Warped Tour Going Back to Its Roots

The Warped Tour was founded in 1995 as a traveling showcase for alternative rock, held in conjunction with the now defunct Warp Magazine. It wasn’t until the second year it became what it is. After securing a sponsorship from Vans, the Warped Tour became more focused on punk and third-wave ska before moving to metalcore, dubstep, hip-hop and the often-criticized world of pop punk.

A photo posted by Vans Warped Tour (@vanswarpedtour) on Jun 11, 2016 at 2:46pm PDT

In recent years the festival attempted to reach a wider audience by showcasing a more eclectic range of artists, culminating in bookings for the Black Eyed Peas and Katy Perry. Many punk veterans like John Queer and Keith Morris expressed their discontent with the shifting landscape, not just with the festival but punk music as a whole. Warped Tour founder Kevin Lyman heard these criticisms and made the decision to bring his two decade-old festival “back to basics.”

A photo posted by Vans Warped Tour (@vanswarpedtour) on Jun 5, 2016 at 2:01pm PDT

Not only is the traveling festival refocusing on music, it’s also bringing back many of the bands that 90s kids grew up on like Sum 41, Good Charlotte and Yellowcard. Four stages will be split between two main areas, one up-and-comer stage and one reserved for hardcore and metal. If you weren’t able to get a ticket or can’t wait for the action, many of the bands are releasing albums in anticipation of the tour.