Events

[PUNK] The final edition of the Vans Warped Tour comes through Western New York on Wednesday, July 25 at Darien Lake. For those of us who grew up on emo and pop-punk, it’s obviously the end of an era which began in the mid-1990s. Billed as “punk rock summer camp,” and launched by Kevin Lyman in 1995, the tour has hosted everyone from NoFX to Eminem, eventually making its way to London, Australia, and Japan. Bands like Anti-Flag and Less Than Jake have been staples of the festival, appearing almost a dozen times over Warped Tour’s 23 years, but the festival was still known for its wide variety of acts from year to year. Buffalo’s own Every Time I Die played the festival eight times, helping to expose the band to fans across the country. But, in 2017, Lyman noted a decline in ticket sales and fewer bands participating as reasons why the festival would end in 2018. So here’s your last chance to catch the legendary Warped Tour. The Darien Lake stop will, once again, feature Every Time I Die, as well as Reel Big Fish, Silverstein, Less Than Jake, Simple Plan, Twiztid, Senses Fail, and many others. As my mom would always tell me the high school version of me before sending me off to La Salle Park or Darien Lake for a whole day of punk music, just don’t get hurt in the mosh pit.