I have to be honest: I am not a fan of outdoor festivals in Florida. It’s just so hot and humid and uncomfortable! Despite the heat, it actually turned out to be a pretty great day. I watched Versa Emerge play for the first time, since it was a hometown show for them. The crowd seemed pretty excited to have them back. I stopped over to the Girlz Garage to see what was going on and found Pete from the Bouncing Souls offering up a little technical assistance to Laurita while she fixed a guitar. The highlight of the day for me had to be hanging out with the Gallows kids in their trailer listening to music and shouting at passersby. Who knew sweating in a trailer could be so amusing?
West Palm Beach, FL
Another rainy day in West Palm Beach. I don’t think anybody is surprised by rain anymore. Everywhere I turn I see ponchos and galoshes. Some people get creative when it comes to rain gear and finding shelter. In catering people were actually sitting on the picnic tables in order to dine under the umbrellas. The rain can also make things challenging on stage. Lags from Gallows slid a bit while playing and wound up taking a guitar to the face. Yikes! It still turned out to be a fun day, though. Angelo from Fishbone made a guest appearance on stage with Big D and the Kids Table, and my friend Lisa came out for a visit. Any day that I get to see my friend Lisa is a great day.
St. Petersburg, FL
The venue in St. Pete was both awesome and awful. Awesome because we were right on the water and could watch dolphins and seagulls, awful because all of the stages and tents were super cluttered due to the small space we had to work with. The weather was sunny and hot early in the day, and I made my way over to the Main Stage to see All Time Low play a few songs. They spent a little time over in the Hurley Zone for a signing, where one girl actually made All Time Low dolls. What talented fans, eh?
Later on I caught a couple songs from the Maine before heading over to watch Therefore I Am play their set right beside the water. A couple of the guys took full advantage of the close proximity and leaped into the ocean at the end of their last song. Someone standing near me at the time said it was the single most punk-rock thing they’d seen anyone do all tour. I agreed with him.
Atlanta, GA
Atlanta: they don’t call it Hotlanta for nothing. It was one of those days when just breathing alone is enough activity to break a sweat. Gross. I tried to spend as much time in shaded areas as possible, which is easy when there’s an amphitheatre to watch bands in. Forever The Sickest Kids joined the tour, so I made a point of checking them out. I also heard a rumor of birthday pranks during the Architects set. Their drummer Adam turned 27, and there were definitely pranks-a-plenty on the Skullcandy stage! Check out the photo gallery to see for yourself. Happy Birthday, Adam!—Erin Caruso
