel for Madonna's new line for Macy's, "Material Girl."

The youngest cast member on the hit CW series and now frontwoman for the Pretty Reckless spoke to New Times recently about not being Hannah Montana, being a down-and-dirty goth chick, and going to her first rock show when she was 9 years old. 



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​Lead vocalist for Broward County-based Hey Monday, Cassadee Pope, claims the band decided on the name because they wanted to add a positive spin on the negative connotation associated with Mondays.

The 20-year-old, who's been singing since she was four years old, has already done a lot she's set out to accomplish, working with bands she looks up to like New Found Glory and Fall Out Boy, and playing in the venue where she saw her first concert -- which happens to be where this year's Warped Tour is taking place. New Times caught up with Pope to chat about living near the beach, the Florida music scene, and being a chick in a male-heavy genre. You can catch even more of what she had to say in print next week.    

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​Our Countdown to Warped Tour continues, as the tour shines in on sunny South Florida in a mere two weeks and one day.

Jacksonville outfit Mayday Parade has been going strong since 2006. The pop punk rockers are coming back to their hometown state for a show that they're promising will be one they won't soon forget. New Times chatted with frontman, lead vocalist, and keyboard player Derek Sanders about Christmas parades, their humbling beginning, and their love of Publix and Wal-Mart Super Centers.

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VersaEmerge

​A lot of Warped Tour fans may not know this, but this year we have four Florida bands playing in the festival. Port St. Lucie/St. Petersburg transplants VersaEmerge commute three hours between both cities for practices, recordings, and writing sessions, as front woman and lead singer Sierra Kusterbeck lives all the way in St. Petersburg. They've toured with fellow Warped Tour bands We the Kings and The Cab, and now they're ready to show South Florida what they've got.

New Times caught up with Sierra to talk about what it's like touring with a bunch of dudes, her love of Florida's beaches, and why she insists on referring to her fans as "vultures."

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​In case you're wondering, Warped Tour is hitting the hot streets of West Palm Beach in three weeks and one day. We're a bit excited. Our latest installment in our Countdown to Warped Tour compilation features Alesana's lead vocalist/guitarist Shawn Milke.

The 30-year-old prefers literature and history over trademark relationship cliches in his music, and you'll find some sort of creative concept behind each album they've put out. Their latest effort, The Emptiness, infuses Edgar Allen Poe with 20th century scary movies and horror -- and it includes a short story written by the band, to boot.

New Times recently chatted with Milke about minoring in creative writing, involving their fans, and a love of scary movies.

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