Backstage Press: Honda Civic Tour 2011

Showing posts with label Honda Civic Tour 2011. Show all posts

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Show Review: blink-182 Hartford, CT

Neither New England's rainy weather nor Travis Barker's busted up hands could keep blink-182 and their droves of Connecticut fans from the Hartford stop of the Honda Civic Tour last Sunday night. Playing to a nearly full house at the Comcast Theatre (their first show there in nearly two years), the band presented themselves as a cohesive trio who are once again com

fortable enough with each other to take some chances on stage.

The SoCal natives opened up with their hit single, "Feeling This" off their 2003 Self-Titled effort. With the crowd warmed up, blink immediately jumped into "Up All Night", the first track released from their upcoming LP, Neighborhoods.

As the set continued, it was clear that blink had found their stride again. They seemed much more comfortable with each other on this tour than their previous North American tour in 2009 where their stage banter and song choices were more reserved.

Perhaps that was best demonstrated after "What's My Age Again?" when guitarist Tom DeLonge slipped on stage. As if it were the late 90s again, bassist Mark Hoppus wasted no time in making fun of his fallen comrade. But never to be outdone, DeLonge shot back, taking a dig at Hoppus' mother - which even got a rise out of drummer Travis Barker.

From that point on, the show proved very lighthearted and fun. Between songs, blink even busted out some rarely heard material from their earlier years including "Family Reunion", "Happy Holidays, You Bastard" and a short, mashed up cover of My Chemical Romance's "Na Na Na".

The band also made sure to cover all their bases, playing cult favorites such as "Man Overboard", "Carousel", "Down" and "Josie", amongst others. In addition to the hits, blink flew seamlessly through another three brand new songs from Neighborhoods - "After Midnight", "Heart's All Gone" and "Ghost On The Dancefloor".

But, as with any amphitheater performance, the show was much more than the music. Blink managed to put together a set design that was bigger and more visual than anything they'd previously had. Complete with moving LCD screens, a laser light show, fog machines and the unforgettable Travis Barker drum solo high above the crowd in the pit, the band have proved that outdoing themselves is an understatement.

Blink were supported at this show by the Atlanta, Georgia outfit, Manchester Orchestra and the goth-emo rockers, My Chemical Romance. For more information on tour dates near you, click HERE.

And take a look at some of Backstage Press' photos from the front row. We'd also like to give a shout-out to our new friends who held it down front row in the pit with us - Joe, Kyle, Andy, Big Lou and Abby. You guys rule!

Sunday, July 31, 2011

2011 Honda Civic Tour Preview

Consistency has always been a strong point for the Honda Civic Tour, who year after year seem to bring the biggest and most popular bands of the day together for a summer concert spectacle that's like no other. And in just days, the tour will once again kick off its North American journey with two of the most heavy-hitting names in alternative rock: blink-182 and My Chemical Romance.

Southern California natives blink-182 are touring the United States and Canada for the first time since their summer 2009 reunion tour, which proved a massive success. Armed with a brand new, edgy single, "Up All Night", and a new record on the way (rumored to drop on September 27th), it's clear that blink are ready to bring new life to the term "rock show."

They're returning to play this, the 10th anniversary of the Honda Civic Tour - a tour they helped christen back in 2001 alongside Everclear.

In an interview on the Honda Civic Tour Facebook page, Mark Hoppus commented on what fans can expect to see during the coming tour. "We try and one-up every single tour and have each tour have its own look. We spent a lot of time with the set designers working on the sets, and lighting shows and things like that."

Considering their 2009 tour featured confetti machines, 20+ songs per set and Travis Barker performing drum solos while being spun high above the heads of the pit crowd, this coming tour should be a sight to see. Besides, this will be the first time fans will hear new blink music played live in eight years. What's not to love?

Add to the mix the largely popular East Coast rockers, My Chemical Romance, as co-headliners and tour seems untouchable. While still on the road promoting their latest release, 2010's Danger Days: The True Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys, MCR have jumped back into the spotlight and aren't leaving any time soon.

But let's not forget about the openers. The wildly popular indie rockers, Manchester Orchestra, will be kicking off the tour in Holmdel, New Jersey on August 5th. Later dates on the tour will feature hipster act Matt & Kim, political punks Against Me! and finally punk-rock legends, Rancid.

If there's one thing that should make the 2011 Honda Civic Tour stand out against the rest of summer's shows, it's simply how eclectic the tour will be. On any given night you might hear the new wave of indie rock, or perhaps catch a glimpse at the punk-rock scene as it was a few decades ago. And, of course, you'll hear those big radio hits from the headliners every night - not to mention a few lesser known tracks packed in for the diehards in the audience.

This is one tour you won't want to miss this summer. So be sure and grab tickets while you still can. Some seats are going as low as $20. No excuses this time around.

Check out the dates, locations and supporting acts below.

8/5/11 - Holmdel, NJ @ PNC Bank Arts Center *
8/6/11 - Wantagh, NY @ Nikon Theatre at Jones Beach *
8/7/11 - Wantagh, NY @ Nikon Theatre at Jones Beach +
8/9/11 - Boston, MA @ Comcast Center *
8/11/11 - Buffalo, NY @ Darien Lake Performing Arts Center *
8/12/11 - Washington, DC @ Jiffy Lube Live *
8/13/11 - Hershey, PA @ Hershey Park Pavilion *
8/14/11 - Hartford, CT @ Comcast Theatre *
8/16/11 - Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre *
8/17/11 - Toronto, ON @ Molson Canadian Amphitheatre *
8/19/11 - St. Louis, MO @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre *
8/20/11 - Chicago, Il @ First Midwest Bank Pavilion *
8/21/11 - Cincinnati, OH @ Riverbend Music Center *
8/23/11 - Milwaukee, WI @ Marcus Amphitheater *
8/25/11 - Winnipeg, MB @ MTS Centre %^
8/26/11 - Saskatoon, SK @ Credit Union Centre %^
8/27/11 - Edmonton, AB @ Rexall Place %^
8/28/11 - Calgary, AB @ Saddledome %^
8/30/11 - Victoria, BC @ Save-On Foods Memorial Centre %^
8/31/11 - Vancouver, BC @ Rogers Arena %^
9/1/11 - Seattle, WA @ White River Amphitheater ^
9/3/11 - Salt Lake City, UT @ USANA Amphitheater ^
9/4/11 - Denver, CO @ Comfort Dental Amphitheater ^
9/7/11 - Minneapolis, MN @ Xcel Center #
9/8/11 - Des Moines, IA @ Wells Fargo Arena +
9/9/11 - Kansas City, MO @ Sandstone Amphitheater #
9/10/11 - Indianapolis, IN @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre #
9/11/11 - Detroit, MI @ DTE Energy Music Centre #
9/13/11 - Cleveland, OH @ Blossom Music Center #
9/15/11 - Pittsburgh, PA @ First Niagara Pavilion #
916/11 - Saratoga, NY @ SPAC #
9/17/11 - Camden, NJ @ Susquehanna Bank Center #
9/18/11 - Virginia Beach, VA @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre #
9/20/11 - Charlotte, NC @ Charlotte Verizon Wireless Amphitheater #
9/21/11 - Atlanta, GA @ Lakewood Amphitheater #
9/23/11 - Miami, FL @ Cruzan Amphitheater #
9/24/11 - Tampa, FL @ 1-800-ASK-GARY Amphitheatre #
9/26/11 - Houston, TX @ Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion #
9/27/11 - Dallas, TX @ Gexa Energy Pavilion #
9/29/11 - Albuquerque, NM @ Journal Pavilion #
9/30/11 - Phoenix, AZ @ Tempe Beach Park Amph. # (MCR will not be playing)
10/1/11 - Anaheim, CA @ Honda Center #
10/2/11 - Sacramento, CA @ Sleep Train Amphitheatre #
10/4/11 - Concord, CA @ Sleep Train Pavilion at Concord #
10/5/11 - Mountain View, CA @ Shoreline Amphitheatre #
10/7/11 - Las Vegas, NV @ Red Rock Resort, Spa & Casino #
10/8/11 - Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl #
10/15/11 - San Diego, CA @ Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre #

* -Manchester Orchestra

% -Against Me!

^ -Rancid

# -Matt & Kim

+ -To Be Announced

Monday, May 23, 2011

Honda Civic Tour To Feature blink-182

That's right, the rumors are true. The 2011 Honda Civic Tour will be featuring blink-182 along with co-headliners, My Chemical Romance.

The tour will kick off in early August and run through mid-October, while covering 48 cities in both the US and Canada. Additional supporting acts include Manchester Orchestra, Against Me!, Rancid, and Matt & Kim on select dates throughout the tour.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Honda Civic Tour, and it's obvious its creators decided to go big or go home. Since 2001, this traveling amphitheater tour has hosted some of the largest names in the punk and alternative scenes. Tour alum include Fall Out Boy, Paramore, Panic! At The Disco, New Found Glory and Good Charlotte, amongst others. In fact, this year's appearance will be blink's second go around at it, as they were part of the very first Honda Civic Tour in '01.

This is a surprise move for blink-182 since they recently announced they would be postponing this summer's European tour to finish working on their long awaited new record (a followup to 2003's, Untitled). Bassist Mark Hoppus took to the internet this evening to clear up the confusion.

"[The Honda Civic Tour] was booked ALONGSIDE the UK/European dates, a long time ago," wrote Hoppus. "We did NOT book the US tour after deciding to postpone the UK/European dates." He later stated that the band wanted to solely focus on producing a quality album before hitting the road again, and that fans should be expecting the new record soon.

"Now there's a hard deadline for the album to be turned in, and it will be released during our US tour."

In their UK/European tour postponement notification a few months back, blink mentioned that they didn't want to tour without new music first being available to fans. And with an announcement from KROQ and drummer Travis Barker last week, it seems that some new blink music, even if it's just one song, is on its way this July or August - right in time for the kickoff of the Honda Civic Tour.

Get stoked.

According to Alternative Press, presale tickets will be made available for those who are a part of the blink-182 or MCR fans clubs on Monday, June 6. Presale tickets will also be accessible on Wednesday, June 8 for fans who "like" the Honda Civic Tour Facebook profile page. General public tickets will go on sale for each show on Saturday, June 11.