Day 10: Milwaukee, WI

We arrived in Milwaukee after a pretty long drive. Our driver, Anthony, knocked out a large chunk of it and then I finished it off.

We were scheduled to play second, but after the first band failed to show (who does that on warped tour?) we became the openers. In the normal show mindset, being the first band on stage is never good because fans aren't usually there. On warped tour it's the opposite. The stage was set up right by the gate and drew a large crowd right from the start.

I discovered what it was like to mess up a solo in front of hundreds of people. Definitely not a highlight but in the grand scheme of things it wasn't that bad. A lot of people remembered us from coming through on tour with Reel Big Fish and Streetlight Manifesto.

The attached photo is the sunset under the bridge where all the buses and vans parked.

-Dunnigan TTV

Day 8: Cincinnati, OH

After a much needed day off and time spent with old/new friends, we made it to Ohio. The venue was a familiar one because we played it in 2005 when Paramore shared our stage.

When promoting ourselves in the morning line, with our neon green stickers, we came across a bunch of people who had seen us before when we came around with Reel Big Fish. Because of that, our set was packed with people. Before we had even started setting up our gear we had a crowd waiting for us.

Our merch tent was in a high traffic area so we were able to do a lot of promotion for our new single/album. We rounded out our day with a live acoustic set under the Altec Live tent.

Off to Milwaukee.

-Dunnigan TTV

Day 7: Atlanta, GA

The day started off like any other. We set up merch, brought our gear to the stage and sweat profusely. Our day differed when we played an acoustic set in the Kia Motors tent. We were joined by a bunch of kids under the red/orange tent for a more subdued version of our set.

After Kia we headed over to our stage to start setting up. Much to our dismay, the skies had started turning darker and there seemed to be a subtle panic happening within merch tents and behind backstage. Everyone was prepping for a storm. By the time we took the stage, there was no doubt that there was something mean coming. Right in the middle of our set the storm hit with all it fury. raging winds and rain were accompanied by thunder and lighting (which was striking far too close). halfway through our last song the power was cut because it became too dangerous. Fans were ushered away an merch sales plummeted.

The one redeeming quality of the day: backstage BBQ. That and a much needed day off.

EIY Meetup

Everyday Sarah Saturday, founder of earnityourself.com, holds a meeting with the founder/creator of warped tour, Kevin Lyman and the tour manager Lisa. The meeting offers kids the chance to ask prominent forces in the music industry any questions. We try and go to as many meetings as we can because the questions people ask are always different and the panel has a wealth of knowledge to share.

Day 6: Orlando

Before I begin I would like to say, much to my disappointment, we did not go to Disney World. Instead we were at punk rock summer camp.

Orlando was very busy for TTV. We played our set, then the girls ran from our stage to the main stage to sing with Reel Big Fish, then we hustled to the Altec Live tent to perform an acoustic set, then we went to press to do interviews and from the interviews we ran to our tent to do a signing. All this happened in a span of 3 hours. Today in Atlanta should be just as hectic and I can't wait.

-Dunnigan TTV

Day 5: West Palm Beach

The crowd in West Palm was nuts. Skank pits and circle pits all over the place. We had some fun with water guns, razor scooters and ladder ball. There were a few really awesome fans that helped bring people to out merch table to listen to the new single, so props to them.

The after party BBQ, or should I say dance party, was an awesome time. We got to meet/socialize with some of our favorite bands on tour as well as meet some truly great people.

Day 4: St. Petersburg

Vinoy Park was set on a large stretch of water and was the setting for our 4th date. Some stages, like the one in the picture, overlooked the ocean.

The curveball of the day: Tropical Storm Betty. The day started out just like any other day. It was hot, sunny and free of clouds. Within a few hours the full force of Betty was upon us and the tour was in the middle of it. Despite the wind and ferocious rain, the stages kept playing music.

Our gear was, luckily, under a tent but everything ended up soaked anyway. There's something about a storm and a festival that mix well. The crowds seemed to be going extra wild because of the situation.

At the end of the day, no one got electrocuted and St. Petersburg seemed to be a success.

We just loaded into the Cruzan Amphitheater in West Palm Beach.

-Dunnigan TTV

Day 3: Charlotte

I'm not too sure what is going on with my phone but every time I write a good blog entry it fails to send and doesn't save.

Either way, we rocked in Charlotte yesterday. The temperature on stage was 101.3 degrees at 4:30. Kevin, the founder of warped, was saying this is shaping up to be one of the hottest Warped Tours to date.

I got a chance to check out the John Lennon Educational Tour Bus yesterday. The bus is actually a mobile video and audio recording studio. It was nothing short of mind-blowing. I recommend looking it up on google.

-Dunnigan TTV

Day 2: Virginia Beach

At the end of the first day of tour I thought I had an great sun tan. After my first shower, however, I discovered the world's cheapest self tanner: dirt.

Virginia Beach was packed.The grounds were much flatter than the first date, so moving all the merch and gear was much easier. We've been getting really good sized crowds so far and a fan came up after the show and asked for my guitar pic....awesome!

On a side note, finding somewhere to charge your phone is pretty tricky. This update would have come sooner but my phone was dead and there's not enough time to charge 8 people's phones on rides between venues.

We're in Charlotte today. That update will come at the end of the day.....as long as my phone has battery.

-Dunnigan TTV

Meriweather Post Pavilion

We've arrived. We woke up at 6:30am, picked up our all access passes and started unloading. It's only 10am and it's already pushing 90 degrees but we love it!

-Dunnigan TTV

July 19 (Day 1)

We're officially on the road. The van is amazing, I helped two cougars fixed their car and they repaid me in hard iced teas. Oh, we also saw a Delorean. So many things happening in one day! We're about 45 minutes away from Merriweather Post Pavilion and we are pumped for tomorrow morning.

I think I finally fixed the issue with my phone not posting to blogger so prepare for updates galore.

-Dunnigan TTV

test