Warped Tour
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Warped Tour is a touring music and extreme sports festival. The skateboarding shoe manufacturer Vans has sponsored the tour every year since 1995 and it is often referred to as the Vans Warped Tour.
In recent years, the Warped Tour has featured as many as 100 bands per show. The venue size ranges from 10,000 to 30,000. The bands play for up to 30 minutes over approximately 10 different stages, although the biggest bands generally play the two "Main" stages. A typical day would have bands starting at 11:00am and end at 9:00 p.m. with several bands playing at once. The area is set up to prevent music from one stage disrupting other active stages. One band, by fan vote, is allowed to play ten extra minutes at each show.
The tour started as a skate punk, hip hop and third wave ska tour, but in recent years has featured mostly Pop punk, alternative rock, metalcore, and post-hardcore acts.
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[edit] History
The Warped Tour was created in 1994 by Kevin Lyman, who got the idea while working on skateboarding shows—such as the Vision Skate Escape and Holiday Havoc—which included music with skateboarding contests. The Warped name comes from the short-lived Warp Magazine published by Transworld—it tried to combine surfing, skateboarding, snowboarding, and music into one glossy package.
In 1998, the tour went international—including venues in Australia, Japan, Europe, and the United States.
In 1999, the tour started off in New Zealand and Australia in the New Year. It then started up again in the United States for the northern hemisphere summer—before ending up in Europe.
As well as music, this tour brings many attractions including a half pipe for skaters and bikers, though the focus on extreme sports has declined over the years. In 2006, the only venue for extreme sports was a single half pipe; "athletes" wishing to use it were required to submit a signed release (by a parent or guardian if underage) and obtain a special wristband. The tour also features many booths creating a flea-market like atmosphere, having tents for each of the bands to sell merchandise, independent record labels, magazine publishers, non-profit organizations, and sponsors looking to market their products to the tour's audience.
Sponsors are a vital part of the Vans Warped Tour as the revenue they provide subsidizes many of the tour's expenses—allowing ticket prices to be kept relatively low when compared to similar tours. The average ticket price is $25, considerably lower than the average $45 Ozzfest ticket.
As one of the most successful North American concert tours, The Vans Warped Tour continues to prosper selling over 500,000 tickets a year. A DVD about the Warped Tour experience, Wake Up Screaming[1], was created after the 2005 tour. Punk Rock Holocaust, a comedy slasher picture, was filmed principally at the 2003 Warped Tour.
[edit] Bands lined up for Warped Tour 2007
- Bad Religion
- Big D and the Kids Table
- The Fabulous Rudies (BBQ Band)
- K-os
[edit] Warped Tour bands
- See also: Previous Warped Tour bands, Warped Tour 2006 bands, Warped Tour 2005 bands, and 2005 Warped Tour Compilation
A few bands have left the tour due to conflicts with other bands:
- The band Guttermouth was supposedly removed from the 2004 Warped Tour for insulting My Chemical Romance, stating that the band were more concerned about their clothing and making money, rather than the artistic merits of the music they make.
- In 2006 NOFX frontman Fat Mike was making fun of Underoath and their religious beliefs and criticizing their stance on gay marriage, but emphasised that he befriended Underoath's band members at the start of the tour, had very civilized conversations with various members right up to Underoath's departure. A statement from the band claimed that the members "felt it necessary to take some immediate time to focus on our friendship, as that’s more important than risking it for the sake of touring at this time."
- The Vandals were asked to leave after Joe Escalante called members of Good Charlotte, "faggots", resulting in a fistfight.[citation needed]
[edit] Trivia
- Every year there is a "BBQ Band," which, in exchange for the privilege of playing on the tour, must prepare food for the bands and crew for the barbeque which is held most evenings.[2]
- At the Houston, Texas show in 1998, members of NOFX threw the money they made from the show ($5,000) in one dollar bills into the crowd because they didn't like the sound in the venue.[3]
- On the 2005 Calgary date, the singer of Calentura alleged that she had been raped.[4]. No arrests have resulted.
- The Warped Tour is mentioned in blink-182's song, The Rock Show. And also in "So sick of you" from The Unseen.
- The Warped Tour is featured as a venue in the game Guitar Hero 2.
