*This review was composed by Sydney Gore and edited by Erik van Rheenen

Contrary to popular belief, there was no skating or surfing at Skate And Surf Festival on May 18. For the first time in8 years, the music festival was brought back in place of the failure that was last year’s Bamboozle Festival. In fact, Skate And Surf Festival pre-dates Bamboozle Festival, originating in 2002 in Asbury Park, New Jersey. 

Originally, the festival was supposed to go on at Plaza Green at iPlay America in Freehold, New Jersey but was moved to Six Flags Great Adventure for the weekend by popular demand, although most attendees will agree that Six Flags is one of the worst venues for concerts.

Unfortunately, Mother Nature was not on Jersey’s side, casting the entire day with grey skies and light showers. Aside from the bad weather, Skate & Surf Festival was somewhat of an actual disaster for its first round. The setup alone for the event was an absolute mess. On one side, three stages are directly next to each other while the main stage — almost the same size as the others — stands a few feet away from another hidden stage.

Even though it seemed like everyone was here to defend pop punk, there were so many different types of music featured at the festival, including hip-hop/rap, alternative, ska, electro, indie rock and screamo. With the stages being so close to each other, there were a lot of mixed signals throughout the day: in between sets, it was almost impossible not to hear the next band over. 

At the Aquarian Better stage, pop-punk bands like Mixtapes put on energized 30-minute sets before spectators got too soggy from the rain. (The bassist even performed without an actual bass for most of the gig, which was impressive.) The Ohio natives were the most interactive band by far, engaging the crowd in witty dialogue in-between all of Maura Weaver and Ryan Rockwell’s lighthearted male-female call and response sing-alongs. 

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Many of us reflect back on the early 2000’s as a true golden age for the music that we love the most - the term “emo” hadn’t yet been bastardized by the mainstream, Drive-Thru Records was putting out release after release of foundational pop-punk, and no one had really thought yet to dress up a metalcore breakdown in guyliner. The Skate And Surf Festival, an annual celebration of these acts and genres, leveraged its way into legend status after only three full years of activity by compiling lineups of the best and most important bands of the time, many of which were in their heyday. 

Some of those bands have created longstanding and solid careers, and to see a few of the groups that helped to shape such a noteworthy festival of great lore slotted to appear at it’s return is a really cool thing. We’ve selected some of the returners and highlighted their careers in the context of the Skate And Surf Festival’s existence to celebrate the permanence of our scene and reflect with a bit of nostalgia on what exactly some of our favorite bands were doing 10+ years ago.

Related Stories: 
POZ Skate And Surf Preview: Our Must-See Bands And Acts (Day 2)
POZ Skate And Surf Preview: Our Must-See Bands And Acts (Day 1)

Fall Out Boy, by Adrienne Fisher
2003: First appearance at Skate & Surf (April 25), release of Take This To Your Grave (Fueled by Ramen, May 6), finalize future signing to Island Records (mid-2003)
2004: Second appearance at Skate & Surf (April 18), release of My Heart Will Always Be the B-Side to My Tongue (Fueled by Ramen, May 18), first appearance on Warped Tour
2005-2008: Stupid amounts of commercial success, release of From Under the Cork Tree (Island Records, May 30, 2005), Infinity on High (Island Records, Feb 5, 2007), and Folie a Deux (Island Records, Dec 16, 2008)
2009-2013: Hiatus
2013: Prodigal return from hiatus, release of Save Rock and Roll (Island Records, April 16)

“Comeback of the year” is the catchphrase of FOB in 2013. Plenty has been spoken, ruminated, yelled, theorized, and waxed about the much-adored pop (punk) act’s return to the fold, and their prodigal return to a festival also making its prodigal return seems nothing short of harmonic. When FOB played Skate & Surf in 2003, Take This To Your Grave was still 2 weeks away from release and and their buzz was only beginning to increase in volume. By 2004, following a tour supporting Mest and Matchbook Romance, the band was still close enough to the underground to be flush with love from every kid involved in the scene, making the festival - once-exclusive to punk and emo - a perfect setting for them before their popularity began to expand outside the boundaries of those genres. Now, their appeal is as widespread as the lineup of this year’s Skate & Surf, making their headlining slot completely appropriate in both homage to the original festival and a salute to it’s current incarnation.

Bayside, by Adrienne Fisher
2001-2003: Formation, release of demos/split with Name Taken, sign to Victory Records (2003)
2004: Release of Sirens and Condolences (Victory Records, Jan 24), appearance at Skate & Surf (Apr 16)
2005: Appearance at Bamboozle (May 1), release of Bayside (Victory Records, Sep 1), passing of drummer John Holohan (October)
2006 - 2013: Release of many, many full-length records - The Walking Wounded (Victory Records, Feb 6, 2007), Shudder (Victory Records, Sept 20, 2008), Killing Time (Wind Up Records, Feb 22, 2011) - as well as splits, comps, Warped Tour stints, and a covers album

To state the obvious, Bayside’s been around for a long time by now. Hailing from Queens and siphoning off a little bit of that Long Island “scene” momentum, these New York natives were just starting to get their footing when Skate & Surf was operating back in the early 2000s. Their signing to Victory Records (which was totally not a bad thing back then) can probably be likened to their leg-up into the ranks of golden-era bands of the time, and their gradual entry into popularity fell very shortly after the heels of the old, golden-era bands. However, the momentum they began to create in 2004 with the release of their first full length hasn’t diminished in the last 10+ years - Bayside’s band trajectory is punctuated by consistent releases, frequent touring and oodles of high profile Warped Tour and festival appearances. They’ve  created for themselves quite the legacy - and their slot at Skate & Surf can function as both a celebration of their beginnings as well as the continuation of a solid career.

Streetlight Manifesto, by Erik van Rheenen
2003: Everything Goes Numb is released, the band’s lineup changes start once their four song demo is recorded.
2004: Streetlight plays Skate & Surf with headliners Taking Back Sunday, Brand New, and Yellowcard.
2006: Catch-22’s Keasbey Nights (Victory Records) gets a Streetlight makeover, about which Kalnoky said, “We wanted to get it right for once.”
2007: Somewhere in the Between (Victory Records) comes out.
2010: Streetlight releases the first volume of their ambitious cover project, 99 Songs of Revolution (Victory Records).  We’re still waiting on the next 88.
2013: Victory torpedoes Toh Kay’s The Hand That Thieves record, but Streetlight’s pre-hiatus swan song The Hands That Thieve sees daylight after label struggles kept it from coming out in 2012. 

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Skate And Surf Festival is just a few days away now, and we hope you’re all as excited as we are for an incredible weekend at Six Flags in Jackson, NJ. We thought it’d be a great idea to put together a list of POZ’s Must See Bands And Acts for the first day of the lineup today, with a day two feature coming tomorrow. Check out ticket/lineup information for the festival here, our list below, and reblog to let us know who we need to see while we’re at Skate this weekend!

Streetlight Manifesto, by Erik van Rheenen
Ska fans can wipe that tear from their eyes and pull on their skanking shoes: the beginning of the end may be here, but not before Streetlight plays a homecoming show in Jersey under the bright lights at Skate And Surf. With label woes plaguing the release of The Hands That Thieve, the band will probably blow off some steam at their set and show off some of the new material, which is, in fact, killer. From old fan-favorites to new sing-along anthems, fans will make Streetlight Manifesto feel right back at home. Mostly because they will be.

Balance & Composure, by Adrienne Fisher
Balance & Composure has been fairly quiet ever since wrapping up a pretty hefty winter headliner earlier this year with The Jealous Sound and Daylight, only to reveal just a week or so ago that that time’s been leveraged into finishing up their second full-length record, slated for release sometime this fall. I know I’m not the only one busting out party hats to celebrate that fact, and being that their set at Skate and Surf is the only one publicly on the books for the foreseeable future, we the people should probably resolve to make sure we’re there for it. While we can always cross our fingers for a preview of a new song, the truth is that we’re definitely not over 2011’s Separation and will still eagerly lend ourselves to become soul-crushed by that opening rhythm section in “Burden.” If you’re a Balance fan, make it a point to catch this set – you never know, those songs from Only Boundaries might drop out of rotation once the new record comes out and you wouldn’t want to be that guy whining about how you missed out on hearing the old stuff, right?

Transit, by Jesse Richman
It’s hard to remember the last time anyone in the scene released an album as divisive as Transit’sYoung New England— whether they loved it or hated it, everyone seemed to have a strong opinion. As they bring that album to the biggest stage yet, will the crowd be with them or against them? Has the criticism beaten Transit down or made them stronger? And has Joe Boynton’s voicereally changed? We’re looking forward to finding out the answers.

Andrew WK, by Erik van Rheenen
When it’s time to party we will party hard.

I mean, seriously. What will be more fun than catching a set from the King of Positive Partying himself at an amusement park? Since the eruption of his smash hit “Party Hard” in 2001, Andrew WK’s become a jack-of-all-trades: motivational speaker, TV show host, producer, and of course, sticking to his singing/songwriting guns. Dust off your copy of I Get Wet, reacquaint yourself with some of WK’s early 2000s party rock anthems, and let’s get a party going on Saturday afternoon.

LIGHTS, by Sydney Gore
The 24-year-old Canadian singer-songwriter has a way of enchanting anyone who listens to her synth-pop tunes. With a traveling background as a missionary child, Lights takes the crowd on an adventure of their own to a digital dimension where music is the only savior. Her most recent album, Siberia was nominated for “Pop Album of the Year” at the Juno Awards last year. Don’t let Lights’ “manic pixie dream girl” physique fool you—she goes hard at live shows, especially when the heavy electronic beat start pulsing. Lights is always a delight to watch, so definitely don’t miss out on her set—it’s bound to be electrifying.

Mixtapes, by Erik van Rheenen
Ordinary Silence doesn’t hit shelves until the end of June, but fingers crossed these Ohioans share a few new tunes with us come this weekend. The uber-productive pop-punkers (this marks their second full-length in as many years) keep the bouncy tunes coming, and the dual vocal attack of Maura Weaver and Ryan Rockwell (and their kinda-sorta ridiculous stage banter) is always a blast to sing along with. There aren’t many bands to usher in summer with, and Mixtapes sets are pretty much always guaranteed to be a good time. 

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The Monthly Summary
Week I 
Week II

Albums Out This Month
Week I 
Week II

The Weekly Tour Round-Up
Spring-Summer

Exclusives 
Tiny Moving Parts Sign To Kind Of Like Records 
Man Overboard Add Arms Of Orion (Reunion) To Record Release Show 
Weerd Science - ‘Red Light Juliet’ Artwork Reveal 
Meadowbrook Records Sign Free Throw

Interviews
Kurt Travis

Reviews
Face To Face - Three Chords And A Half Truth
Streetlight Manifesto - The Hands That Thieve
Tegan And Sara - Closer Remixes

First Impressions
Man Overboard, Misser, The World Is A Beautiful Place

Perspectives
How To Curate The Perfect Skate And Surf Lineup 
The Machine Shop Gang  

Discussions 
My First Concert Experience

BandsOnBands
This Century on Nine Inch Nails

Playlists
Team Recommendations 

Contests 
Skate And Surf Festival - VIP Tickets [Ended on May 9th]
Make Do And Mend, CG, DMND YTH - Tickets [Ended on May 8th] 
Man Overboard Add Arms Of Orion (Reunion) To Record Release Show 
Skate And Surf Festival - GA Tickets [Ends on May 15th]

Streams
Football, etc., Plaids - Split 7” 
Times New Roman - “Twenty Something” 

Video Premieres
The Filthy Souls - “Boys Will Be Out For A Fight” 
Chantry (Of The Cab) - “Me Oh My” 
The Sheds - “I’ll Be Fine” 

Track-By-Tracks
Citadel - Citadel

Behind The Booths
Sainthood Reps

Podcasts
100 Words Or Less: P.O.S

Showcase 
Secret Plot To Destroy The Entire Universe 
W.C. Lindsay 
Radiator Hospital 
Fake Problems 
Fingers Crossed 
Armslength

Gallery
The Wonder Years, Modern Baseball, The Sixties
Yellowcard, Reel Big Fish
Balance & Composure, Exploded Drawings, Bleeding Fractals 
Captain, We’re Sinking, Glocca Morra, Timeshares

Sponsored Tours   
It’s A Spring Fling [05/24]
BoySetsFire, No Trigger, Pentimento, Light Years, Maker [05/24-05/26] 
Songs Of The South Fest [07/20-07/21]

*This review was composed and edited by Erik van Rheenen

An Open Letter to Streetlight Manifesto:

This isn’t how it was supposed to end, was it? When I first heard “Point/Counterpoint” as a gawky high-school sophomore wearing way-too-big headphones, I couldn’t believe Streetlight Manifesto would die — well, call it a day — with its song unsung. But here we stand, one foot on the gas, one foot in the grave, on the brink of hiatus. This isn’t the sendoff you deserve. So I’ll try to write a proper one.

Victory Records keeps shoveling dirt onto Toh Kay’s record like a closed-casket funeral for an album fans won’t get to pay their respects for. Victory bottled The Hands That Thieve like a lightning bug, suffocating its glow in a Mason jar without holes. But Victory’s stranglehold didn’t stop you from bringing the fire and brimstone — horns and guitars a-blazing — on The Hands That Thieve. Fuck T.S. Eliot’s long-quoted poem. Streetlight Manifesto was going on hiatus not with a whimper, but a bang.

“The Three of Us” bursts forth with frenetic energy, blasting the floodgates open with frenzied horns. The bullish pace of the rollicking opener gives way to a very Jazz Age intro to “Ungrateful” — that muted trumpet would make Satchmo proud. It’s been six years since we got a true blue Streetlight album, and The Hands That Thieve picks right back up where Somewhere in the Between left off: punkish toe-tappers, vibrant brass, and fists-in-the-air anthems abound. 

Kalnoky airs out his laundry with reckless abandon, belting, “We will bite the hand that thieves / We will not turn the other cheek / This is no threat, it’s a promise we will keep” on the record’s title track. The song builds from an acoustic homage to fusion jazz to barnstorming punk jam when the first chorus comes around, and what Kalnoky’s lyricism lacks in subtlety is doubled in ferocity. 

“If Only For the Memories” pulls a quick one-eighty, infusing some mariachi flair into Streetlight Manifesto’s most pop-driven melody to date — maybe covering Rhymin’ Simon’s “Me and Julio Down By the Schoolyard” rubbed off. If Paul Simon penned a ska-punk song, it would sound something like this. 

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Fans have yet to receive pre-orders for Streetlight Manifesto’s new record that were ordered in November due to Victory Records withholding copies of the album from the band. The band has released a lengthy update on the situation and Toh Kay’s solo record, which has been cancelled due to other ridiculous Victory Records claims. Check out the statement below after the jump.

Related Stories:
Streetlight Manifesto Refused Albums Via Victory; Acoustic Album Cancelled 

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Summer is so close. We can almost taste the rip-off tank tops, pavement, and over-airconditioned venues. Yes. there’s Warped Tour, but there are so many other great tours going on this summer too that you shouldn’t miss out. Between Tigers Jaw and Pianos Become The Teeth, Fall Out Boy, The Menzingers, Circa Survive and Coheed And Cambria, there’s something for everyone. We decided to put together a new PropertyOfZack Discussion on all the “must see” tours this summer, so check them out below and feel free to reblog with the tours you can’t wait to see!

Tigers Jaw, Pianos Become The Teeth
For a music lover, sometimes the untimely end of a band’s career seems almost as hard to get over as an unexpected breakup with a significant other. When Tigers Jaw announced in March that they’d be going on hiatus, they were gracious enough to soften the blow with the simultaneous announcement that they’d be touring through the summer, giving fans one last chance to see them. With so many fans being newer ones who have fallen in love with the band at some point since 2010, it seems that much more upsetting that Tigers Jaw have chosen now to take a break. 

With hiatuses a dime a dozen recently, there’s no saying that an eventual Tigers Jaw reunion is completely out of the question. But the band has acknowledged that this will be their last tour in the foreseeable future. With Pianos Become The Teeth and Sainthood Reps as support, this tour would have been a priority on most people’s summer to-go list regardless of the future state of Tigers Jaw. However, without the promise of seeing them again, Tigers Jaw’s headlining summer tour is absolutely a can’t-miss. - Alyssa McKinley

Streetlight Manifesto End Of The Beginning Tour
The scraggly curbside sign-holder on the cover of Streetlight Manifesto’s 99 Songs of Revolution, Vol. 1 proved prophetic three years in advance: “Tomorrow it’ll end”: if by tomorrow, he meant June. The band’s End of the Beginning Tour in June marks the last hurrah of Streetlight Manifesto as a full-time touring band. There’s speculation as to the band’s decision to call a hiatus (Victory Records’ hands have apparently done some thieving — see: Toh Kay album), but there’s no doubt that on the first leg of their farewell tour, the band will be shutting the book on this chapter of their career with a resounding bang.
 
June marks the shorter of the farewell tour legs, but Streetlight’s making a point to route the tour through some smaller markets. The tour also comes on the heels of Streetlight’s firecracker of a new album, “The Hands That Thieve,” and fans have more than a month to let the record sink in and decipher the lyrics before shouting the choice cuts back at Tomas Kalnoky on tour. If catching Streetlight Manifesto one last time wasn’t incentive enough, the fact that Rodeo Ruby Love and Empty Orchestra are opening the bill should more than clinch this as one of this summer’s best lineups. - Erik van Rheenen

Fall Out Boy Save Rock And Roll Tour
Not many bands could pull off a comeback like Fall Out Boy has. In a matter of months, they’ve gone from being on indefinite hiatus to having a number one album, two full tours announced, and three music videos released. 

Panic! At The Disco has already been declared as the support for the upcoming fall arena tour, but as of right now, support for this summer remains a mystery. But that didn’t stop every single show from selling out in seemingly record time. For most bands, this would create a lot of pressure to deliver in a big way. Fall Out Boy isn’t just any band though; this is the band rallying behind a lofty cry of “Save Rock And Roll.” So whatever tricks Fall Out Boy has up its sleeves, it’s safe to say that they’ll pull out all the stops on tour. - Becky Kovach

The Menzingers, Fake Problems, Restorations, CWS
The Menzingers have been doing tons of high-profile support touring since the 2012 release of their incredible sophomore full-length, On The Impossible Past, but their small room appearances have been mostly limited to one-off dates and strings of shows on journeys home. This June, however, will see a club headlining tour with thorough coverage of the Midwest and the I-95 corridor with companions Fake Problems, Restorations, and Captain, We’re Sinking in tow. Despite the year and a half that’s lapsed since OTIP came out, excitement abounds for this tour and dates are already selling out well in advance. The Menzingers host a punk rock show as they were meant to exist: with just the right balance of strong musical prowess and sloppy, energetic fun, their shows bring out the fiercest singalongs in people, fueled by both emotional strife and drunken debauchery. 

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Streetlight Manifesto Refused Albums Via Victory

In another effort to make music fans fall more in love with their label, Victory Records are denying Streetlight Manifesto and their fans copies of their pre-ordered album. This, of course, means fans who spent anywhere between $10 to $50 are left tapping their leg waiting for Victory to realize that they are an embarrassment. Keep tapping.

Into It. Over It. Releasing 200 Page Book + Live 7”

The not emo, not champion of March Sadness artist Evan Weiss, aka Into It. Over It., will be releasing a 200 page book called Life Is Suffering sometime soon via Topshelf Records. Look, we know what you’re thinking. The title of the book and live 7” sound so emo it hurts, but don’t worry, liking Into It. Over It. does not make you a hater of March Sadness. 

*The information above did not come via a press release, thus it could be completely wrong

Jimmy Eat World’s ‘Damage’ Is An Adult Breakup Record

Phew. At least we can call this bad boy an emo record. The general feeling behind Jimmy Eat World’s new album is an adult break-up theme. We’re ready.

Secrets Announce New Vocalist Aaron Melzer

Aaron Melzer is stepping in for Secrets as their new vocalist. The band will have a new album out sometime soon. 

The Wonder Years Releasing New Song On Thursday

This Thursday. “The Bastards, The Vultures, The Wolves.”

Streetlight Manifesto’s long-awaited final album, The Hands That Thieve, is now out. Give it a listen after the jump.

Related Stories:
Streetlight Manifesto Refused Albums Via Victory

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Victory Records have forced Toh Kay to cancel selling The Hand That Thieves for now, but it looks like it managed to find its way onto streaming sites regardless. Listen to it via Rdio below!

Related Stories:
Streetlight Manifesto Refused Albums Via Victory; Acoustic Album Cancelled Due To Label As Well 

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Victory Records are refusing to give copies of Streetlight Manifesto’s new record to the band to fulfill pre-orders. Toh Kay’s acoustic album has also been cancelled due to the label. You can check out an upsetting statement from the band below.

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April 30th is just two days away, and there are a few great releases coming out this week. Click “Read More” below to check out the album details and download information for all the great records coming out this week!

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Streetlight Manifesto have confirmed that Rodeo Ruby Love and Empty Orchestra will be opening the End Of The Beginning Tour. Check out the dates below by clicking “Read More.”

Related Stories:
Streetlight Manifesto Going On Hiatus; Confirm Farewell Tour 

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Attack Attack! Call It Quits

The days of crabcore have come and gone. In 2013, we all stood together to witness both the breakup of Attack! Attack! (UK) and the breakup of Attack Attack! (US). Long live the core. 

Sleeping With Sirens Announce ‘Feel’; Stream New Song

Feel is the title of Sleeping With Sirens’ new album, and everyone is expecting even bigger things from the band this go-around. What do you think of “Low?”

Rockstar Uproar Festival Tour With Circa Survive, Coheed

Circa Survive and Coheed And Cambria will be playing sheds this summer with Alice In Chains and Jane’s Addiction. Wait, what? Yeah. 

Streetlight Manifesto Fans Ask For VA Venue Change

The venue change has been brought up due to the homophobia incident last month that The Wonder Years’ tour package went through.

Descendents, Pennywise Opening For Sublime With Rome

This doesn’t sit well.

Park To Return In 2013?

Please emo gods, please.

Tom DeLonge Writing Two Screenplays

All hints point to screenplays about UFOs and aliens. We’d most likely prefer Tom to be working on new blink or Angels & Airwaves music, but we won’t complain as long as these are better than LOVE (the film).

Fans of Streetlight Manifesto have begun asking the band online to change their show at Empire in Virginia to a different venue called The Lab following an incident over homophobia last month that POZ reported on. A full thread on Facebook from fans can be read here, a deeper story from Under The Gun Review can be read here, and the original post can be seen below by clicking “Read More.”

Related Stories:
Details Of Last Night’s Run In With Homophobia At TWY Tour 
Promoter Addresses Members Of TWY Tour Package As “Faggots” 

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