Ah yes, springtime is here. Birds start chirping, flowers bloom, allergies abound and the kids come out to play. And KXTE 107.5-FM's Our Big Concert-- the annual gathering of sweat, boobs and rock-- kicked off the summer concert season with its fourth incarnation. And thank God for small miracles, because despite a mediocre lineup and unruly fans, the weather was decent-- cloudy and breezy all day.
The majority filed into the stadium while Sex Pop Suicide, Joynt Chiefs, Excon, Left Standing, and Phatter Than Albert started the day off on a lively note from a separate stage, attended mostly by those already familiar with the high-profile Vegas bands. Many stopped to see what all the commotion was about, the bands throwing out CDs to help gather some badly needed local support. And, in somewhat typical fashion, the sets were quick, the diverse styles of the bands-- from straight hardcore to funky rock and hip-hop-- confusing some, but giving and receiving more energy than most later on at the main stage.
Although the crowd was pumped for a day of cock rock when the main lineup started, it quickly faded. Early on, one-hitters Systematic and Nonpoint played their forgettable songs at the end of their sets; Taproot added a pinch of energy in the middle of the day when singer Stephen Richards jumped off stage and ran into the pit; and New Found Glory tried to inject some pop-punk spirit, but it was obvious-- judging by the number of Slipknot T-shirts-- it wasn't going over too well.
Run-DMC practically saved the show with its old school, hip-hop flava. Reverend Run, yelling angrily at the crowd, got medieval on it and made it jump; though few under 21 years of age knew their songs, they moshed anyway.
By the time Fear Factory arrived, the crowd was ready, the entire area in front of the stage becoming one big pit-- and things went downhill from there (like it could get any worse). Monster Magnet bored the crowd so badly, the floor started a bottle-throwing fight with the stands (glass and full plastic water bottles), whereupon organizers stopped the show and threatened to shut it down. At least one kid rushed to first aid, after a glass bottle struck his head. Wayne Static of Static-X pulled a repeat of Scott Weiland's whine last year of shit being thrown at him, and threatened to walk; karma came back to him, as the sound cut in and out on him, which stopped the band's set for a couple of minutes.
Headliners Blink-182 played a hilarious, flawless and quick set, which made people wonder if they'd even showed up in the first place. And at the end, when poor Papa Roach was belting out "Broken Homes," everybody was ready to return to their homes for Mother's Day, broken or not, their skin burned to a crisp-- and their brains, too. If only the weather and the lineup could be agreeable (and more local acts, dammit!), then maybe the kids wouldn't be so angry and bored.