Ah, Projekt Revolution, the huge summer tour that no rocker will be able to resist. Starting out just hanging around the Revolution Stage outside, an enormous clan of black-clad teens and adults alike dodge in and out of the closest rows of the small, black stage as different musical acts appear. The tour does an awesome job of combining different rock styles; for 2007, the Revolution Stage included acts such as Mindless Self Indulgence, Madina Lake, and the Bled...a fairly interesting blend of insane techno-style madness, emo, and screamy metal.
And then the Main Stage...ohhhh the Main Stage. A few well-known bands accompany Linkin Park, the main act, using lights, smoke, fire, and anything else to excite the crowd. Oh, I forgot to mention that music is veeeery loud, so even if your seats aren't so great, you'll still be able to examine with your own ears the awesome rocking intensity of some pretty amazing bands.
Linkin Park of course puts on an amazing hour and a half show at the end. Chester's live singing quality is ABSOLUTELY mind-blowing. You all know that 20-second scream in "Given Up"? Yeah, did that live, and then cranked out the high-pitched chorus right after that without even gasping...and that was up in Denver! He and Mike Shinoda also threw out a few unexpected acoustic and a capella tracks that were very nice to listen to, and balanced out perfectly with their more exuberant songs.
Projekt Revolution 2008 includes Atreyu, 10 Years, Hawthorne Heights, Armor for Sleep, and Street Drum Corps on the Revolution Stage, and Ashes Divide, the Bravery, Chris Cornell, and of course, Linkin Park, on Main. Is this year worth gathering up nearly $100, or even more, for your ticket in?
The Revolution Stage Bands
My first thought when looking at this list was, "Atreyu is on the Revolution Stage? But WHY?" Atreyu's style leans more towards your modern rock and roll in their two latest albums, which, if you listen to their older music, is a big transition. They've gone a lot lighter on the screaming, and their drummer, Brandon Saller, offers a lot more vocals throughout each song. This newer, more melodic version, though still offering powerful, enigmatic lyrics and amazing metal instrumentals, has chased away some Atreyu fans that enjoyed their heavy metal side, but many more are also attracted to it.
As for 10 Years...well, they're an amazing band. Brilliant lyrics, unique sound from the lead singer, and some pretty intense instrumentals, I've always thought that this band was very unlike any other that I've heard. Though they haven't had any recent material since the debut of their album The Autumn Effect , they'll have released a new one called Division on May 10, 2008, and will probably be playing a lot of their newer songs for Projekt Revolution. Contrasting with Atreyu's style greatly, 10 Years is that kind of alternative rock that is both calming and righteous, sometimes all in the same song.
Hawthorne Heights and Armor for Sleep are both emo-style alternative bands, the latter being one of my personal favorites. At Warped Tour 2006, they put on an absolutely awesome show, and they all seemed to put their best foot forward for the small crowd that was gathered there. Their style is a little more alternative than emo; the lyrics are beautiful, sometimes ironic and sometimes sad, and their ballads are quite...emotional, but most of their lyrics are balanced out by an alternative rock melody and some nifty guitar riffs that aren't at all "emo."
I was fairly surprised to see Hawthorne Height's name on the list; they have a history of being bashed for their popularity by those who though that "rock should be taking the charts," rather than the mainstreamed emo sound that Hawthorne Heights is generally known to offer. They also dealt with a lawsuit in 2007 about revenue disputes, and just a month after that in November, their guitarist Casey Calvert was found dead in the tour bus from combined drug intoxication. The tour will be good for this band's recovery, especially since they're coming out with a new album in summer 2008.
I hadn't ever listened to Street Drum Corps, but I recently gave them a listen from Myspace, and they're a MUCH different genre than the bands previously mentioned. Like Mindless Self Indulgence, they have a techno theme to their music, with lyrical melodies that seem something similar to Rage Against the Machine mixed with general screamo. About a month ago they released their first full-length album, We Are Machines . With such an interesting style, I'd like to see what they're capable of live at this year's tour.
