Against Me! wows at Warped
July 14th, 2008 by Wade Tatangelo in Reviews
Gainesville-based punk band Against Me! delivered a gloriously powerful performance Friday at the Vans Warped Tour, Vinoy Park, St. Petersburg. Against Me! lead singer Tom Gabel (pictured, left) was raised in Naples and the audience included friends and family in addition to thousands of fans. (The publicist told me they expected 14,000 concertgoers. I’d say 10,000 of them are enrolled at local high schools. Yep, I felt old).
That said, I had a blast watching Against Me!’s intense, precision-attack, 40-minute set and was also impressed by Gym Class Heroes and The Dollyrots. Incidentally, Katy Perry was a no-show. The publicist on site said she had to be back in New York but wouldn’t say why. Gym Class Heroes dudes didn’t offer any reason, either.
Posted below are my Against Me! pics, including this one of Gabel taking a break from lifting weights backstage pre-show to pose with the Loaf. I’ll be posting photos of Gym Class Heroes, The Dollyrots and We The Kings later in the day.
I also did interviews with members of Gym Class Heroes and The Dollyrots, which I’ll be posting as a podcast. Stay tuned.
Must admit, I was pretty flattered when Gabel recognized my name and said he’d already read my story, and liked it, when I approached him backstage. He was also very cool when I sheepishly asked him to pose for this picture. Cool dude.
Gabel and bassist Andrew Seward strike a rock pose.
Gabel roars.
Gabel grins.
Young woman surfing during Against Me!’s breakthrough hit “Thrash Unreal.”
Same young woman right before she was sent back to other side of barrier.
July 14th, 2008 at 2:03 pm
Dear Shithead. Kidding. I was just trying to blend with the DMB drones.
I can’t get enough of Against me and I’m old as dirt. I’m jealous…we wanted to go to the show but were in the sticks for the weekend. Excellent stuff, thanks!
July 14th, 2008 at 2:23 pm
My pleasure. Yeah, their crowd was young but of all the bands they had the most fans our age, which made me feel better, ’cause I really dig what they’re doing.
Nice guys, too. I have tons more pics I’ll email you if you want.
July 14th, 2008 at 3:08 pm
That’d be great. gracias