Thursday’s Vans Warped Tour ’98 had all the makings for disaster–33 bands in eight hours in a hot United Center parking lot.
Instead, it went off with nary a hitch.
The tone was set at the gate, where lines were short and one of the security guards actually shared her supply of sunblock with festival-goers. Food and drink lines were manageable (although there were slim pickings for vegetarians) and there were a number of places to find shelter from the sun.
Most important, the bands started on time.
With few exceptions, such as rockabilly hipsters Reverend Horton Heat, this year’s theme seemed to be all the ska you could take for $21.75. If it wasn’t ska it was swing and ska. Or straight-ahead punk rock and ska.
Despite technical difficulties, Eugene, Oregon-based headliners Cherry Poppin’ Daddies delivered the day’s most frenzied set. Diminutive frontman Steve Perry danced, bowed, blew kisses, snapped his fingers and wooed his microphone with exaggerated enthusiasm, a smile plastered on his face throughout. Behind him the seven-person band blew through a mix of ska and swing, hitting its stride on “Brown Derby Jump” and their hit “Zoot Suit Riot.”
Bad Religion were off and running from the get-go, playing a seamless set of straight ahead old-school guitar punk that included “21st Century Digital Boy” and their traditional closer, “—- Armageddon . . . This is Hell.” The band slowed down only once, to apologize for having to play a 21 and over show the last time they were in Chicago.
The Specials, who first appeared on the ska scene in the late 1970s, lent credibility to the tour. But the veteran skasters played so early in the day that most of the audience missed their half-hour set.
Although their mohawks were relaxed, Rancid did their usual Clash imitation, giving their all to crowd pleasers like “Time Bomb.” They ended their set with “Roots Radical,” which had nearly the entire audience singing backup.
The Deftones’ corpulent, grating brand of heavy metal bounced off the nearby United Center, adding to the monotony of their too-long set. NOFX told the audience that they “don’t play ska anymore” and then proceeded to play three hardcore punk songs in two minutes, ending their set with the 30-second ditty, “I Want to be an Alcoholic.”
Along the way, bored festival-goers could try a climbing wall, get a haircut, paint a mural, watch a movie, skateboard or shop. They could also watch pro skateboarders, rollerbladers and BMXers get vertical on a giant ramp. In the Bad Religion tent people listened to a live broadcast of a Seattle-based pirate radio station that first appeared on Pearl Jam’s 1995 US tour.
But those who had the most fun were at the second stage’s Punk Rock Karoake, where concertgoers sang old Ramones and Sex Pistols songs to the accompaniment of a live band. That endeavor had more exuberant, anything-can-happen spirit than all 33 bands combined.
