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

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.

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

Your Punk Rock Halloween Playlist

Attention all you Halloweenies! This coming Sunday is All Hallows' Eve, which means you should have your costumes ready, stockpiles of candy waiting and be bumping your favorite Halloween tunes. Not sure what to listen to this year? No problem. We've got you covered. Take a look below for the best creep-tastical tunes to round out your Rocktober.

The Misfits - Halloween

Well, this one's just obvious. You can't go wrong with horror-punk, and The Misfits do it best of all. "Halloween" is filled with spooky lyrics about dead bodies and the like, while being fast enough to be called punk. Plus, if you're hurting for a costume this year, consider rocking your Misfits inspired Devilock for that Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein look.

From First To Last - Note to Self

Nothing like Sonny Moore era FFTL to send chills down your spine. What's more suited for Halloween than the video for "Note To Self"? A creepy mental hospital, a horror movie-esque plot and nightmarish sequences rip through live shots of the band performing. Want more? Just browse through their catalog. "The Latest Plague" and "Ride The Wings of Pestilence" will quench your thirst for all things spooky.

From First to Last "Note to Self" from Ryan Simone on Vimeo.

AFI - Silver and Cold

Compared to the others on this list, "Silver and Cold" comes in quite tame. But don't count AFI out on the spook scale. "Silver and Cold" is an intense rock song with a dark video attached to it. It takes place in Prague, and shows lead singer Davey Havok at the cusp of a near suicide attempt, while his bandmates race through city streets to save him. Havok symbolically lets go of earthly time (his watch) and relationships (his ring) by dropping them into the river before his would be plunge. But he turns back, just as his bandmates' car slams into a truck and explodes. As Havok departs the scene he puts on his coat... and wait, did his arm just pass through someone's body? Like a ghost? Oh, weird...

My Chemical Romance - Helena

Rock music at a wake? In one of those creepy cathedrals? Leave it to the patron saints of new-wave emo to do it. And damn, did they do it well. The song itself is about death, and the video only accentuates it. Everyone is dressed in black, it's raining out and the corpse even comes alive for a little dance number during the prayer (or the breakdown, however you want to look at it).

Atreyu - Demonology and Heartache

This one's for all you hardcore metal heads out there. "Demonology and Heartache" is one of the most riveting tracks off Atreyu's 2004 release, The Curse. Lyrically, the song takes on the darker side of things. Two parts blood and guts mixed with one part broken hearts makes for the perfect cryptic tune. What better for Halloween than a song from a veteran Ozzfest band?

William Control - Strangers

There's probably nothing creepier than Aiden lead singer, Wil Francis', side project, William Control. Off Control's debut album, "Strangers" chronicles a woman's wish to die in an underground London sex club. In fact, the song is so dark that it was picked as a track for the Saw V soundtrack. It's like a nightmare for your ears.

There you have it, kids. Crank these tunes and enjoy the spook fest.

Nothing New Under The Sun

Message boards are abuzz with opinions regarding My Chemical Romance's first single, "Na Na Na" off their yet to be released album, Danger Days: True Lives of The Fabulous Killjoys. While the banter includes "diehards" claiming which of MCR's old stuff was best, you wouldn't be hard pressed to find comments of the following nature:

"New MCR rocks!" or "This is so different, but so amazing" or even, "So different, yet so My Chemical Romance"

Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold on, kids. Different? New? No.

While, yes, "Na Na Na" is a step in a new direction for the band, the truth is that this song is nothing new. In fact, you, or even your mother, may have heard something oddly similar before.

First off, have a listen to the MCR version. Note the signature guitar and bass line. Get it stuck in your head.

Now, check out the tune, "I'm a Mess" off the EP by the Michigan band, Elm Street Riot. And something of note, this song was released in early 2010, well before the MCR version.

Weird, huh? Just wait, there's another shocker coming. In fact, go get your parents. You guys may find out that your musical tastes aren't that different after all.

Ever heard of the Easybeats? They're from way back in the '60s (hence why you should get your parents). Take a listen to their 1966 single, "I'll Make You Happy", and see if it sounds familiar.

And there you have it. New? Soooo My Chemical Romance? No. Sorry, not at all. "Na Na Na" is a good song, but don't kid yourself. It's all been done before. MCR have just put a fresh spin on it, and it's up to you to decide whether or not this recycled tune is worth your money.

*Backstage Press would like to thank our correspondent J.A. for the reporting on this post*

Fresh Tunes For Fall

Good news for all you blood thirsty, hardcore killjoys out there. Autumn is here, and it comes with enough new music to take you through another crappy holiday season. Take a look at what's to come, kids.

Senses Fail - The Fire

October 26

The hardcore New Jersey quartet are back with their answer to 2008's Life Is Not a Waiting Room. Sticking with what works best, Senses Fail have once again put together a power packed album that's set to bring down the walls of venues nationwide. Need proof? Take a listen to their first single from The Fire entitled, "Saint Anthony." Be sure to check SF out on tour this fall with Bayside, Title Fight and Balance & Composure.

My Chemical Romance - Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys

November 22

It's been four years since we last heard from My Chemical Romance, but the emo rock gods are coming full force in 2010 with their fourth studio album. It seems as though the band are radio ready, even after letting go of drummer Bob Bryar. They recently released their first single off Danger Days entitled, "Na Na Na" (see video below). It's an anthemic tune that will be well suited to join their already strong arena rock setlist.

A Day To Remember - What Separates Me From You

November 16

Ocala, Florida natives A Day To Remember went back to producer Andrew Wade (who produced their 2009 release, Homesick) for help on the new record. They spent most of August recording, and even had a special guest, in New Found Glory's Chad Gilbert, drop in to do some work on Separates. No singles have been released as of yet, but look for these guys on tour this fall with Underoath, The Word Alive and Close Your Eyes.

*UPDATE, 10/6 - ADTR release "All I Want" on KROQ. Hear it below.

A Day To Remember - All I Want by KROQ

Bring Me The Horizon - There Is a Hell, Believe Me I’ve Seen It. There Is a Heaven, Let’s Keep It a Secret.

October 4

Having just released the brutal single, "It Never Ends," Bring Me The Horizon are preparing to release their third album next week. Fans can expect more hardcore screamo covered in blood, guts and gore. Seriously, check out BMTH's latest video for proof. The band are currently streaming their entire new album, which you can listen to here.

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A few other noted acts are coming out with fresh music this fall. Be on the lookout for a new record from Underoath on November 9. Bayside have also finished recording, and their new record should be out sometime in the coming months. Jimmy Eat World just released Invented this week, and is available everywhere. Keep listening, rock 'n' rollers.