Slamdunk Festival has been the UK’s answer to Warped Tour for as long as I can remember. And as an American pop-punk & emo music fan, it has always been a dream of mine to one day experience what I lovingly called Warped Tour: Accent Addition. This year I finally get to witness the excitement of Slamdunk Festival, and its the lineup 15-year-old me once dreamed up in a MySpace blog post about my dream festival lineup. Here are the top 5 acts we here at Substream don’t think you should miss.
A mid-aughts Warped Tour staple, and one of my all-time favorite not so guilty pleasure bands of “the scene”. When I found out these guys were finally reuniting, I almost cried from excitement. This band were a staple in the diet of a Warped Tour kid during the era of more pop-styled rock music taking over the emo scene. This definitely a reunion worth watching & a 100% can’t miss act if you ask us.
These guys were a late announcement from the Slamdunk team and I couldn’t be more excited that they were added to the bill. No emo night is complete without “Alive With The Glory of Love” being played. So getting to hear it live is definitely a can’t miss moment. Fingers crossed these guys include “Wow, I Can Get Sexual Too” and “Shiksa (Girlfriend)” in the setlist!
English horror punk band, Creeper have slowly but surely crept into my heart and now hold a very important place in it. Their sets are always filled with energy and the watching the crowd enjoy them is almost as fulfilling as watching the band perform. Their sets are always equal parts moving & exciting and I couldn’t recommend them more.
Now for the two more obvious can’t miss acts of the day.
Every emo kid in the world has a soft spot for Thursday. This band means something to every kid who ever felt alone growing up. The guys had been out of the music world for quite some time, so a lot of younger fans never got to see them live. Having been active again for two years now, seeing Thursday live feels like an honor for most hardcore and emo fans in the scene. This set cannot be missed, seeing them isn’t a suggestion but more of a must.
Would this music scene even exist without Jimmy Eat World? Probably not. Going strong since 1993 they are a staple to every single kid that likes alternative rock music. No matter what sub-genre you fall under, there’s at least one JEW song that means a whole heck of a lot to you. As a headliner, these guys will be difficult to miss. But at least make it to their set in time to catch “The Middle” because we all know you’ll complain about missing it for the whole rest of the week.
And those are our five can’t miss acts of Slamdunk Festival. Did we miss out one of your favorites? Let us know who you’re most excited to see!
