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Article By: Kayley Guyette

Saturday May 2, 2009 at 11:30 AM Gates opened for The Bamboozle 2009. The tour featured headliners Fall Out Boy and No Doubt along with many other well known acts including All Time Low, 3Oh!3, Forever The Sickest Kids, Demi Lovato, NeverShoutNever and more.

I arrived Saturday after sitting in twenty minutes of traffic. Nicole Bradley and I then walked all the way around Giant Stadium in search of the VIP check in area, just to be told it was actually inside and we could have gone to any gate. Because of this, I missed The Cab’s set which was extremely disappointing.

We got in and got to the VIP tent, where we were given gift bags with candy, a VIP pass, and promotional stuff from bands, Myspace and Monster Energy drinks. The VIP pass gave us access to the VIP area of the stadium which includes a lounge and an indoor bathroom. It also gave us access to the VIP tent where bands came and hung out. Other bands had scheduled signings and meet and greets. The tent was also stocked (and restocked multiple times) with Wonka Candy and Monster Energy Drinks. The staff of the tent were extremely nice and did a great job running the tent.

I did not see as many bands sets as I would want to, but those I did were excellent. I was in awe of the crowds that gathered for the bands playing tents and the smaller stages. I was most in awe of the crowd that gathered for No Doubt.

Saturday that weather started off rainy but got extremely nice within a couple of hours, in fact I left with a minor sun burn (SPF 70 is my best friend, no lie). Throughout the day I took part in a lot of the VIP meet and greets and acoustics. The Cab played a really awesome acoustic set and took requests from the crowd. I got to meet up with Joe Clay who works for Forever The Sickest Kids, at one point during the day. It was cool to see him, it’s been a long time I used to be a fan of a band he was in, back in the day. Let me tell you after seeing the swarm of girls go after Forever The Sickest Kids when they entered the VIP tent, I have so much more respect for Joe, for he has to deal with this daily.

I was most surprised to see the number of band members present at the festival that weren’t even playing it. Most notably Dave and Shaant from Cute Is What We Aim For and rumor has it the Jonas Brothers were present. It was cool to see just all of the band members walking around enjoying music and talking with fans. My friend Jess Grenier joked that it was like “playing Where’s Waldo but with band members,”.

Cobra Starship did a signing in the VIP tent and the band was mobbed by people. Yet the whole band put smiles on and posed for pictures and signed autographs. Even when they were out of time, Gabe was still signing stuff as he walked. They all made conversations with everyone and took a second to get your name. At one point I ran into Cassadee Pope, of Hey Monday, while I was walking out of the VIP booth. She was so sweet to talk to and I got a picture with her. I am a fan of Hey Monday and meeting Cassadee and finding her to be so nice and down to earth made me like the band more.

Martin from Boys Like Girls also showed up to do a meet and greet. He was directed to sit behind a table, as he was being mobbed by girls. When I asked him for a picture, quickly before he sat down, he decided against being behind the table. It was then he informed the girl he refused to sit behind the table, because everyone just wanted pictures. While his wording made him come off as a dick to one of the girls running the tent, it was nice he made an effort to do something for the fans.

The night ended with a performance by Fall Out Boy. The Wonka Stage was packed with people, I did not even bother going into the crowd for it. I hung out towards the back with Craig, Nicole and Jess, Craig somewhat held me up so I could see. To avoid traffic, Nicole and I left halfway through. I’ve realized I’ve seen Fall Out Boy seven times and I have never stayed for an entire set, for various reasons. I think I need to change this next tour; they do put on a good live show.

Day Two began bright and early, well not so bright. The entire day it was overcast and raining. I resorted to buying a very comfortably Glamour Kills hoodie when my blue hoodie got soaked. Early on in the day I ran into David Blaise of This Providence who was handing out flyers for their set. He was really sweet and fun to talk to. My favorite part of this was David handed flyers to a few girls and as they walked away they threw them on the ground. They then proceeded to say that more people would come to This Providence’s set if David Blaise was handing out flyers not some crew guy, little did they know. I had met Dan Young, also of This Providence, the day before and he was just as nice as David.

The people running the VIP tent had passes to give out to kids in the tent for exclusive meet and greets with the bands playing the main stages. After answering some questions about 3Oh!3 correct Craig managed to get three passes into their meet and greet. Craig, Jess and I went in and it was really cool. It was only us and five other people; we were more in the backstage area of the venue. The guys are really laid back and fun to talk to. It was cool that we won the meet and greet.

The rain kept coming and going in bursts. I spent the majority of the day in the VIP tent trying to stay warm and dry. I caught This Providence’s acoustic set, which was great. I really like This Providence and their acoustic set is fantastic. It was cool to see the bands hanging out in the VIP tent they were so laid back, snagging free candy and eating pizza.

Speaking of free candy, let me tell you Anthony of VersaEmerge loves candy. When he realized the candy on the table was free his eyes lit up like a kid on Christmas. He then had Craig fill his backpack up with candy. All of VersaEmerge were extremely nice and I got to talk with them before they sat down to do a signing. I meet Sierra on Saturday and she was so laid back and easy to talk to. I can’t wait to see them on tour soon.

Surprisingly on the bill for Bamboozle was Demi Lovato. There was a good size crowd for her, many of which were young girls. She took the stage and rocked it. She then shared that she was nervous to play the show since this isn’t her normal crowd. While fans waiting for The Used to take the stage booed her, all of the kids there to see her were chanting out her names and yelling out her lyrics. Demi has a great stage presence and I cannot wait to see her in June.

Demi’s set was one of my favorite parts of Warped Tour but another favorite one was the Ferris Wheel. I rode it once each day, both of which were at night. I took a ride on the Ferris Wheel during No Doubt’s set and watched it from there. It was from up there that I witnessed the massive crowd for No Doubt. While I didn’t see much of their set, they sounded amazing.

So my weekend was full of fun, laughs, band members and music. I had a great time and if the lineup is good I will be at next year’s without a doubt. I highly recommend going VIP if you want to meet bands and if you have the extra money. While many band members are just walking around or do signings, so you do have a good chance at meeting people if you don’t have VIP. But in the VIP tent you have access to acoustic sets and you get to see the band members candid and just hanging out. It was a really great experience.

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