KROQ Weenie Roast at Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre

If it wasn't for Kevin & Bean, I probably would never listen to KROQ. I would rather listen to my ipod or littleradio.com. KROQ still has enough pull to amass a strong lineup for their annual Weenie Roast summer show.

I was lucky enough to secure a seat for the show and decided not to push my luck in sneaking a camera into the venue. My seat was far enough that I couldn't get good pictures anyways.

Plain White T's opened the sidestage festivities. The kids seem to have liked them. I wasn't that impressed.

I was honestly surprised Peter, Bjorn & John even made it on this bill. I can't tell you if KROQ even plays them but I was excited that they were there. I was also the only person singing along to all the songs. I wasn't surprised when I started to hear people yelling, "Play the whistle song!". Peter was dancing around the stage and giving it his all to win over the crowd. Peter had a capo on the 2nd fret as he rocked the harmonica during "Paris 2004". I was surprised again when Victoria Bergsman came out to sing "Young Folks". They played over their 30 minute allotted set time by about 10 minutes to my delight.

Peter, Bjorn & John setlist
"Let's Call It Off"
"See-Through"
"The Chills"
"Start To Melt"
"Paris 2004"
"Young Folks" with Victoria Bergsman from the Concretes
"Objects of My Affection"
"Up Against The Wall"

Silversun Pickups were next and even fuzz maestro Brian Aubert(Guitars/Vocals) commented about how good the Peter, Bjorn & John set was. The sound was muddy for the beginning of the Silversun Pickups set but cleared up after a few songs. They played selections from "Carnavas" which included two of my favorite songs "Dream at Tempo 119" and "Common Reactor". They have been touring behind "Carnavas" for quite some time and I will be anxiously awaiting their next release.

Tim Armstrong and 20 people closed up the side stage. I liked Rancid back in the day. "And Out Come of The Wolves" was a really good album. It was not much of a solo show as he brought out Rancid guitarist Lars Fredericksen for "Ruby Soho" and "Time Bomb". I did pick up his solo album but still haven't had enough time to give a proper spin.

Tiger Army opened the main stage with their rockabily punk. I know they opened up a ton of shows for Morrissey a few years ago. I have to give credit to Jeff Roffredo for his excellent stand-Up bass skills. Their new album "Music From Regions Beyond" comes out June 5th.

Rise Against came out with their fiery political punk rock. They were on Fat Wreck Chords back in the day which boosts their stock in my book. I was impressed with Tim McIlrath's vocals. He really did a great job belting out the lyrics as well playing his white Gibson Les Paul. I haven't listened to much punk lately but I got a renewed enthusiasm after seeing them play. I will see them again when they play with Lagwagon and Strung Out at the Long Beach Arena. Both Lagwagon and Strung Out were two of my favorite punk bands back in the day.

The opening synth line of "Swollen Summer" cranked out and the Bravery got the crowd rocking. They did a great job of alternating new songs and old songs. Their new album "The Sun and The Moon" just came out and sounds excellent. Even though the new album doesn't feature as many synth lines as the first, I think they will do well with this album. John Conway still had his Virus synth and a Rhodes electric piano on stage.


Bravery setlist
"Swollen Summer"
"Believe"
"PSA"
"Time Won't Let Me Go"
"An Honest Mistake"
"Every Word From Your Mouth Is A Knife In My Ear"
"Bad Sun"
"Unconditional"

Besides "Infected", I don't think I have heard a Bad Religion song on KROQ in years. Bad Religion are one of my favorite punk bands. Their hyper literate brand of thinking man punk rock is extremely catchy. I was fortunate enough to interview Brian Baker(Minor Threat,Dag Nasty,Junkyard) back in the day during the "Grey Race" tour. Did you know Brian Baker was going to be the touring guitarist for REM before he got the offer for Bad Religion? I may have to republish that interview when I get a chance. Some songs they played were "American Jesus", "21st Century Digital Boy", "Infected" and "Struck A Nerve". I was not to familar with the new songs but I will check out their new album when it comes out.

Queens of the Stone Age stole the show in my opinion. I always appreciated the heavy riffs of Kyuss and automatically liked Queens of the Stone Age when they came out. I used to see them all the time at the Troubadour. Josh Homme(Guitars/Vocals) has worked on his singing and has improved with each album. Their new song "Sick, Sick, Sick" is stunning with an impressive breakdown riff. In a few degrees of separation, Troy Van Leeuwen used to be the touring guitarist of Failure. I gave Josh huge points for incorporating song lyrics of "I Want A New Drug" by Huey Lewis & The News into "Feel Good Hit of the Summer". Their new album Era Vulgaris should be out soon. They will be at the Orange County Fair bringing the rock to the O.C.

Queens of the Stone Age Setlist
"Feel Good Hit Of The Summer"
"No One Knows"
"3's & 7's"
"In My Head"
"Little Sister"
"The Lost Art of Keeping Secret"
"Sick, Sick, Sick"
"Go With The Flow"
"Song For The Dead"

The sun had not fully set for Interpol. It is difficult to enjoy Interpol's moody atmospheric music in the mid evening. They still managed to pull off a good set that unfortunately ended with a blown guitar amp during the apex of "PDA". I still am very impressed with "The Heinrich Maneuver" and its angular guitar lines. When You see Interpol live, one can detect a greater sense of urgency and desperation in the performance of their songs. I am really looking forward to the new album.

Interpol Setlist
"Obstacle 1"
"Mammoth"
"Slow Hands"
"Evil"
"The Heinrich Maneuver"
"PDA"

Social Distortion provided another cornerstone in the history of punk rock as Mike Ness(Guitars/Vocals) and the boys cranked out some classic tunes. Mike Ness was center stage with his Gibson Les Paul Gold top singing in top form with his trademark graveley voice. Social Distortion is coming out with a greatest hits album soon which I highly recommend if you are unfamiliar with their work. If you want to be super cool, watch the documentary "Another State of Mind" which features the early years of Social Distortion, Youth Brigade, and Minor Threat.

Social Distortion Setlist
"Reach For The Sky"
"Prison Bound"
"Under My Thumb"
"Bad Luck"
"Mommy's Little Monster"
"Ball and Chain"
"Far Behind"
"Story of My Life"
"Ring of Fire"

The Killers were a no show due to Brandon Flower's bronchitis. I recommend a course of Levaquin 500mg once a day for 10 days.

I am a fan of the first two Korn albums but feel that some of their later work has not been up to par. They are pioneers of the seven string guitar and charted some new territory when they came out. I thought they were copying Slipknot when I saw two extra percussionists on stage but then realized the joke was on me when I spotted Joey Jordinson of Slipknot filling in for David Silveria on drums. I was pleasantly surprised how tight their performance was. They also had Clint Lowery(ex-Sevendust) on back up guitar. They played all of their heavy and fast songs which made time go by really quick. Some highlights from their set included "Good God", "Blind" and "Coming Undone".

Linkin Park closed out the night with selections from Meteora and Hybrid Theory. Joseph Hahn (DJ/Turntables) had about 10 M-Audio Trigger fingers mounted on a stand that he used maybe once. Mike Shinoda(Guitars/Vocals) showed off his toughness when he played a Pink Hello Kitty Fender Squier Stratocaster on stage. I still haven't listened to much of their new album "Minutes to Midnight" but I will check it out later. The old hits sounded good such as "Breaking The Habit", "Crawling", "One Step Closer", and "Numb". They shamelessly plugged their Project Revolution Tour that doesn't sound too interesting except they managed to get Placebo on the bill.

Overall, It is tough to beat 12 hours of music but I don't know how my friend ended up going to the 91x Fest the next day because I was exhausted.