When we eventually got the Velidrome, where I had seen my first concert (The Offspring w/ the Vandals) almost exactly two years before, the line was just atrociously long and the sun was beating down. It must've been well over 100 degrees. I felt like I was going to melt standing out there. This big water-spraying truck rolled down the line at one point, soaking everyone, which was a relief. After about an hour, a second line opened up and we raced to it, getting inside the venue in a matter of minutes. The place was set up cool: a stage on the west end of the performance area, a stage on the east end of the performance area, and in between there was a skate ramp; all around the perimeter of the performance area were bleachers, and behind those there were several booths selling different shit; in a grassy, shaded area nearing the west side of the Velidrome was the second stage and Epitaph Records booth, and a mist tent that would save our lives later. I liked the overall look of the whole place.

We were inside for 15 minutes before the first band started, which was Millencolin on the east stage. I was so dehydrated at this point I couldn't really pay that much attention to them. They're Swedish ska-punk, and were at least tolerable. I saw them a few months later in Goleta, and they weren't even good enough to just tolerate. Maybe they had more drive here, I don't know. Still, they were decent enough to bounce around to, but I was more concerned with finding out the day's schedule and get a much needed beverage. So as soon as they finished up, we walked to the already loaded Gatorade stand as 22 Jacks began on the west stage. I could really care less that I missed them, because I had listened to their album beforehand and thought it was just really bad pop-punk with two horrible reggae songs. Yuck.. anyway, it was $2 for a small-ass cup of sugarless Gatorade! People don't lie when they talk shit about the prices at big outdoor festivals like this, because this was completely outrageous. The drinks were welcome, though, and I was able to steal a third cup (tee-hee, I'm so bad!).

When we returned to the performance area, Blink 182 was performing on the east stage. Dude Ranch hadn't even been released yet, so they weren't near as popular as they are now. There was still a decent crowd watching them. The three songs I heard them perform sounded shitty. I saw them open for Madness a year later, after the success of "Dammit," and they're just a horrible live band that I don't like in any way. Other people dig 'em for whatever reason; I'll never understand why. After Blink, the Alkaholiks busted out on the west stage. There's not many rap groups that put on great live shows, and there's even less who do the same style of rap as the Alkaholiks. But with just two rappers and a DJ, the 'Liks were able to put on an energetic show that got the crowd (who didn't really look like hip-hop fans) jumping and waving their hands in the air. Actually, one of the rappers was DJing because their usual DJ was missing for some reason, so he screwed up a couple times, but that's to be expected. At one point, they brought out some guy who did some weird-ass robot-style dancing that generally freaked the hell out of everyone. People were disappointed when it was announced that Ol' Dirty Bastard was unable to make the show to do a duet with them. Everything was going along fine and most people were having fun (especially those who got invited up for a beer drinking contest -- some big fat guy won, and I thought he was going to stage dive, but luckily he thought better of it), but then something had to come along and spoil it. Some racist asshole (and there were a few scattered all around the Velidrome), started to yell at someone in the Alkaholiks' posse about how he was going to "Beat his nigger ass." The guy onstage had to be restrained from jumping into the audience and beating that guy's ass. I didn't want to around if a brawl did break out, so my friends and I left. Luckily, the Alkaholiks' set was ending anyway, and Hepcat's was begginning on the east stage.

I didn't know any Hepcat songs at that time, but I was interested in hearing them. I think this was before Scientific came out, so their only album was Out of Nowhere. The only song I remember them performing was when they started with "Hooligans." Not too many people seemed to dig the traditional ska sound, but a few people were dancing along with us so everything was all right. Hepcat sounded great. This set made me go out and get their albums. No one does first wave Jamaican ska as authentically as Hepcat. I mean, they sound straight out of Studio One, circa 1964, even live. I can't wait to see Hepcat again, now that I'm more acquainted with their songs. After Hepcat, I went over to make a phone call while Limp Bizkit started on the west stage. This was of course before they used a novelty cover song to get big and before all the Korn-a-maniacs out there had any idea who they were. From my friend's description, they were a bunch of morons back then also. After waiting almost an hour to use the phone, I made my way to the second stage area to see Sugar Ray, who were in the midst of their success with "Fly." The crowd watching them wasn't that large, but those who were there had a steady pit going. I was too busy trying to get a drink of water from the mist tent that was just streaming water now to get a good watch of Sugar Ray. Singer Mark McGrath seemed to have a lot of energy, but there's just no way I can enjoy their primary sound which is crunchy, Family Values-type metal/rock/punk.

Eventually I met up with my friends again. I had just missed Royal Crown Revue on the east stage. I was kinda bummed because I was interested in hearing them, and was even more bummed when I saw them blow everyone away opening for Madness later in 1998. We all left to go get a drink of water as Sick of it All started on the west stage. A year and a half removed from this show, and I wish I had watched SoiA because I think they're one of the better hardcore bands that I've heard. Everyone in the band was going nuts, too, running all over the place, while a bunch of thick, wife-beater sporting, tattooed tough guys beat the crap out of each other in one of the most brutal pits I've ever seen. But a las, I didn't even see them do a whole song. After guzzling about a gallon of more water, we arrived back in the main area just in time to see Reel Big Fish begin on the east stage. RBF was one of my favorite bands in the world at this time, and they really could do no wrong in my eyes. They did a really great set and the crowd enjoyed the hell out of them, moshing and crowd surfing and stuff, even during RBF's anti-all-that-stuff song, "In The Pit," which hadn't been released on an album yet. I remember them doing "Alternative Baby," "Beer," "Everything Sucks," "She Has A Girlfriend Now," and a few others before ending with the big, crowd-rousing hit, "Sell Out." The usual good show from RBF.

The Vandals started immediately on the west stage. Being Orange County legends, the OC crowd was nuts for them, as expected. I regret not being down in the front, as I just sorta watched from outside the pit. Can the Vandals ever do a non-entertaining performance? They opened with "Live Fast, Diarrhea," and never looked back.. neither did the crowd. They followed up with several new songs from The Quickening, which had just been released at the time: "It's A Fact," "Aging Orange," "Marry Me." The bulk of the set was Live Fast, Diarrhea tunes, though: "Happy Birthday To Me," "NIMBY," "Ape Shall Never Kill Ape," and some others. They brought out POWER 106 DJ Katalina (I may be fucking that up), who everyone thought was Gwen Stefani from No Doubt (singer Dave Quackenbush even made a joke about that) to sing their awesome version of "Summer Lovin'." People were yelling for old-school, Stevo-era Vandals songs, but Dave said, "Nah, we don't play those. If you want to hear those, listen to Richard Blade's 80s Flashback Weekend on KROQ." Pretty funny if you live in SoCal. They ended with the Vandals staple "I Have A Date," with guitarist Warren Fitzgerald taking the mic, dragging a girl up onstage and having her rub suntan oil on him. You never can really get enough of Warren stripping down to a G-string.. actually, you can, nevermind.. Anyway, in a survey taken in the car after the show, the Vandals won the nod for Best Band of the Day, with good reason.

The legendary Descendents started on the east stage. For some reason, it was kept secret on the radio whether or not the Descendents were going to play. Well they did, but at that time I wasn't a big Descendents fans (though I would

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Welp, on the west stage, the Mighty Mighty Bosstones began. This show was at the height of their mainstream popularity, which has plummeted much since then. At the time, I had been looking forward to seeing the Bosstones the most of any other band. They were one of the first ska-influenced bands I got into. I still dig a lot of their material, but I wouldn't be half excited to see them today as I was back in the summer of 1997. They started off with "Rascal King," which I still think is an awesome and just insanely catching song. The crowd was pretty thick for their set, but there was surprisingly plenty of room to dance around. Dickie Barrett's voice doesn't sound as scratchy live as it does on record. The Bosstones followed with a good set that consisted of a lot stuff from Let's Face It and a little bit of some old stuff. I remember them playing "Noise Brigade," "1-2-8," "Kinder Words" (my favorite Bosstones song), some old punk song that sounded like shit, "Royal Oil" (which was really fun - my friend crowd surfed and floated for half the song, being passed all around the pit, right passed Dickie who was in between the stage and the barrier, and then got dropped off back where he started), "Where'd You Go" and of course "The Impression That I Get," which got a huge reaction from the audience. They ended with "Hell of a Hat." I wished they had done more from More Noise and Other Disturbances, but oh well. They were my personal highlight of the day and didn't disappointed me one bit.

I got separated from my friends after the Bosstones and walked around for a while trying to find them. Social Distortion was playing on the east stage. They're another band I regret not at least watching. I'm still not a big Social D fan, but I do like a lot of their songs (maybe that's just from my Social D-fanatic friend who pounds them into my head everyday). I saw them end with "Ball and Chain" and "Ring of Fire," though. Mike Ness was surprisingly energetic, jumping around and stuff. I thought he'd be a lot more reserved live. His voice sounded extra nasally, which kinda annoyed me. But anyway... I met up with my friends in time to catch the headliners, Pennywise. We just sat and watched from the bleachers. It was obvious that they were the most popular band there. The pit was absolutely huge. Musically, they were very tight and good, and there wasn't one time where they sounded bad at all. The thing that pissed me off about them was their fat, drunk-ass guitarist, Fletcher, who talked shit about the Bosstones and everyone who wasn't moshing in between every song. He just sounded like a big, tough-guy idiot. When he wasn't speaking, though, I was entertained by Pennywise. I don't remember any original songs they did, but I do remember the covers: "Minor Threat" by Minor Threat, "Nervous Breakdown" by Black Flag, and "Same In The End" by Sublime, which they dedicated to Brad Nowell. All those songs were done ultra-fast and sounded really cool. They ended with the usual "Bro Hymn," but we left when they started the song to beat the rush to the 7-11 across the street. Pennywise was a cool way to end the show.

Overall, this show fucking rocked. It was significant to me because it was my first big outdoor festival-type show, and we had been looking forward to it all year. It'll always be one of the most memorable shows for me. Despite the horrible heat, overpriced drinks, and the massive amount of people, Warped '97 was one of the funnest shows I've been to.

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