Sad Summer Fest Review 2019

Sad Summer Fest

July 25th, 2019
The Myth, Minneapolis MN

(Sorry I am posting this a month and a half after the festival occurred.)

I, like some (all) of you, are still reeling from the loss of the Warped Tour. But, thanks to collaboration between a number of pop punk/emo bands, we have a new annual festival to attend to try and fill the hole that Warped left behind. The Maine, Mayday Parade, and State Champs have all for sure been on the Warped Tour at one time or another. They came together to put out a new traveling festival, that is thankfully cooler and less sun damaging than Warped Tour was. I have put together an overview of how the concert was laid out, what you can bring inside, what to expect, and a review of the bands that were on the tour for my date. I hope this is informative, and I hope to see you next year at the Sad Summer Festival.

I attended the Sad Summer Festival at The Myth in St. Paul, MN. Warped tour had been held at the Canterbury Park fairgrounds outside of Shakopee, MN. It is at most a 45 minute drive between the two areas. Warped was always the last Sunday in July for me, so traffic was thankfully pretty much non-existent. 

This date was set up to have the music inside and then some of the props, backdrops, and merch tables for the smaller bands outside. The outside was fenced in with metal barriers in the parking lot. They allowed people to come in and out once you got inside the venue. They blocked it off so there was one door to get into the venue from, and then another door to access the outside area. There was a security guard sitting outside the second door as well. 

While waiting to get inside, some of the bands were walking the line and meeting fans. I got to have my picture taken and CD signed by 4 out of 5 of the members of The Maine.  John O'Callaghan was missing because he was inside getting ready to meet fans once they got into the venue. I’m not sure how many of the other bands were meeting fans outside, but inside members of the bands were for sure meeting fans. Inside I met Derek Sanders and Brook Betts, which I talk about later down in this post. Unfortunately I did not meet John of The Maine.

The way they decorated for the Fest was interesting. Everything was pink. They had three pink backdrops with lyrics from the three main bands. The Mayday Parade and The Maine backdrops were outside, and the State Champs one was inside. They had little palm trees/fronds in pink flower pots, and pink carpet decorated in front of the backdrops, which made for perfect photo ops. The other really cool thing they did was they made a plastic “box” that you could step into, and the backdrop behind that then advertised the person as an emo action figure for $9.99. They also had ‘write a note, leave a note’ stands set up, where you could write a positive message on a notecard, add it to the pile, and then take a note someone else had written.

Also in the blocked off area, they had local food trucks camp out all day or switch in and out as the day went on. The food was pricy; expect at least $10 to get a decent meal from the trucks. It is better and/or healthier than what I remember Warped having (which was pretty much fair food.) My venue had a taco truck, curry/Indian truck, and then later on they had a burger truck come in. I didn’t get food from the trucks, but I think that was because I was able to bring in a granola bar or two. I know that will vary from venue to venue, but the Fest is making sure there is plenty of water and food for the people attending.  This venue also provided some picnic tables outside, so you didn’t have to sit on the concrete or try to eat standing, which was a nice touch. 

I felt very safe at this venue. I have been to the Myth several times over the past couple years, and somehow for Sad Summer, they made it feel even more safe and secure and cozy. They had one door to filter everyone into, and at least 6 event workers checking IDs, bags, frisking people, and scanning tickets. This is actually one of the smaller shows I’ve been to at the Myth, crowd-wise. I was very impressed with how thorough they were able to be, or went out of their way to be. They had at least one security guard at any entry point. Unfortunately, this is a fear we have to deal with more than ever at our beloved concerts, but it was nice to see them taking even the thought of a threat so seriously. 

What you can bring in:

Small backpack or purse. I used a black drawstring bag. I am going to work on getting a different bag for these types of concerts. Some sports stadiums and venues in the area (Minnesota) only allow small, clear bags in. I felt bad for the security guard because I had quite a bit of stuff in my bag and it was black, so the guard and his flashlight had a hard time checking it.

A refillable water bottle. Warped was okay with sealed water bottles and not personal ones. Sad Summer is the opposite. You can bring in a personal water bottle; just make sure it is empty. I had a sealed water bottle and they had me dump it out and bring it back in empty. They really emphasized people staying hydrated, since it was an 8 hour day for me and 10+ hours for other people. The Myth in St. Paul has at least three separate places to get drinks, and they had tons of red solo cups filled with ice and water for people to drink for free. I ended up just tossing my water bottle because it was taking up space in my bag that I just filled with tons of merch.

Those are the two big items to bring in. Other stuff I had with me was money and some toiletries or other weird little medical items that might be needed. Also ear plugs are a really big push in today’s age, so I made sure I had a fresh pair of those with me. The St. Paul venue was mostly indoors, with some attractions and merch tables outside. Some of the other venues were completely outside, so sunscreen is allowed in, whether it is all outside or a combination of in- and out-. 

E-cigs, regular cigarettes, and vapes are allowed in, but you’re supposed to use them in designated areas. As the day wore on, people starting vaping inside, and honestly you can’t really tell when the bands have a fog machine going at all times. I don’t mind being next to someone vaping, but I have also been next to someone smoking before in the Myth pit, and that is a little unpleasant, since it’s not hard to get bumped into it and be burned. So ya know, obey the rules. 

*All bands can be found and listened to on Spotify*

Ashland – Ashland was the first band of the day. They are a fairly new 3 - piece band from Illinois with a modest following. I was able to find the band and their music ahead of time on Spotify. If you have issues locating them, I believe you search by “Ashland the band” on Spotify. They have one full album out and a Taylor Swift cover of “Bad Blood.” They announced at Sad Summer that they are working on their next album as well. 

 I enjoyed watching their act. There are a lot of bands that are hard to understand when it comes to them enunciating their lyrics so you can hear them over the sound of everything else going on. This is especially harder if they are a band you’ve never heard before. What I really liked about Ashland is that even though I had heard some of their music ahead of time, the vocalist was very clear. They were very energetic on stage and were moving around a lot. They did a great job of making a small crowd feel very welcome to the Festival to get the day started. The guitarist’s brother was in the crowd, so they got the whole room to sing to him to embarrass him a little bit, which helped bring the room together right away. They really set the feel of the room of being in a safe and connected space with people who feel the same. While at this time I won’t be actively seeking them out to go to their shows, if they ever show up on the docket again, I will not be disappointed.

Stand Atlantic – I was very excited to see this band live for the first time. They are a small band from Sydney, Australia. They have a mid-2000’s emo/pop punk sound, and their music videos are very clean looking and well done. I thought they did a good job performing at Sad Summer, but as someone behind me commented, they did rely heavily on their back-tracking. The lead guitarist flipped his guitar around and it came unplugged, but the tracking kept up with the rest of the song for him. The guitarists were very active on stage and the lead vocalist talked to the crowd between songs to help keep the crowd engaged and to add more to the experience.    

Just Friends – I was skeptical of this band, because I had researched their music beforehand. Their sound is hard to describe. It is like emo/garage punk meets a jazz band. I could tell from the music it was kind of a “joke” band - something fun for the people in it, but not very serious - in a good way. I didn’t like most of their recorded stuff, but their stage presence blew my mind. I stood in the crowd for the first few songs with my mouth open in shock it was so much not what I was expecting. They have a male lead singer, and a female sub-main singer. They had a trombone and piano man, at least one trumpet, guitars, and percussion instruments.  They were definitely an entertaining band to watch with their choreographed dance moves. This is another band I wouldn’t go out of my way to see again, but if they ended up on the roster, I know I’m in for a good time.

Mom Jeans – Mom Jeans can be described best as stoner emo I believe. They have a sound of a garage band, but nice and slow and not in your face. Their members are also a part of Just Friends.  They are pretty much the complete opposite of Just Friends. I don’t have too much to say about them. Just a very chill and casual performance and band.

The Wonder Years – The Wonder Years is another band that I wasn’t too sure of. I knew they were very popular and had done the Warped Tour many years, but their music is so depressing. If I came across them about 4 or 5 years ago, I would have been able to relate more. Thankfully I’m not in the same place I was back then, but I just didn’t want to feel the emotions and pain they put into their music. But, they also made a really big impression on me at Sad Summer. They have an incredible stage presence, and you can see the emotion in their songs play across their faces as bring a depth to their music I lost listening to recordings of them. Their most sad, depressing songs are brought to life in such a way that you don’t feel like you’re the saddest person in the room. I loved watching some of the people in the crowd singing along to every word, and I knew what they were feeling. The Wonder Years really brought the room together, and was a great set-up for the final three bands. 

Mayday Parade – Mayday Parade seems to be my guilty pleasure of bands. I believe I have now seen them 7 times in the past 5 years or so that I have been listening to them. I have been to every concert of theirs in Minnesota since 2014. I think I spent an entire year of my life listening to just them. I got to meet Derek and {name} before the Fest officially began. I got their album A Lesson in Romantics signed by the two of them, and yeah, I cried a little bit being able to finally meet some of the people that created the music that got me through some of the darkest times in my life. They say don’t meet your heroes in life. This was an exceptional experience. For every person they met, they made you feel like you were the only person in the room. As I’m trying to tell them how much their music means to me, I started to tear up. They probably get multiple people like me at every meet and greet they have ever done, but they still had such empathy and compassion in their eyes and across their faces as I talked to them. I got a hug from both of them, and a picture with them. Such a surreal experience, I was shaking for I swear an hour afterwards. When it was finally time for them to play their set, I was able to get to the second or third person from the barricade, and I got to sing my lungs out to some of my favorite songs. 

The Maine – This is the band that I think had the best performance of the night (as much as I love Mayday Parade). I had only seen The Maine once before at Warped Tour, in I believe 2017. They were one of the first bands to perform at Warped that day, and I was off to the side. I could barely see them, but I very much remember the baby blue suits they were wearing in the middle of the summer time. 

This band completely blew my mind. It was like an out of body experience. I loved the theme of their set: If you’re not okay now, you will be. Definitely something I think about on the regular to get me through the day. They came out explosively and played one hit after the other. They had pyrotechnics going off, and at one point, John O'Callaghan (the lead singer) disappeared and then reappeared right behind me and my brother, as we had moved from the front of the crowd for Mayday Parade and then wanted to hang out and relax in the back before going home. While John was at the back of the crowd in the sound booth, he climbed up on a ladder and led the whole crowd in a rendition of “Another Night on Mars”. The whole set was such a wholesome performance; I can’t even put it into words. They wanted to make sure everyone in the room was having a good time, and they gave us the encouragement to continue living life to the fullest, and to bravely face whatever it is that holds us back or torments us. They lit a fire in me, and I cannot wait to see them again in November at the Varsity Theater in Minneapolis. 

State Champs – yeah, so, we left after The Maine.  I have seen State Champs before when they were on the Future Hearts tour with All Time Low in 2015. To me, they are a generic pop punk band. They don’t really stand out to me. I also had a 3 hour drive back home that night, and I didn’t want to stay much later, we I took off after The Maine was done.

So after all is said and done, I hope the Sad Summer Festival becomes a yearly event just like Warped Tour was. Since it was a smaller crowd, everything felt cozy and intimate in a way that made you feel like you can just relax and be your crazy self for one long day in the summertime. I left the concert smiling, and continued to smile and feel good inside for weeks afterwards. After what I have dealt with this year, it was definitely the setting and encouragement I needed. I hope they will be back next year, and if you didn’t get to go, I hope from reading this you will go next time.