The Bamboozle Festival 2011 Review and Tips

Hello all!

One of the biggest festivals I have ever attended was The Bamboozle Festival. For the 2012 year, this will be Bamboozle's 10th anniversary. This festival is located in East Rutherford, New Jersey at the Meadowlands Stadium. This past year (2011) was my first year attending the festival. Coming all the way from California, it was a big trip (as well as slightly expensive) to make. This blog post will talk about my experience at Bamboozle, as well as some tips for people coming from places other than Jersey.

My friend and I didn't start planning our trip out to Bamboozle until about 3 months before, in January. The festival was scheduled for April 29-May 1. Once we decided to go to the festival, it was necessary to save up money.

Things that needed to be purchased/planned beforehand:

Concert Review: The Good Luck Thrift Store Outfit

Band: The Good Luck Thrift Store Outfit
Date: October 8, 2011
Location: Sausage Fest, Farmers Market, Santa Cruz, CA


Preconceived Thoughts of the Band: A friend of mine manages the band for a class. All she said was they are middle aged men that sound like Mumford and Sons. hmmm..


What Actually Happened (BITCH SPOILER ALERT) - 
So a group of us (20 girls) all do a field trip to the farmer's market to see my friend's band perform. We get there pretty late because we didn't want to hear the opening bands. So we get there, and we tried to get in. This lady dress in some weird era of German clothes, tells us that the market is at full capacity and she couldn't get let anyone in. We were all pissed off!! More people were leaving then coming in. So we awkwardly stand in front of the gate, figuring out what we should do. My friend never called them and asked them to save us a couple of spots. A couple of minutes in they got on stage and start performing. 


They are nothing like Mumford and Sons. There were just another country band. I just can't stand country. Good thing we didn't listen to them.


Verdict - I don't like country music, therefore I don't like them.


Bitch Rate - 4/5

Concert Review: The New Gary Burton Quartet

Band: New Gary Burton Quartet

Date: October 7,2011

Location: Yoshi's, Oakland, CA

Preconceived Thoughts of the Band: I for one, am not an active jazz listener. I do have some Charlie Parker and some Wes Montgomery in my iTunes, but I HAVE to be in the mood for it, which is rarely. Jazz is way too complicated for me.The poly-rhythmic and complex chords never really synced in with me. I love it when I hear melody and harmony. I've always been that way since I can remember. I barely know this Gary Burton guy, but when I mentioned him to a couple of friends they were surprised (and jealous) that I would get to here him. From what I got in his biography, he's kind of a big deal. He has a great album background, has a GRAMMY for one his albums. He's a professor at Berklee College of Music. It's pretty amazing.

I'm sorry that this is a jazz concert review, but I thought it was helpful for me. As a musician, I need to explore different genres. I'm trying to become an open-minded musician....

Concert Review: Blink 182, My Chemical Romance, Matt and Kim

Band: blink 182, My Chemical Romance Opener: Matt and Kim
Date: October 2, 2011
Location: Sleep Train Amphitheater, Sacramento, CA

Preconcieved Thoughts of the Band: blink 182 is my favorite band...EVER! I saw them, two years ago at their reunion tour and I was blown away (and in physical pain) from their performance. They are known for playing loud punk rock and as fast as they can. I knew what they were going to be playing in their set list, even their new songs off the album Neighborhoods. I was so prepared for them. My Chemical Romance on the other hand, is a different story. I haven't heard from the since middle school. Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge was pretty much it for me. I strayed away from the emo scene to more indie rock afterward. I knew a couple of singles form their Black Parade album but that was pretty much it. They did change their image to a more colorful one, but I was pretty DGAF about them. Finally Matt and Kim was another band I was crazy to see at the tour. They were on my playlist all of freshman year in college. I missed their performance at the Fillmore a year ago, but I wasn't going to miss them this time. 

Concert Review: Beirut

Band: Beirut
Date: October 1, 2011
Location: The Fox Theater, Oakland, Ca

Preconceived Thoughts of the Band - My current roommate introduced me to them about 2 years ago with the track "Elephant Gun", and I became an instant fan. I loved the use of trumpets, french horns, trombones, and tubas. They have very unusual sounds which is made by their unusual use of instruments. My music management professor mentioned the band a couple of times during his lectures. I wouldn't consider their sound to be a platform for every band to copy, but it is a unique sound that makes them stand out.

Blink-182, My Chemical Romance and Matt and Kim: Concert Review and Photos

Band: Blink 182, My Chemical Romance Opener: Matt and Kim
Date: October 2, 2011
Location: Sleep Train Amphitheater, Wheatland, CA

Preface:

Noely and I attended the same show, but we definitely both have different views of the show, being different levels of a "fan" so to speak. Enjoy :)

Preconceived Thoughts of the Band -

For Matt and Kim:

I had previously never heard any of their music before the show. I have some friends who absolutely love Matt and Kim, and those friends and I have pretty similar music taste. Going into their set, I expected to enjoy them, just based on my similar music taste with other fans.

My Chemical Romance:

I have been an on again off again fan of MCR for about 8 years. Back in middle school, my younger brother was obsessed with this band so I have been exposed to their music for quite some time. However, over the years their sound has definitely changed, and for me, it wasn't necessarily for the better. I loved their first two albums, but their last two I never really got in to. I had seen MCR live about 5 years ago, so going in to this show, I wasn't sure what to expect, since they are an aging band with a new sound.

Blink-182:

Much like the Brand New show, I was unsure how this show was going to play out. Since Blink is definitely an aging band, I have heard that seeing them now is not as good as seeing them, say, 6 or 7 years ago. While this can go for any band, I had heard bad things about this fact in regards to Blink. However, since I had never seen them live before, I had to go to experience them at least once, and I kept in mind the fact that they may not sound as good as they once did.

What Actually Happened (BITCH SPOILER ALERT) -

Recommendation for the Yellowcard Show

This month there are going to be quite a few shows that are tempting to go to. However, with a small pocketbook and increasing ticketmaster convenience charges, going to all the amazing shows that are coming up is not possible. Since the Yellowcard/Every Avenue, nevershoutnever, and Skrillex concert are all around the same date, I would recommend you attend the Yellowcard/Every Avenue show.

Yellowcard

Yellowcard is a pop punk band from Florida that formed in 1997. One of the unique features of this band is the fact that they use violin, which is unusual for this genre. The band released three records before going on a two-year hiatus and then releasing their most current album. Yellowcard has been on tour with reputable bands, such as All Time Low and Linkin Park. Every Avenue is a pop punk band from Michigan that formed in 2003. They have released 4 full lengths albums and 3 EP’s. They have toured with All Time Low, Mayday Parade, Boys Like Girls and The Maine. Both Yellowcard and Every Avenue have played at Warped Tour. These bands playing together would be a very strong and well-played show. This show would cost you $22.

nevershoutnever

nevershoutnever is a pop punk band from Joplin, Missouri. The front of the band, Christofer Drew began making music in 2005. The band has 6 EP’s and 2 full-length albums. While they have quite a large fan base due to Drew’s good looks and nomination as PETA’s sexiest vegetarian, he has often played and come to his shows drunk and high, which other fans, concert attendees and I find disrespectful to his audience. He also has a bad reputation for being mean and rude to fans when they approach him before and after shows. This show would cost you $27.

Skrillex

Skrillex, also known as Sonny Moore is producer from Los Angeles. He was once the front man for the band From First To Last, but now is known as Skillex and plays electro house music. He has grown quite popular in this music scene. However, when weighing the pros and cons between all of these shows, this show is the most expensive. While it may be fun, it is not exactly the type of music that this company is known for writing about nor is it worth the price of two other concerts that we can attend. Another negative about this show is that it is sold out on ticketmaster, so tickets would have to be purchased via stubhub, and currently the tickets listed are double the original asking price. This show would cost you $88.

Yes on Yellowcard

While all of these shows would offer a good experience, the Yellowcard/Every Avenue show would be the best and most tried and true for your money concert. Seeing the nevershoutnever concert would be fun because of the natural, good spirited music of Christofer Drew, but his poor attitude and usually inebriated self is definitely less attractive to the audience. Skrillex would bring to the table a dancing filled night, but the price is not worth drive into the city.

--Relic