On July 6th, the Rockstar Disrupt Festival commenced at the PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, New Jersey. Previously, we talked about some of the openers, now we’re talking about the mainstays. The Used, Thrice, The Story So Far, Circa Survive, and Atreyu all rocked the festival in front of thousands of people. Atreyu took the stage.
Atreyu has been the modern hard rock comeback story as of late. They’re one of the pioneers of the metalcore genre with their innate ability to mix screams with clean vocals. I must say that the drummer Brandon Saller is one of the most talented musicians I have seen in sometime. He is able to wail on his vocals while destroying it behind the drum kit. They got their set started with their summer rock anthem “The Time Is Now”, and the fans were treated to an awesome cover of “You Give Love A Bad Name” by Bon Jovi. Fans were treated to the nostalgia when metalcore was king of the 2000’s with songs such as “Ex’s and Oh’s”, “Bleeding Mascara”, and “Right Side of the Bed”. Atreyu will be performing in South Africa and Japan before performing the Las Rageous Festival in Las Vegas, Nevada on Saturday, October 19th. Check here for tickets and information.
The Story So Far brought their infectious energy to the Disrupt Main Stage with their catchy songs and driving arrangements. This band does a great job of effortlessly blending alternative rock with punk tendencies. Sadly, the crowd didn’t seem that engaged with them. I felt that they just couldn’t win the audience over. New Jersey is a tough crowd overall to win over. They had their core fanbase that was impressed with them but a lot of the fans just sat in their seats as they went through songs such as “Proper Dose”, “Quicksand”, and they closed out their set with mainstays “If I Fall” and “Heavy Gloom”. The Story So Far is spending the remainder of August in Europe with special guests Hockey Dad before playing Riot Fest in Chicago, Illinois on Friday, September 13th. For tickets and further information, click here.
The influential alternative rock band Circa Survive also took the stage. They are known for having legendary alternative rock vocalist Anthony Green as the frontman of this band. They’re one of those bands that seem to have a major cult following in the rock world. Their energy is infectious and Anthony Green can certainly hit the high notes. The crowd was more engaged in the singalongs and the guitar work definitely have those shoegaze elements that keep the audience engaged. The crowd seemed to be the most engaged in the energetic song “The Difference Between Medicine and Poison” and their set opener “Act Appalled”. Circa Survive is currently on break from touring so check back at www.facebook.com/CircaSurvive for further information.
Thrice also took the stage right before the evening headliner The Used. Thrice definitely had the crowd in the palm of their hands with their amazing musicianship and their great singalongs. After starting off the set with “Yellow Belly”, the crowd went into a major nostalgia trip with the song “The Artist In The Ambulance”. You can tell that Thrice loved the loud singalong and that seemed to have ignited the band even further. They closed off the set with their monster rock hit “Black Honey” and the underground cult classic “The Earth Will Shake”. I expected Thrice to play songs like “Deadbolt”, “Silhouette”, and “Image of the Invisible”, but with their extensive discography, it would be hard to play what everyone wanted to hear in a limited set list. Thrice will be performing in Honolulu, Hawaii on September 7th and the Exit 111 Festival in Manchester, Tennessee on Sunday, October 13th before embarking on a European tour. Check here for tickets and further information.
The Used headlined this night at the PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, New Jersey. The Used is widely regarded as the influential band in emo/post-hardcore music with their catchy choruses and their powerful riffs and musicianship that told a story along with Bert McCracken’s lyrics and singing. The Used seemed to have poured everything onto the stage as if it was their last performance ever with songs such as “Take It Away”, “The Bird and the Worm”, and the set closers “Pretty Handsome Awkward” and “A Box Full of Sharp Objects”. The band will be playing the Hodgepodge Superfest in Indonesia on Saturday, August 31st and the Downtown Las Vegas Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada on Saturday, October 18th. For tickets and further information, click here.
- Photo Credit: Kim Casper at Garden State Band Connection
