The top 14 moments that defined the 2016 APMAs
In case the rock you’ve been living under has really excellent air conditioning, the Alternative Press Music Awards went down Monday night in the fine city of Columbus, Ohio. Now amidst all of the news stories circulating, the “night of a thousand stars” shorthand hype and the gargantuan social media onslaught, you might be wondering where to begin enjoying the event online. You could start by going old-school and watching the whole show right now, by heading over to amazon.com/apmas (You have until 7 p.m. pacific time tonight.)
But look: We realize you’re busy. Maybe you’re driving your friends to throw rocks at reporters covering the RNC or narrowly avoiding walking into oncoming traffic as you seek out new and exotic Pokémon Go characters. We also know that deep inside, you are drowsy over drama, bored with beef-keeping and yearning for some real joy to affirm everything you’ve embraced about this scene. We’ve got you. Here are some show highlights and the lessons we take from them.
HOSTS ALEX GASKARTH AND JACK BARAKAT WITH SPECIAL GUEST TYLER POSEY
All Time Low members and returning hosts Alex Gaskarth and Jack Barakat kept the crowd laughing (and many of the attending parents squirming) with their wise-cracking repartee and their ability to riff on dick jokes the way master jazz musicians approach improvisation. The opening debate moderated by Teen Wolf star Tyler Posey (aka “Teen Wolf Blitzer”) was filled with assorted buffoonery, sweet sight gags and a touching moment where Barakat was coerced by Gaskarth to make out with the singer’s grandmother. The three of them brought the LOLs, knowing that in these troubling times, we need all the laughs we can accrue.
STEPHAN JENKINS JOINS MAYDAY PARADE AND THE MAINE ON STAGE
The Maine and Mayday Parade are two bands of talented musicians who came up through the scene to arrive at the musical vistas they are currently exploring. Both bands made those directions clear when going head to head playing some of their biggest hits. Then the combined Maine-Day forces united to perform one of Third Eye Blind’s biggest hits, “Jumper” featuring 3EB chairman Stephan Jenkins.
PIERCE THE VEIL'S VIC FUENTES JOINS YELLOWCARD FOR “OCEAN AVENUE”
After much consideration, the members of Yellowcard have decided to adjourn after their stint on this summer’s Warped Tour. Bands choose to end for a number of reasons, all with varying levels of intensity. We can honestly say there is no fucking way Y-Card are calling it a day because they were bored, because their set—featuring a high-spirited version of “Ocean Avenue” starring Pierce The Veil’s Vic Fuentes, plus guest vocals from Bradley Walden of Emarosa and Moose Blood's Eddy Brewerton—mirrored the same kind of passion musicians get when they first enter a small room with amps set on “stun” and discover what they’ve got. Yellowcard have achieved many commercial, aesthetic and personal highs, so any armchair analysis of their decision is merely static. So shut up and go see them, right now.
ISSUES CONTINUE TO BREAK THE MOLD
Issues aren’t known to play it safe, and their set at the APMAs was no exception. The band offered up an electrifying version of “Coma,” off their newest LP, Headspace, with past collaborator up-and-coming pop star MAX (signed to Pete Wentz’s DCD2) at the 2016 APMAs. As if that weren’t enough they brought country artist Jon Langston on stage for their genre-defying “Yung & Dum.” Further proof that Tyler Carter and Co. aren’t afraid to be trendsetters. One can only imagine what kind of subculture could be on the horizon. Wall Of Death line dancing will be a thing next year, watch…
BABYMETAL AND ROB HALFORD
Playlist culture and mp3 players pretty much decimated the concept of the “guilty pleasure,” which means we live in a world where someone’s phone has T. Swift tracks and Reign In Blood. So when you think about it, the teaming of Japanese teen-pop/crushing-rock outfit BABYMETAL with bona fide heavy metal legend, Judas Priest vocalist Rob Halford isn’t really shocking. But the amount of respect that class act Halford had for the band—and BABYMETAL’s extreme reciprocity—proves that great things come from a shared knowledge of generations. There’s a Judas Priest song called “You Don’t Have To Be Old To Be Wise.” That’s a cover version waiting to happen, girls and guy…
GOOD CHARLOTTE AND FRIENDS
When Good Charlotte frequently graced the cover of AP, we would get equal amounts of love and hate mail. (That’s how you always know someone’s rocking the boat—in the best way possible.) The influence GC has had on subsequent generations of pop-punkers of all stripes simply cannot be denied, and who better to drive that home onstage than a delegation of Bayside’s Anthony Raneri, Sleeping With Sirens frontman Kellin Quinn and upstart Awsten Knight of Waterparks. GC created their own enduring legacy, and now they’ve gotten DIY as fuck to preserve it while creating opportunities for artists they believe in.
MACHINE GUN KELLY AND PAPA ROACH
Attendees rolling into the city a day early for the APMAs pre-party were thrilled by the sight of the prince of Cleveland hip-hop, Machine Gun Kelly throwing down a version of Limp Bizkit’s “Break Stuff” that goes down as the most spirited moment of karaoke we’ve ever seen. Kelly repeated his hard-as-nails attack style at the APMAs when he joined Papa Roach onstage for a version of “Last Resort.” Frontman Jacoby Shaddix was in top form, whether it was from being inspired by his guests (which also included Tonight Alive’s Jenna McDougall and Memphis May Fire’s Matty Mullins) or maintaining a gladiator spirit to step up his game when MGK threw down. But who cares what it was: At the end of the day, we’re all supposed to bring each other up, right?
MARILYN MANSON ACCEPTING THE ICON AWARD
Four-time AP cover star and next-level taboo-smasher Marilyn Manson accepted the APMAs Icon award looking like a syndicate member from Martin Scorsese’s movie Gangs Of New York and still coming off as sincerely terrifying. But like his latest record The Pale Emperor clearly defines, there’s no reason to lose your edge when all you really need is to keep forging new knives.
NECK DEEP AND FRIENDS (PLUS ONE CO-HOST)
Used to be a time when pop-punk was a decidedly American product. Well, we better get our asses moving because the rest of the world is gaining on us. Welsh men of action Neck Deep dared us to ponder that the U.K. new school is the cool school with a rambunctious pop-punk medley starring fellow British Empire constables ROAM’s Alex Costello and Creeper mainman Will Gould, as well as Aussie wonder Jayden Seeley of With Confidence, plus esteemed Yankees Chris Carrabba (Dashboard Confessional) and Derek DiScanio of State Champs. But in this particular episode of Punk Unscripted, co-host Alex Gaskarth jumped onstage unannounced to throw down vocals on their cover of Blink-182’s “The Rock Show,” to the surprise of everyone and, well, no one. Because it’s a community, not a clubhouse. Now then: Jacket on or jacket off?
THE GHOST INSIDE
The respected hardcore band the Ghost Inside took home the Most Dedicated Fanbase Award, an honor even more poignant, since it was the first time the band members have appeared together in public since the terrible highway accident that left two drivers dead and some members with critical health problems. Frontman Jonathan Vigil went to the mic to explain how he felt he was done with music forever, and credited the outpouring of sentiment from fans as his psychic fuel to carry on playing. His unvarnished honesty hit everyone in attendance. The best fan/band dynamic, ever.
BEARTOOTH WITH UNDEROATH
Columbus homeboys Beartooth are carving their name on the veneer of heavy music with their latest record Aggressive. But when Underoath’s “Ø” logo flashed on the screen above the APMAs stage and vocalist Spencer Chamberlain and drummer/vocalist Aaron Gillespie took their positions for a majestic version of “It’s Dangerous Business Walking Out Your Front Door,” the temperature of the room may have dropped by 30 degrees, given the palpable excitement. Chamberlain and Beartooth’s Caleb Shomo prowled the stage with a menace and fervor that felt like hip-hop swagger carried by contract killers ready to get the job done and get out. Some have described this teaming as a passing of the hard-/metalcore torch, but the reality is more like witnessing the reaction of active ingredients for future incendiary moments. There’s no way either band members couldn’t be inspired by this…
OF MICE & MEN BLOW THE CROWD AWAY
There isn’t much to say about Of Mice & Men’s set at the APMAs other than wow. These heavy music heavy hitters came in clutch with performances of “Never Give Up” and their newest song, “Pain,” which offered brooding ambience and some primal scream catharsis from respected frontman Austin Carlile. OM&M are set to release their long-awaited fourth album, Cold World, on Sept. 9 via Rise Records. If their APMAs performance is any indication, you had better wear a seatbelt when you listen‚ regardless of whether or not you're in a moving vehicle.
ANDY BLACK FORMS ICONIC SUPERGROUP
Andy Biersack brought his Andy Black persona to the APMAs stage with an all-star lineup that was better than any Fantasy Football lineup in recent memory. Led by musical director/guitarist John Feldmann, and shored up by Quinn Allman (VadaWave, the Used), Mikey Way (Electric Century, My Chemical Romance) and Black Veil Brides drummer Christian Coma (who took home Best Drummer honors that evening), Biersack was having a blast and completely engaging, despite time constraints. But think about it: A bunch of dudes from three generations coming together to do great work. If only the rest of the world worked like that. So c’mon, you guys: When does Andy Black II begin tracking?
SCOTT STAPP JOINS A DAY TO REMEMBER
Yeah, A Day To Remember made us all think that brooding vocalist Jeremy McKinnon was going to be a no-show at AP’s biggest night, so they teamed up with frontman Scott Stapp to pull off versions of “All I Want” and Creed’s “Higher.” With the impending album Bad Vibrations waiting to light up your world like a phosphorous bomb, ADTR have galvanized a fanbase who have taken their patented easycore to heart like a syringe filled with adrenaline. ADTR have built an honorable career blurring the lines between pop hooks and hammering riffing, which has made them one of the most respected bands in this scene. They’ve always believed in themselves and not in matching toe-for-toe in the footprints of everyone else. So what are you doing with your life these days?
