Before I do a set by set review, I want to just talk about So What!? Music Festival quickly. This is a festival that has so much heart and every detail of this festival was organized to create the most enjoyable time for attendees. Taking place in Quik Trip Park, three stages are set up in the middle of the baseball stadium making it very quick for show-goers to get from stage to stage with haste before the next amazing band played. Each day was jam packed of back-to-back phenomenal and popular acts that made the day fly by while enjoying every single second of it. Many show-goers and artists alike that I spoke to said the festival gave to feelings of a Warped Tour spread across two days.
Gusty winds made for a bit of a cold weekend for those at So What!? but it didn't stop the crowd from getting rowdy and having a good time. As someone who attended the festival last year it really seems as though this festival has started to grow and drew in a much larger and more diverse crowd than in the year previous; I met people from as far as California and Canada and saw people bring their children and dogs. This year the festival brought an extremely impressive line-up and a wide array of artists, below are some of the bands I was lucky enough to catch day one.
Sorority Noise:
Just as expected Sorority Noise brought a kind of fire like none other. This was my very first set of the morning and I was still a little groggy as it was early, but the second they played the very first note of “Dirty Ickes” no one in the crowd could help but be alive. The band played a powerful and moving set, packing every minute of the set with 150% of their energy and spirit. Vocalist, Cameron Boucher spoke of his manic-depression briefly and made a moving, but short speech on mental health awareness before playing “Using” and the crowd was completely ignited by the power of the moment. My only complaint about the set was that it couldn't continue on longer. I can not continue to rave about this band enough.
The Plot In You:
Another insanely energetic set for the beginning of the morning, The Plot In You performed with the anger only they can evoke. The crowd quickly opened up and created a gaping pit for a chaotic mosh pit. The band pleased the crowd by playing an old fan favorite “Miscarriage” but added some more of their newest release to the set as well. Landon Tewers encouraged crowd surfing and made sure to step out on the speakers often to get that much closer to the audience. The crowd gave the security a run for their money, sending surfers over the barrier-dwellers consistently throughout the entire set while a people just behind them were constantly tearing up the pit. A solid performance all around!
Sirens and Sailors:
Metalcore fans and anyone that payed attention to Sirens and Sailors set were pleased by this act. Most of the songs played were off of the bands latest release “Rising Moon: Setting Sun” but the band played an older crowd favorite called “Skeletons.” As expected, Sirens and Sailors showed Texas what they were made of playing a solid set and having fans react positively to it. Vocalist Kyle Bihrle has a quiet, yet ever-present anger to his live performance that makes it easy for the crowd to feed off of. I love these guys because they're a band that always keeps it 100% them and it shows when they leave their everything on the stage. I think Sirens and Sailors really showed up and gave So What!? a run for their money.
Secrets:
This band is on their first headlining tour and they made a stop at So What!? to play a set that pulled from various songs across their discography. The band drew a smaller crowd at the start, but acquired a massive mass of fans by the end of their set. Around the third song the crowd really began to get excited and started to dance and from then on out the band and crowd fed off of each others' energy and continued to build till the end of the set. The band performed very cohesively and the members had a great stage presence, making them entertaining to watch. Fans watching their set appeared to have a lot of fun and it was a nice performance to catch midday to bring your energy back up.
This Wild Life:
Who doesn't love to watch these two perform? The show may not be particularly visually stimulating as there is only so much two men can do with acoustic guitars, but that's not why people love to watch This Wild Life. Fans love them because of the emotion that their songs provoke. This performance was chock full of nothing but beauty and good vibes. There are few things that feel more satisfying than singing along to some pretty emotional songs with a sea of mostly strangers. This Wild Life performed a set full of fan favorites including “Concrete” and their Bring Me The Horizon cover of “Sleepwalking” making the sing-a-long all the greater. This was a very playful, yet passionately driven set.
Turnover:
Turnover attracted a massive crowd, including numerous and various members of other bands playing the festival. Turnover is a band that has been getting an insane amount of hype right now and every ounce of that is deserved. The band primarily performed hits off of their latest release “Peripheral Vision” which fans have come to know and obsess over since the albums release. Turnover's performance for the evening was illuminating. A tingle was sent down my spine with every song that was played marking just how well they were performing it. Turnover is a very emotionally ruled band, and it was conveyed perfectly to the audience. While talking with my roommates about their set we all agreed that “Turnover is exactly who they should be.” This was easily one of my favorite performances of the night.
Knuckle Puck:
Knuckle Puck picked the energy back up from having two more mellow bands before it and had a very lively set. The crowd immediately exploded into a pop-punk style pit and people were flying over the barrier frequently. The band played major hits from their EP's such as “No Good” and “Why Would You Care” while still playing more new material and closing with the angsty “Pretense” off of their latest album. The chaotic energy the band and crowd were giving off was extremely contagious as well. I had made the rookie error of wearing sandals and even I had to jump in and finger-point angrily along with the rest of my angst-ridden peers. Knuckle Puck really brought it from start to finish and earned their spot in one of my top performances of the day.
Citizen:
An emotionally reeling set as always, Citizen performed very well at So What?! The band all have very bouncy, almost trance-like stage presence that while it doesn't look interesting, it feels right and the audience appeared to enjoy bopping around in a similar fashion. In order to break up the set a little vocalist Mat Kerekes told an interesting story involving his penis, a hot-tub, and his grandmother right before playing their title track “Everybody Is Going To Heaven.” Vocally, Kerekes was extremely raw and passionate and performed at his peak. I was thrilled to hear some of my old Citizen favorites such as “Sleep” and “The Night I Drove Alone” amongst others throughout the set. There was a lot of power and emotion to this set.
Real Friends:
This seemed to be a highly anticipated set for many, starting the beginning of non-stop pop-punk till the night was over. Real Friends played their set as the sun was setting and the even though most show-goers were exhausted it did not stop them from igniting Texas during this set. This was the first band of the night to play the entire main stage (as opposed to alternating half stages) and the crowd was massive and ready to party with their favorite sad boys. Fans got to enjoy hearing a new song that vocalist, Dan Lambton had written. Guest appearances by Caleb Shomo of Beartooth and Joe Taylor of Knuckle Puck were made during “Loose Ends” sending the crowd in a harmonious uproar. This was another set that I immersed myself into the crowd with and I watched the crowd react. No matter how many tears flowed during songs like “I've Given Up on You” the entire crowd had smiles on their faces from ear to ear. This was a very feel-good set and allowed for a lot of emotional release for So What!? attendees.
State Champs:
With the release of their latest album “Around the World and Back Again” State Champs is a band that everyone has their eyes on. State Champs delivered with a powerful and lively set playing to yet another massive So What?! crowd. Fans got to enjoy everything from their most popular songs on “The Finer Things” to numerous hits and singles off of their newest (and hottest) release. Despite how cold it was for their set and how exhausted everyone was from the long day, the crowd did not let that stop them. Crowd surfers fled over to try and catch a high five from the vocalist while a push-pit continued to grow. The band lived up to their latest release and even then some, performing an incredible set overall.
Neck Deep:
Another band who has recently put out a new, phenomenal full length and earned themselves one of the headlining spots at So What?! Neck Deep put on a show that was one for the books, performing to a level more mature and amazing than ever. Members still shared banter between songs, but musically the band was at an entirely new level. A lot of new material was played throughout the night, and they surprised fans by making “December” into an upbeat, full band song after playing two acoustic songs in a row. The strobe lights and fog created a really cool atmosphere for the set and fans received it well. The crowd was engaged from start to finish and even people in the very back of this large crowd were dancing throughout the entire performance. A very impressive set and one that I will remember for a long time to come.