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Thursday, August 3, 2017
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com ARTS
Columbia Records
Tyler, the Creator awkwardly gazing
really sick. Especially — I don’t
know if it’s more this year than
other years — I mean there’s a lot
of bands that played Warped Tour
like 15 years ago on this year, and
more like long time punk bands
— like Suicide Machines from
(Detroit).”
Hardy hits the nail on the head
with his observation about the
lineup. But he also recognizes
that Warped isn’t without its
hardships. From hauling gear
and merchandise to and from
the site each day to surviving the
heat through consecutive dates,
Warped requires a ton of manual
labor to pull off each day.
Despite these downsides — as
Harding refers to Warped as a
“bootcamp for bands” — he also
believes that bands are able to
improve as musicians on Warped.
With consistent sound technicians
for all the stages, Warped is
certainly a far cry from the
unpredictability of the club shows
that the band is used to.
“Here, you have the same sound
guy — there’s one guy for monitors
and one guy for front of house. It’s
the same people every day so they
get you dialed in. You have the
same mix every day. You get to be
able to play better because it’s good
practice when you can actually
hear yourself and everything,”
Harding explained.
Beyond all else, Harding most
strongly
recognizes
the
fan
exposure new bands receive from
playing Warped Tour.
“I mean every band, or a lot of
bands, will say something at some
point in the set and be like ‘How
many people are seeing us for the
first time?’ and it’s at least like
two-thirds of the people every
time. That’s so good for all those
bands. Yeah, Warped Tour is tight.
We like it,” he concluded.
Hardy mentions to no surprise
that Boston Manor, Dance Gavin
Dance and Municipal Waste as
some of his favorite bands to
watch on the tour, finally alluding
to everyone’s favorite Warped
Tour guilty pleasure:
“Attila is sick. It’s like Limp
Bizkit, too. I loved Limp Bizkit. It
was like one of the first bands that
I loved. It’s just the same mentality
that I loved about Limp Bizkit,”
he said. “It’s so funny walking by
(Attila’s) sets carrying something
when you hear the shit he’s saying,
going back and forth with the
audience like ‘Suck my fuck!’ I
envy him. That’d be so much fun.”
You can catch Microwave’s
exciting modern punk rock on
Warped’s Skullcandy stage.
Boston Manor
Pop punk can be a fickle
genre — it’s incredibly hard to
stand out amongst the seemingly
endless stream of pop punk
bands hopping on Warped Tour.
Yet, with their debut album Be
Nothing., the UK’s Boston Manor
have effectively raised themselves
above the rest with their stellar
songwriting imagery and deft
pacing
of
tone.
Truthfully,
breakout single “Laika” was one
of the best punk bangers of 2016.
Continuing to ride the momentum
of the debut album, Boston Manor
are experiencing popularity at
Warped on par with the likes of
Knocked Loose. Guitarist Mike
Cunniff told me that their sets
have been full of fans both old
and new, and that their set earlier
in the day didn’t disappoint.
“It was great man, yeah. It was
pretty packed out. We had already
been to Detroit before with Moose
Blood and Trophy Eyes, so I think
some of those fans came back to
see us again — a lot of new fans
as well. There was a lot of energy
today so it was awesome,” he said.
We also discussed the pros
and
cons
of
Warped
tour
compared to the last few US
tours Boston Manor has done.
In exchange for catered meals,
bands have less mobility to
explore the areas they play on
Warped due to the nature of the
festival.
“It’s so different. Sometimes
it doesn’t even really feel like
you’re in the US sometimes...
there’s a lot less time to explore
because everywhere is sort of
out in the sticks so you kind
of gotta Uber if you want to go
anywhere,” he said. “And we
had a lot of fun touring the first
two times we came here, and we
got to see — a bunch of us had
never been to the states before
— so we got to see a bunch of
really cool things like the Grand
Canyon. And you stay at people’s
houses as well, so you feel like
you integrate a lot more into the
country ‘cause I feel like that’s
the best way to do it is to meet
people, stay with people and
share experiences. There’s a lot
less of that.”
Read more at MichiganDaily.com
‘Ballers’ continues the
party-comedy trope
When
HBO
fan
favorite
“Entourage” rode into the sunset
in 2011, the network was left
with a void in its “party-comedy”
programming. No, party-comedy
isn’t an actual type of show, but
I’m coining the term to describe
a series that centers its comedy
around its obscene parties, so mark
it down.
HBO tried, and failed, to fill this
vacancy through an “Entourage”
movie spin-off four years later, but
it was another show that premiered
that same summer — “Ballers”
— that ultimately picked up the
mantle from “Entourage.”
Throughout its first season,
“Ballers” firmly established itself
as a quality party-comedy, giving
us an exciting glimpse into the
sex-drugs-booze lifestyle of NFL
players in Miami. Led by Dwayne
“The Rock” Johnson (“Fast &
Furious 6”), Anderson Financial
Management more than embraced
a work-hard-play-hard mentality.
Never taking itself too seriously,
“Ballers” had a strong first season
that
kept
audiences
engaged.
However, the second season saw
the series ratchet up its intensity
through a drawn-out mentor-
protégé rivalry between Johnson
and
Andy
Garcia
(“Ocean’s
Eleven”). Rather than returning to
its roots, “Ballers”’s latest season
doubles down on its rapidly-
expanding storyline and, while
enjoyable, overextends itself at
times.
For “Ballers,” most of the trouble
it has encountered as a show is in
trying to sell Johnson’s character
as a shrewd businessman, despite
the fact that it goes entirely
against his background that the
series established in season one.
In its first season, “Ballers” made
a point of emphasizing Johnson’s
continued
financial
troubles
that leave him on the brink of
bankruptcy. The show went out
of its way to present Johnson’s
struggles
to
convince
both
colleagues and players he is capable
with money.
After laying out this specific
foundation
for
Johnson,
“Ballers”
proceeded
to
tear
it down in season two, and
continues to do so in season three
at its own peril. While it’s typical
for comedies to have characters
that fluctuate frequently, these
changes are always done in a
way that doesn’t contradict a
character’s essential quality or
identity. “Ballers” makes this
very mistake in the season three
premiere, as Johnson attends
a
dinner
hosted
by
casino
magnate Wayne Hastings (Steve
Guttenberg, “Police Academy”)
and manages to woo him as a
business partner. While it’s true
that Johnson has improved his
business acumen, it’s hard to
believe he’s refined it enough to
convince a financial mogul to
partner with him, considering
Johnson is the same person who,
although broke himself, gave a
$300,000 loan to another player.
If audiences can overcome its
somewhat stretched storyline,
“Ballers” rewards them with
a wildly entertaining series.
As a party-comedy, the series
has
consistently
excelled
at
keeping viewers engaged and
excited
by
focusing
on
its
characters’
lifestyles
rather
than only their careers. From
the supercharged Maclarens to the
gorgeous yachts, “Ballers” revels
in depicting the very best toys that
Miami’s superstar athletes enjoy.
Season three is no different, with
its premiere featuring a few
shots of Ricky Jerret’s (John
David
Washington,
“Coco”)
candy-apple red Ferrari roaring
through the city.
Outside of its entertainment
value, “Ballers” provides audiences
with an effective number of
hilarious scenes. Rob Corddry
(“Hot
Tub
Time
Machine”)
continues
to
be
the
ideal
complement to Johnson’s straight
man, and, when paired, they
dominate the screen with their
chemistry. At dinner with Hastings
and Johnson, Corddry takes the
entire table by shock by toasting to
living in a country “where a man
is presumed innocent until he is
proven guilty.” Corddry’s brash,
childish personality continues to
crack up viewers, and the hope is
that “Ballers” can keep doing the
same.
CONNOR GRADY
Daily Arts Editor
WARPED
From Page 1
TV REVIEW