2018 Van's Warped Tour: The final cross country run

                     

      Have you ever gone to a music festival and wondered how do they manage to get all of these great artist in one place? How do they choose the right artist to perform? or even choosing where to hold the event(State, City, Venue)? Well we have and now when it comes to Van's Warped Tour we just let it go because every year the line up, the production, the staff, the security blows us away. With this year being the LAST cross country run we decided to attend both Ohio dates(Cleveland and Cincy) and I am so glad we did. 
  The staff did an amazing job they kept everything nice and friendly and all around had an amazing time themselves by joining in on the fun. I grew up on warped tour and I'm so glad that my kids had the chance to experience this amazing music festival because this is one event where everyone feels like family because we are all there for the same reason and that is to support the artist and have a great time weather you are a vet or new to Warped there is always a friendly face. 

  After giving that run down I do want to shine some light on these very talented artist that I was completely blown away by. OK here we go! there are people that will pay hundreds of dollars just to see their favorite artist for a quick hi, take a picture and get an already signed poster and that is totally OK because the artist is busy with putting on the shows and making the music that makes us love them and they have a lot of fans to meet. 

Untold Story

  Over the 2 days we spent at warped tour I observed artist running their own merch table, walking around with the fans and watching other bands sets, and doing their own meet and greets. The ONLY thing they asked for in return was your support.

In Loving Memory

State Champs

  The bands we had the pleasure and honor of speaking with showed the fans so much respect and treated us more like family/friends instead of fans. They also did not come off as they were better then the fans and they genuinely thanked the fans for their support during their set, at their merch table and even at the meet and greets.

 This is something that the bands wanted to do for their fans. They did not have to spend their FREE time with us but they did out of pure kindness and appreciation and we respect them for that.

   With so many bands you do not get to see a full set HOWEVER the 25-30 minutes that they do have they put on the best shows. We have seen a lot of these bands like Broadside, Sleep On It, State Champs, Waterparks, We The Kings, Falling In Reverse and many more multiple times because let's face it they are amazing and fun to watch. Then you have the staples of warped tour who has been there since the beginning like Bowling For Soup, All Time Low, Simple Plan and Reel Big Fish. This is a music festival that we will look back and reflect on for many years to come. 

   Thank you to the artist for rocking out with the fans during the last cross country run of Warped Tour and for making all of the fans feel very welcome. We will be forever grateful for all that you do for your fans and for the great causes that Van's Warped Tour shines light on every year.

Sleep On It Album Review

                                                       Overexposed!

        Sleep On It released their album on November 3rd, 2017 and we all have to admit that it is one of the best albums of 2017, right? What is your favorite song? 
      I honestly thought that "Fireworks" was my favorite however I was very wrong! every song has that little bit of something that just grabs you and you relate too. No matter what mood I am in this has been my "go to" album especially when I am in the car at work because I have to get in that mindset and this is the ablum to get you there!

     The song list is enough to catch your attention and it was definitely worth staying up to midnight for it's release and listening to the full album. If you have not listened to it because you don't think it's your type of music, give it a shot! and I promise you will NOT be disappointed!
      If you still don't think it is for you because it is not your type of music I can assure you that it has just the right amount of emotions in EVERY song. If you check it out and like it then don't miss them on tour with Waterparks!!!!! seen then 2x and we have always had the time of our lives during their set and can not wait to see them again. Check out their Album #Overexposed!!!

                                                    Post By
                                               Debbie Thompson

               

An Amazing Night Of Music With State Champs, Homesafe, Sleep On It, Bearings

                         What An Amazing Night!

    So going to concerts is always a blast especially when the headlining band is one of your all time favorite bands. Then you get to hear new music from bands you never heard of because they happen to be the opening bands and that can go 3 ways Great, Mutual or bad and luckily we maybe experienced a "bad" performance a couple of times. So now I'm just going to dive into this blog about these amazing bands so I hope you enjoy!



                                                  Bearings!

           

        Bearings is a band out of Ottawa, Canada and this band is special! I am shocked that we have not heard more about them but I'm so glad that we actually got the chance to see them because they are really good. Their energy on stage and being able to grab the audience attention with the first song and keeping that attention for the rest of their set is a huge deal. Out of all the concerts we have been to, I know from experience that energy, entertainment, and overall good music is the key. We have at times could not get into the music or performance and just started playing games on our phones HOWEVER this is NOT one of those bands! This band had our attention throughout their whole set and we absolutely loved their performance. I truly look forward to seeing the guys again if they ever come back to Ohio(crossing my fingers). I also had the chance to meet the singer Doug after and he was a really nice guy, down to earth and most importantly he thanked us for coming out to see them play. He knew that people were there for State Champs but was really greatful that people was there early enough to see their set. these guys are going to a whole different level! Stay kind, sweet, humble and thankful because that makes you stand out beyond your fantastic music

                                             Sleep On It!
                          

             

      Sleep On It is another great band, this was actually our 2nd time seeing them and I have to admit we were not disappointed either time. They know how to make it exciting and it keeps you wanting more from them, they are sweet and down to earth but most importantly they are passionate about what they do and what not a better way to bring all different types of people together then through awesome music! We are just counting down to concert #3 with these kick ass guys! Stay humble guys and continue to put on kick ass shows and continue to show your appreciation for your fans.


                                           HomeSafe! 
     
           
   
      HomeSafe is another band we have not heard of before this concert and their sound is unique and very interesting. They were entertaining and kept you guessing as to what the next song in their set was going to sound like. We were impressed with their performance and we will be watching to see what the future holds for these talented young men, Great job guys and can not wait to see ya guys again!


                                  State Champs!!!

         

         Now the reason we got to see these 3 other amazing bands, State Champs. It's no secret that my kids and I are huge fans of State Champs and that is because they are amazing. Their music is fantastic, their performance are very entertaining, and they show mad love and appreciation to their fans, which is a big deal. We have had the pleasure of seeing these guys 5 times since 2016 Vans Warped Tour and never once was we disappointed so as long as they keep coming back to Ohio or close to it, we will be there! We also had the pleasure of meeting Ryan and Derek @ Fan Day 2017 and they are truly amazing guys to get to talk to and their passion for their music and their fans is truly mind blowing. I have 3 kids 16 year old son and a 14 year old daughter which was with me on fan day but their 5 year old little sister did not get to go because it was in Cleveland BUT Derek was so kind to record a video for her saying hi. Now I know your probably thinking "She is 5, what does she know about State Champs, Right? she has a lot of knowledge about State Champs, Sleeping With Sirens, Pierce The Veil ect and she attended the APMA'S Red Carpet 2016 because it was here in Columbus, Ohio. She loves State Champs and she knows their songs and her favorite is secrets. She watches the video from Derek at least 10 times a day(I'm not kidding) and I am very thankful that he took the time to make her feel special as they do with all of their fans.
       They put on amazing shows(even the ones that get shut down for 5 minutes at Fan Day 2017). We are ready for them to hit the studio again because hey new music = a lot more concerts with these bad asses! Also Mr. Ryan Scott Graham(Speak Low If You Speak Love) will be on tour with Neck Deep and in Ohio in February. So if you need more of a State Champs fix before they hit the road again go check out Speak Low! There is no doubt that these guys are genius's and we are already missing these guys(hurry back to Ohio) and their tour is not even over yet. Thank you guys once again for another kick ass show!


                                                                     Debbie Thompson