Superherohq's Journals

Tom DeLonge Wants Off Interscope Records, Calls Modlife 'The Answer' For Industry

Tom DeLonge has some advice for aspiring musicians. "Don't get your band signed because it's the worst thing you could do these days, to be tied up to a label that doesn't have any power to do anything." The Angels and Airwaves frontman delivered these words of wisdom to Buzznet at the Hollywood Guitar Center, shortly before participating in a panel with several other musicians about the Vans Warped Tour and the state of the biz. Part of the reason why the man who tasted mega-success as part of Blink 182 is hoping to steer young bands away from the labels is the increasing interest in a band's merchandise and touring business revenues the labels have. "They don't know how to promote [merchandise or shows] so they don't really deserve these parts of your business." He is quick to point out the distinction, in some cases, between majors and independents. "A lot of times independent record labels do okay because they have the built-in audience and thatâ�™s why theyâ�™ve been around along time. They never succumbed to the big corporate machine." Tom is of course speaking from experience. "Iâ�™ve been through, like, three record label changes, four regime changes and the entire industry crumbling. Iâ�™m kind of wondering if itâ�™s me that started it all. Am I saying or doing something wrong?, " he jokes. Angels and Airwaves are looking to untangle themselves from that machine as soon as possible. "[We want to be] doing our own thing, for sure. I'm in the process of trying to make that happen. We want off of the label and we want do it all ourselves." The list of things Tom DeLonge is already putting his stamp on reads like a rapper's resume. There's the shoe company, Macbeth, who endorses everyone from My Chemical Romance to Foo Fighters, Bloc Party, Muse and Green Day, or as Tom puts it, "the cool, rad, good bands with taste. And weâ�™re signing professional athletes now too -- surfers and skateboarders. Weâ�™re in the works of one of the best skateboarders of all time but I can not say who it is; and itâ�™s not [one of] the typical ones you would think." There's also the Angels and Airwaves documentary, Start the Machine. But the thing Tom is the most excited about is Modlife, which he calls "the answer" to all of the music business' woes that he has been part of building "for years." Astute media watchers will recall the grand pronouncements made by Tom in the press. Well, this is what he was talking about, folks. "With my really great communications skills," he smiles, "I was talking about something called Modlife and thatâ�™s launching on the Warped Tour. Itâ�™s an Internet-based operating system that allows bands to communicate themselves in about 15 different digital ways from pay-per-view movies, chatrooms, podcasts, blogs, live broadcasting and all this stuff. Weâ�™re gonna sign up all the bands that are interested, starting this summer, including one of the larger groups of bands in the world. "Weâ�™re really, really excited about it cause it really is a kickaâ�”thing," he continues. "We spent years and millions of dollars on [it]." And what's Tom's role in all of this? "Iâ�™m more of the visionary aspect of the company. Modlife transformed my band. This isnâ�™t even a plug. November we launched it on the Angels and Airwaves website. We're talking to television studios, celebrities -- anybody that can pull in a fanbase or have a business of some sort, if you have anything that people want from you and it can be in digital form, whatever it might be, this is a good thing for you. YouTube is just videos. MySpace is the leading social net..." And what about Buzznet?! "Buzznet is great! It's a great way to see whatâ�™s happening in the marketplace and what people are interested in. It's a different thing." Tom's involvement in Modlife, Macbeth and other projects hasn't curtailed his first love, of course: music. Angels and Airwaves plans to return to the studio this fall, provided that plans for a possible "big" tour fail to materialize. "If that [tour] doesn't happen, our goal is to start recording right away."

The Top 25 Metal Bands

A writer for Yahoo! Music recently published a blog purporting to be a definitive list of "top" metal bands. A good friend of mine, with many years of experience in the music biz as graphic designer and A&R person, emailed another good friend of mine (both a musician and a former A&R himself) and I to grumble about it. But something productive came out of the grumbling: our own list.

I won't go into detail about what was wrong with the Yahoo! guy's list. Suffice it to say it includes Kiss... And Spinal Tap.

Seriously, it does.

What follows is my friend Tom's list and then my own. My definition of metal is a bit stricter than Tom's. While AC/DC and even the Crue are rad, they are not "metal" to me, they are hard rock. My list is not based on my personal favorites alone (nor are Tom or Jason's), but rather, on bands we each felt have had the most impact on respective corners of the genre and of course overall.

Tom's list:

01. Black Sabbath
02. Iron Maiden
03. Judas Priest
04. AC/DC
05. Metallica
06. Motorhead
07. Guns 'N' Roses
08. Motley Crue
09. Pantera
10. Scorpions
11. Slayer
12. Danzig
13. Megadeth
14. Dio
15. Queensryche
16. Tool
17. Accept
18. Alice In Chains
19. Rage Against The Machine
20. Napalm Death
21. Anthrax
22. Testament
23. Carcass
24. Neurosis
25. Suicidal Tendencies

My list:

01. Black Sabbath
02. Iron Maiden
03. Metallica
04. Judas Priest
05. Slayer
06. Pantera
07. Korn
08. Sepultura
09. Dio
10. Megadeth
11. Death
12. Morbid Angel
13. Celtic Frost
14. Anthrax
15. Carcass
16. Meshuggah
17. At The Gates
18. Emperor
19. St. Vitus
20. Fear Factory
21. Type O Negative
22. Paradise Lost
23. Integrity
24. Zao
25. Entombed

Jason's list:

01. Black Sabbath
02. Iron Maiden
03. Judas Priest
04. Metallica
05. Megadeth
06. Dio
07. Slayer
08. Ozzy Osbourne
09. Pantera
10. Motorhead
11. Korn
12. Anthrax
13. At The Gates
14. Death
15. Queensryche
16. Napalm Death
17. Venom
18. Accept
19. Voivod
20. Scorpions
21. Motley Crue
22. Carcass
23. Type O Negative
24. Deep Purple
25. Slipknot

AP's Blood Runs Deep (Youth Of Today, Cro-Mags, Earth Crisis, Integrity...)

Consider me both happy and proud to have contributed to Alternative Press magazine's 23rd anniversary special cover story, "Blood Runs Deep: 23 Bands Who Shaped Punk." I wrote about and spoke to representatives of the following "23" honorees: Youth Of Today (Ray Cappo with a testimonial from Fall Out Boy's Andy Hurley), Integrity (Dwid with a testimonial from Killswitch Engage's Mike D'Antonio), Cro-Mags (John Joseph with a testimonial from Terror's Scott Vogel) and Earth Crisis (the rarely interviewed Scott Crouse with a testimonial from AFI's Davey Havok). Check it out on newsstands and in bookstores now.

Warped Tour Founder Kevin Lyman: 'I'll Make Less Money' This Summer

HOLLYWOOD â�“ Despite co-founding the Warped Tour, Taste of Chaos and Rockstar Mayhem, and continuing to be intimately involved in the details of each tour, Kevin Lyman says he never wakes up in the middle of the night in a panic. [cut=Read it.]

How is that possible? Because he's almost always awake. "I'm down to about two to three hours of sleep," Lyman confessed to Buzznet at the Hollywood Guitar Center at a punk "evening of dialogue and insight" event last week. "I wake up and start sending emails and just kind of get excited."

And there's plenty to be excited about on the eve of this summer's Warped Tour, which kicks off in its usual starting locale of Pomona, California, today. This year's lineup includes Say Anything, Relient K, Gym Class Heroes, Norma Jean, Every Time I Die, Angels & Airwaves, The Aggrolites and more on the entire tour, with As I Lay Dying, August Burns Red and several others on select dates.

"We have a few less bands this summer than past summers," Lyman pointed out. Rising fuel costs and the general state of the economy are affecting Warped Tour just like everyone else.

"I think we're going back to 1995 in some ways," he explained. "In 1995 bands like Sublime and Orange 9mm shared a bus. L7 and No Use for a Name shared a bus. Then we went through this phase where there was a lot of money moving around the punk world and bands were getting signed and I have bands showing up with two tour buses with four people per bus. Now are going back to where they may be in one bus but they have three extra bunks and they're trying to find someone to rent those bunks."

[Click picture to view video interview]

Rockstar Mayhem launches this year as well. Whereas Taste of Chaos is unofficially billed as "Winter Warped," the Mayhem tour is more metal-leaning, boasting Ozzfest veterans like Slipknot, Disturbed and Walls of Jericho. The idea popped into Lyman's head during last year's Warped Tour ,when he saw metal bands like AILD, Throwdown and Killswitch Engage doing well with the crowd and generally enjoying the setup. The idea occurred to him that something run similar to Warped could work in the metal genre as well.

An early adopter of bio-fuels, Lyman is conscious about growing energy concerns and other current events affecting the consumer's bottom line, but he refuses to shutter his tours. "I'll make less money [on Warped this year]," he admitted. "I've already told my family that this summer is going to be how we sustain it. And we'll do all right. I make a living. We won't be living on the street because of the Warped Tour, but it's like, if I don't make money this summer, it's understandable because you can't every year."

However Lyman's tours adjust he's adamantly opposed to reaching any further into the fans wallets. "I got people coming to me going, 'Well, you should charge a dollar more for service charge for fuel.' And I go, 'What am I gonna put a hat outside?' Those kids are having the same struggles getting to my show. It's on my mind. That's why I'm up 3, 4 in the morning."

Don't miss our nonstop Warped Tour 2008 coverage:

"Classic Crime Promise 'Pyrotechnics': Warped Tour Warm-Up"
"Relient K Guitarist Recalls Seeing Blink-182, Eminem: Warped Tour"
"Warped Tour '08: The 411 on Four Year Strong, Against Me!, Every Avenue, The A.K.A.s"
"As I Lay Dying Guitarist: Don't Wear Black Clothes - Warped Tour Warm-Up"
"Warped Tour '08: Who Are You Most Excited to See?"
"Warped Tour '08: A to Z"
"Warped Tour '08: Hip-Hop Acts Might Give You a Reason to Leave Emo Alone"
"Norma Jean Considering Nirvana Cover, Fireball Dance: Warped Tour Warm-Up"
"Fall Out Boy's Andy Hurley Unveils Clothing Line; Plans For Warped Tour Booth"
"We the Kings Singer Saved Drummer's Life at Summer Fest: Warped Tour Warm-Up"
"Warped Tour '08: The 411 on Angels & Airwaves, Bouncing Souls, 1997, Devil Wears Prada"
"Angels & Airwaves Ditching Lasers This Time Around: Warped Tour Warm-Up"
"Race Through the Aisles of Virgin Megastore Phoenix With As I Lay Dying, Protest the Hero"
"From First to Last Call Themselves 'Romantics,' 'Fatties': Warped Tour Warm-Up"
"Midnight to Twelve Want Some McLovin: Warped Tour Warm-Up"
"Motion City Soundtrack Extend Warped Stay; Fear Just on for One-Night Stand"
"Academy Is ... Bassist Prefers Leap Frog Over 'Halo': Warped Tour Warm-Up"
"All-American Rejects Drop Off Warped Tour"
"Warped Tour '07 Retrospective"
"Be Your Own Pet Talk Trash About Warped Tour: 'It's Like the New Hair Metal' "
"Every Time I Die on 'Punkguins,' GCH and Sitting in Pee: Warped Tour Warm-Up"
"Warped Tour '08: How to Meet the Bands"
"The Audition Buffing Up for This Summer: Warped Tour Warm-Up"
"Maylene and the Sons of Disaster Writing New LP on the Road: Warped Tour Warm-Up"
"Warped Tour '08: Last Chance to Be a Pit Reporter and Get the VIP Treatment"
"Pennywise Can't Get Enough of Warped Tour, Add More Dates"
"A.K.A.s to Be Joined Onstage by Gym Class Heroes? Warped Tour Warm-Up"
"Forever the Sickest Kids Want 'A Monkey at Every Show': Warped Tour Warm-Up"
"Warped Tour '08: Roll Call - and Dos and Don'ts"
"Charlotte Sometimes Wonders if She'll Blow Up This Summer: Warped Tour Warm-Up"
"Warped Tour '08: A Guide to Pit Etiquette"
"1997 Keyboardist Longs for the Slip-N-Slide: Warped Tour Warm-Up"
"Warped Tour '08: The VIP Guide"
"Protest the Hero Singer Says 'We Don't Roll Like Carrot Top': Warped Tour Warm-Up"
"Set Your Goals Are Packing Extra Boxers: Warped Tour Warm-Up"
"Warped Tour '08: Top 10 Must-Haves"
"Two More Killer Bands Added to Warped Tour Main Stage"

Also, feast your eyes on these pics of Katy Perry, Beat Union and more at the Warped Tour kickoff show on April 11 in West Hollywood, California â�“ click on the image below.

Get psyched for summer with Buzznet's Warped Tour 2008 gallery:

[Click on picture to view the rest.]

See which females will be rocking out on Warped this summer:

[Click on picture to view the rest.]

Check out these bands that will be playing Warped for the first time:

[Click on picture to view the rest.]

Find out which Warped artists are out of their 20s:

[Click on picture to view the rest.]

Warped Tour dates:

6.20: Pomona, CA @ Pomona Fairgrounds
6.21: San Francisco, CA @ Pier 30/32
6.22: Ventura, CA @ Seaside Park
6.25: Phoenix, AZ @ Cricket Pavilion
6.26: Las Cruces, NM @ N.M.S.U. Practice Field
6.28: Salt Lake City, UT @ TBA
6.29: Denver, CO @ Invesco Field
7.1: St. Louis, MO @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
7.2: Kansas City, KS @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
7.3: Dallas, TX @ Superpages.com Center
7.5: San Antonio, TX @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
7.6: Houston, TX @ Sam Houston Race Park
7.9: Atlanta, GA @ Lakewood Amphitheater
7.10 : Orlando, FL @ Central Florida Fairgrounds
7.11: Tampa, FL @ Vinoy Park
7.12: Miami, FL @ Bicentennial Park
7.13: Jacksonville, FL @ St. Johns County Fairgrounds
7.14: Charlotte, NC @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
7.15: Virginia Beach, VA @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
7.16: Washington DC @ Merriweather Post Pavilion
7.17: Cleveland, OH @ Time Warner Cable Amphitheater at Tower City
7.18: Detroit, MI @ Comerica Park
7.19: Toronto, ON @ Downsview Park Allen Road
7.20: Montreal, QC @ Parc Jean Drapeau
7.23: Boston, MA @ Tweeter Center for the Performing Arts
7.24: Buffalo, NY @ Darien Lake Performing Arts Center
7.25: Camden, NJ @ Susquehanna Bank Center
7.26: Uniondale, NY @ Nassau Coliseum
7.27: Scranton, PA @ Toyota Pavilion
7.28: Englishtown, NJ @ Raceway Park
7.29: Pittsburgh, PA @ Post Gazette Pavilion
7.30: Cincinnati, OH @ Riverbend Music Center
7.31: Indianapolis, IN @ Verizon Wireless Music Center
8.1: Milwaukee, WI @ Marcus Amphitheatre
8.2: Chicago, IL @ First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre
8.3: Minneapolis, MN @ Canterbury Park
8.5: Saskatoon, SK @ Credit Union Centre
8.6: Calgary, AB @ Race City Speedway
8.8: Boise, ID @ Idaho Center Amphitheatre
8.9: Seattle, WA @ George Amphitheatre
8.10: Portland, OR @ Columbia Meadows
8.13: Fresno, CA @ Save Mart Center
8.14: San Diego, CA @ Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre
8.15: San Francisco, CA @ Shoreline Amphitheatre
8.16: Sacramento, CA @ Sleep Train Amphitheatre Lot
8.17: Los Angeles, CA @ Home Depot Center

Win Warped tix on Buzznet right here!

Get your Warped fix with our nonstop coverage right here.

[/cut]

Angels & Airwaves, Say Anything, Bad Religion Members Discuss the Biz at Panel

HOLLYWOOD â�” Always verbose and sardonically comic, Alternative Press Editor in Chief Jason Pettigrew knew exactly how to get the party started at last night's Guitar Center "evening of dialogue and insight" event. [cut=Read on.]

[Tom DeLonge during a recent interview with Buzznet]

"How many people here are in a band?" Pettigrew asked from the small stage at the store's famed Sunset Boulevard location, where punk and indie legends past and present were about to discuss all things related to the music business. More than half the assembled crowd, the majority of them shockingly youthful â�“ with the notable exception of a few of the record label execs, managers and publicists buzzing about â�“ raised their hands. At these kinds of events, it seems, the audience is looking for the roadmap to "making it."

The talent assembled had plenty of wisdom to divulge and experience to draw upon. Flanking the esteemed Mr. Pettigrew, whose Cleveland publication has reported on and supported the "alternative" community (from Fugazi to Nine Inch Nails) for years, was an impressive array of folks.

[Warped Tour Roundtable at Guitar Center]

Tom DeLonge sat on the far left, dressed smartly in a tight-fitting jacket and his own Macbeth shoe-wear ... more befitting his current role as Modlife maven and Angels & Airwaves frontman than his prior notoriety as a Blink-182 joke-smith. (Read our recent interview with Tom, in which he says Blink will never re-form.) Next to him was Joe Escalante, the erstwhile Vandals bass player and L.A. radio host whose label, Kung Fu Records, released the very first album from Blink-182.

Then there was Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz, whose Epitaph Records was once home to the Vandals and presently boasts an impressive roster that includes Motion City Soundtrack, Tiger Army and major-label runaways Story of the Year, whose guitar player, Philip Sneed, was also present. Warped Tour, Taste of Chaos and Rockstar Mayhem co-founder Kevin Lyman (does this guy ever sleep?) was on hand as well, sitting next to Say Anything's Max Bemis.

[Warped Tour Roundtable at Guitar Center]

The main topic of discussion was the ever-evolving state of the music business.

While discussing free-falling CD sales, Escalante said Kung Fu Records is in "retreat" â�” nurturing its catalog but avoiding signing new bands until things settle down. Gurewitz is still aggressively signing and marketing new acts and trying to figure out new kinds of deals. DeLonge mentioned that during his career he's seen four or five of the labels he's been signed to disappear and/or undergo regime changes and said that Angels & Airwaves is "negotiating to get off of Interscope Records." Delonge explained that from their inception, his band has worked hard to be more of a "fine arts project" than a traditional band, with the impending release of a documentary on tap.

On the related topic of the Internet, DeLonge (a self-confessed fan of Buzznet!) thinks his years-in-development Modlife web portal holds many of the answers bands and the business are searching for. Gurewitz proudly confessed to streaming music from sites like Last FM more often than from his hard-drive, while Pettigrew is still proud of the "artifacts," cluttering his house in the form of LPs, CDs and 7" singles.

When it comes to the increasing costs of touring relative to fuel prices, Lyman said many bands are going back to sharing buses, the way bands like Orange 9mm, L7 and Sublime did on the 1995 Warped Tour. Sneed mentioned that a tour bus can cost a band upward of $1,000 per day. Lyman, an early adopter of biodiesel fuel on the Warped Tour, said many have suggested he "raise the ticket prices at Warped Tour to offset rising fuel costs." However, he's reluctant to do so, because he "recognizes that the people buying tickets are just as pressed for cash right now as everyone involved with the tour."

[Warped Tour Roundtable at Guitar Center]

The main thing the audience seemed to want to know was how to get their band noticed. The entire panel was in agreement that local scenes need to be nurtured as in the days of yore and bands should work harder to develop relationships with one another and of course ... write good songs!

Another topic that came up was the ever-present phrase "selling-out," which most of the assembled have read about themselves at one time or another on a message board. Pettigrew said that to him, the definition of selling out is, "When your first album sounds like Black Flag but your second sounds like Nickelback." Bemis and Sneed offered that selling out has less to do with a band's sound and more to do with compromising your integrity. DeLonge joked self-deprecatingly that you "can't sell out" if you "don't have any integrity in the first place," to much laughter from the crowd.[/cut]

Metallica Dominate, Pennywise Get Political at Weenie Roast

IRVINE, California â�“ Los Angeles radio station KROQ held its annual Weenie Roast y Fiesta on Saturday and featured a who's-who of modern rock, including The Raconteurs, The Offspring, Bad Religion and Pennywise. [cut=Find out what went down.]

But make no mistake: This was a Metallica concert. Anytime the four horsemen of heavy metal arrive clad in black with riffs ingrained into the public consciousness galore and lyrical nods to hot rods, Ernest Hemingway and the Book of Exodus in tow, there is no question the night belongs to them. Without a new album in stores, music video, single or DVD collection to promote, the band delivered a set list culled almost exclusively from its first five albums.

It might not have been 1986, but the scene could have been 1991, thanks to James Hetfield's white Gibson Explorer and self-described "Satanic stage stance"; Kirk Hammett's impossibly tight black jeans, sneakers and guitar painted with Boris Karloff as Frankenstein; and Lars Ulrich standing up to hit his crash cymbals and spitting beer onto his gold Tama kit. That unmistakable intro music â�” "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly" composer Ennio Morricone's "The Ecstasy of Gold"â�” announced the band's arrival, with the stomping opening notes of "Creeping Death" providing quick assurance that the day's heat was well worth suffering through.

Two songs from Reload and the presence of bass player Robert Trujillo, who has the longest hair of anyone in the crew, were the only two things separating Metallica from their commercial Black Album peak. Kirk's "look" has slipped backward in time (in a good way), as has Lars', and James has aged gracefully into a slightly rockabilly version of the ferocious lion frontman (not to mention his new tattoos, including one that has the word "faith" written in the Ford logo and a portrait of Jesus Christ). The set list rested mostly in the '80s and early '90s (there wasn't a single note from St. Anger, to the disappointment of nobody), and it all sounded wonderfully badass.

Which isn't to say that "Fuel," their second song of the night, wasn't welcome. It's easy to forget that the band's often unfairly maligned Load/Reload set sold millions of records and contained certifiable jams like "The Outlaw Torn" and "Bleeding Me." But hearing the crowd sing Marianne Faithfull's part from "The Memory Remains" at Weenie Roast was a quick reminder that several of those songs got played a lot on the radio across the country, especially in SoCal, and that they sound really good live.

But the night was all about the gazillion-selling Black Album ("Sad but True" remains possibly the heaviest song ever written); Master of Puppets ("Battery" and the title track sounded incredible as ever); that album's predecessor, Ride the Lightning (first-ever Metallica ballad "Fade to Black" could have been written yesterday, or anytime, the way it was performed); even a slight tease of the title track from ... And Justice for All before "The Unforgiven"; and, of course, "One," which bears the distinction as boasting the first video clip from the band that had famously said it would never make a video.

Metallica do whatever they want, of course (even when it involves high-fashion photos with Jonas Aukerland or disconnecting the snare drum for an entire Pro-Tools hodgepodge therapy session of an album), and that has always been their charm and their strength. The by-now-predictable Metallica confidence, elegance, statesmanship and professionalism was onstage at Weenie Roast, but more excitingly, the danger seems to have returned, as well as the fun. The guys were unhinged and having a blast.

Jason Newsted should be commended for putting more than a decade of his life into the Metallica monster, abandoning his own band Flotsam & Jetsam; punishing his body with intense physicality; putting up with constant hazing; shaking every hand he possibly could at the meet and greets; wearing Machine Head, Sacred Reich and Sepultura shirts onstage; and refusing to quit for many years despite the restrictions placed upon him regarding his numerous side projects. The guy simply doesn't get enough credit. But with that being said, Trujillo's fluid finger-picking and "in-the-pocket" rhythms are undeniably more in the spirit of the late great Cliff Burton, the bell-bottomed and Crimson Ghost-tattooed icon who was killed in a tour bus accident while on tour in Sweden in 1986. Sure, the former Suicidal Tendencies/Infectious Grooves /Ozzy bass player looks a bit goofy doing his "crab-walk" move and the "sick-Tribal, bro!" adorned basses have got to go, but the guy can shred, and the other three clearly enjoy his company.

Bands from Atreyu to Pennywise shouted out Metallica all day long, and members of Avenged Sevenfold, Bleeding Through and Every Time I Die were backstage braving the heat, presumably to catch a glimpse of the biggest of the thrash-metal "Big Four" (which, of course, included Megadeth, Slayer and Anthrax back in the day) in all of their no-St.-Anger-songs-on-the-set list-glory.

Metal Blade Records founder Brian Slagel was also backstage. Slagel gave Metallica their break when he offered a slot on 1982's Metal Massacre I compilation to a teenage Ulrich, who promised he could get a band together and whip together something worthy of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal acts they both loved. And over 25 years later, Hetfield happily gave him credit once again, dedicating their final encore of the night, "Seek and Destroy," from their debut album, Kill 'Em All, to Slagel.

"Without him, this would not be possible," Hetfield said. The "this," of course, being the band's status as the biggest heavy metal band of all time.

Complete Metallica set list from Weenie Roast:

"The Ecstasy of Gold"
"Creeping Death"
"Fuel"
"For Whom the Bell Tolls"
"The Unforgiven"
"Where I May Roam"
"Harvester of Sorrow"
"The Memory Remains"
"Fade to Black"
"Master of Puppets"
"Battery"
"Sad but True"
"One"
"Enter Sandman"
"So What!?"
"Seek and Destroy"

Metallica remain, perhaps, the best best live rock and roll band still out there.

[Metallica]

Jack White's Raconteurs couldn't hold a candle to Metallica's show, but they certainly gave it the old college try. White's vibe is a bit aloof, and connecting with the audience in any sort of obvious and visceral way has never seemed to be his concern, which hurt his "other" band at Weenie Roast. One has to remember that many of the folks who come out to a radio festival probably don't go to too many other shows throughout the year, if any. Nevertheless, his hipster Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin worship has its place, and definitely benefits from the presence of a fuller band and a drummer who can play more than simplistic thudding grooves.

The Offspring's greatest hits needed no introduction to the Weenie Roast crowd, who were treated to two new songs from the mega-million-selling band's forthcoming album, Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace. It's still weird to see Dexter Holland, who doubles as owner of Nitro Records (the label that gave AFI their start), holding a guitar. "Hammerhead," one of the new songs, was well-received. But was "Pretty Fly (for a White Guy)," one of the worst novelty hits ever from a band that didn't need one, necessary?

Daron Malakian's songwriting chops are undeniable. But it's hard not to imagine what Serj Tankian would have added to the proceedings while watching Scars on Broadway, whose lame lyrics leave a lot to be desired (watching shirtless bros sing along with "come eat some chemicals with me!" = major embarrassment shivers) and whose Pink Floyd jam-esque moments tend to meander. Malakian and System of a Down drummer John Dolyman (who also plays on Serj's solo record, Elect the Dead, which kind of tells us which two are having trouble getting along) have something cool brewing with Scars on Broadway, and their debut album, due this summer, will no doubt be interesting ... but it feels like less than the full-meal deal without System's frontman adding his spice to Daron's stew.

[Scars on Broadway]

Speaking of shirtless bros, they got their greatest moment when Pennywise trotted out their irrepressible "Freebird" Ã la "Bro Hymn." The chant throughout the anthem made the venue feel like a Manchester United soccer match. Guitarist Fletcher Dragge had plenty of things to say about the government and about the war ("F--- Authority" is still a ruling punk tune!) but made sure to let everyone know they love America. They just want the troops to come home.

What Pennywise offered in raw protest, Bad Religion supported with reasoned intellectual debate. Whether you agree with their atheistic modus operandi (I don't), there's no denying singer Greg Graffin's academic chops or guitarist Brett Gurewitz's, who in recent years plays third guitar for home shows only, impact on the scene as founder of Epitaph Records. Guitarist Brian Baker was in both Minor Threat and Dag Nasty for crying out loud, which more than negates his participation in hair-metal wannabes Junkyard (though Baker was wearing a Junkyard shirt at Weenie Roast). Bad Religion have some persistently memorable melodies. All of the pitch-corrected and auto-tuned brats fronting screamo bands could learn a thing or two about singing, let alone politics, from Bad Religion.

Atreyu opened the main stage with songs from their cleverly titled major-label debut, Lead Sails, Paper Anchor, and its Victory Records back catalog. It's no secret that the band's metalcore has softened in favor of more commercial-friendly fare, but Atreyu's momentum hasn't slowed and they still seem to be enjoying what they do ... probably even more than when they were kids coming up in the DIY hardcore community before Ozzfest and KROQ beckoned. Bass player Marc McKnight wandered into the crowd thanks to his wireless system, while frontman Alex Varkatzas left most of the melodic singing to drummer Brandon Saller, providing the closest thing to an Eagles-esque moment of the day.

Atreyu proved worthy of the main stage opening slot, though The Bravery boasted what one KROQ DJ called "the biggest second stage crowd I've ever seen at Weenie Roast," topping a bill that included MGMT and Flobots and a day that began with KROQ personality "Psycho" Mike gleefully punishing the early comers with his unique brand of bottom-dwelling humor set to music. [/cut]