From the Editor's Floor: Rockstar Taste Of Chaos

A TASTE OF TASTE OF CHAOS



You undoubtedly recognize Rockstar Taste Of Chaos tour members THURSDAY and BRING ME THE HORIZON from the cover of AP 248, but three other awesome bands are along for Winter Warped, too. Here’s a sampler platter of the rest of the Taste Of Chaos lineup. (You can also read more about them, along with an interview with RTOC honcho Kevin Lyman, in AP 248. Just sayin’.)

PIERCE THE VEIL

Owning a copy of A Flair For The Dramatic won’t necessarily prepare you for what Pierce The Veil will unleash at Taste Of Chaos. "Things come out a lot more energetic in our live act than on our album," explains vocalist/guitarist Vic Fuentes. "It’s a little different because we go all out onstage. Nothing is worse than seeing a band that looks like they don’t want to be there. For us, it’s 100 percent." –Ryan J. Downey

FOUR YEAR STRONG

Sure, they’ve got more hooks than a Clive Barker flick, but Taste Of Chaos upstarts Four Year Strong also know just as much about crafting killer breakdowns and all flavors of riffs that go chug-a-chug. The band honed their edge over years of blasting metal and hardcore as teens, making them a perfect fit for the TOC aesthetic. Hopefully attendees will devour FYS addictive hybrid sound, inspiring them to explore new sounds on their own. “We all grew up listening to hardcore music in Boston. In junior high and early high school I was kind of like one of those kids who was like, “Hardcore rules. Everything else sucks,” reflects vocalist/guitarist Dan O’Connor, who after graduating went on to briefly play with metal/hardcore outfit Bury Your Dead. “I think music’s at a great place right now, because you have really original heavy music coming out. It’s not like the same thing over and over again. Bands are starting to expand more and explore more, as opposed to a couple of years ago when everyone was like, breakdown [then] heavy part, using the same formula. Now it seems like the kids are starting to break it up and get more experimental, which is very cool.” — Brendan Manley

CANCER BATS

Cancer Bats do things differently–very differently. “When we tour in the U.K. we use a Royal Mail van,” vocalist Liam Cormier admits. “Some people think we are were doing it to be intentionally hilarious, but I promise you we are not. I like that we do things our own way,” he continues. “We started doing this band out of a love of touring and a hatred of jobs. Now we are millionaires.” Sarcasm? Check. –Andrew Kelham