Day Two of Punk Rock Bowling, Relentless Heat and Relentless Mosh Pits, by Holly Homan

Rancid, the barricade-breaking band

Extreme Heat and Three Days of Punk Bands at Punk Rock Bowling Festival in Vegas, by Holly Homan

On day two of Punk Rock Bowling I arrived a bit late. I had two Uber rides cancel on me. When I arrived a band I was unfamiliar with called Playboy Manbaby was in full swing. Playboy Manbaby is fronted by Robbie Pfeffer who looked like a young Elton John minus the crazy glasses. He had unbridled energy and unbridled wackiness and humor. This is a band that aims to have fun on stage and engages the audience to join in their fun. He was all over the stage and part way through their set, jumped off and stood on the barricade to goad and serenade the crowd. Said crowd ate it up. There weren’t too many attending their set and that’s a shame because they missed a real gem. Playboy Manbaby hails from the Phoenix area and I hope they do their own tour and come to Seattle because I will absolutely come out to see them.

End It from Baltimore was who I caught next. End It is a relatively new band (formed in 2017) and are fronted by the very charismatic Akil Godse. One of the first things he pointed out was how he was dressed exactly like the secunity detail at the event. He pranced across the stage constantly and had the crowd in the palm of his hand instantly. End It is rounded out by Chris Gonzalez on drums, Ray Lee- guitar, Johnny McMillion- guitar and Pat Martin-bass. This is a band to keep an eye on.

Next up I caught Noise. Noise is mostly a pop punk band with catchy, danceable songs and guitar riffs. This is another band I’d not seen nor heard of and I hope it won’t be the last I see of them.

Sloppy Seconds from Indianapolis was up next. These guys, who use names like, B.A., Ace Hardware, Bo’Ba Jam & Steve Sloppy, also played a more punk pop music with a heavier emphasis on the punk part. I heard a bit of Ramones influence. They have quite a following too as many were pressed up against the barricade and I noted many about during the course of the day wearing Sloppy Seconds shirts. Looks like I discovered another band to follow.

The rest of the evening consisted of bands I was familiar with and it was time to see a band I’ve loved for some time, the Aggrolites. This time they were fronted by legendary English ska/reggae performer, Roy Ellis. Although Ellis is pushing 80, he strutted and danced about the stage non-stop. He also looked sharp in a blue suit and matching hat. Despite the blistering heat, he never seemed to break a sweat. Combine this with a very lively horn section (sax & trombone) and a band that gave their all to the performance, this was a fantastic show. It was great to see them again.

By this time I needed to get off my feet (bad knees) so I parked myself on the disabled platform and watched the Casualties from there. Thank heavens for a 400mm lens. I was also thankful I wasn’t in the throngs slamming and moshing. The Casualties put on a very high energy performance and worked the crowd into an absolute frenzy. They look the punk part too with sky high Mohawks and spiked hair. The Casualties are pure punk for hip punksters. It was great seeing them again.

Face to Face were up next. I’d seen them once before several years ago. They also put on a very energetic show. This SO. Cal band has been around for about three decades. They broke up for a few years and are back stronger than ever. Their set landed on front man (Trever Keith’s) birthday and a cake was briefly brought out. When they played their hit, Disconnected (my favorite song), a number of crowd surfers made their way through the crowd. Despite their being on again, off again, they still attracted a good sized crowd.

Brit punk pioneers the Damned were on next. The Damned are fronted by founding member (the band formed in the late 70s) David Vanian. He wore dark glasses and a black artist’s tam. No one in the band stood in one place for more than a few seconds and this caused the area closest to the barricade to erupt in constant moshing. I had only seen the Damned once before, but if they come to Seattle I will surely see them again.

Next up was another British legend, GBH. Like their counterparts the Damned, they exhibited a ton of on stage energy, constantly flitting about the stage as if it were composed of red hot coals. They have that classic punk look with cut off sleeves, shaved heads and loads of tattoos. They also had their audience whipped into a wild frenzy.

Now it was time for the headliner of the day and one of my all time faves, Rancid. They performed their most famous songs (Olympia, WA, Ruby Soho) but after a few songs they announced that the barricade was broken and they had to take a break while it got fixed. They claimed it would only take 15 minutes, but it took about double that. Some left, but most people stayed. Rancid came back on stage and went over time to atone for the missing link. Rancid was the only band that caused a breakdown of a barricade so that gives you an idea how raucous this band is. They finished their set playing Ruby Soho for the second time. If it had been up to me, I would have had them play Blood Clot.

Day two of Punk Rock Bowling had now come to a close and there was nothing to do but wait for a Lyft ride back to my hotel to prepare for the third and final day.