All That Remains, The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, Egypt Central, Burn Halo, Bobaflex – Baldwinsville, NY

Review and Photographs by: Nadine Swiger
Syracuse’s 95X took over Pier 24 at the Papermill Island (Baldwinsville NY) this past Friday with Sausage Fest 2011 . It was a day packed full of good food, beautiful weather and great music for the whole family to rock out to while hanging out along the water front. Headlining this year’s festival was All That Remains, who shared the stage with The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, Egypt Central, Burn Halo, Bobaflex and Seven Day Sonnet.

The show kicked off with the Chicago IL natives, Seven Day Sonnet. They took the stage with the sun beating down in the afternoon sky. However, Seven Day Sonnet only heated thing up more when they played a mixture of songs from their debut album “Reprisal” and their latest release EP “Spring Fling.” The set list included their newest single “Farewell to Good Days” and closed out with their most popular single “Hapless.” You can catch Seven Day Sonnet this summer on tour with Nonpoint and Pop Evil.

Next up was those boys from West Virgina, Bobaflex. Fun and energetic. Fronted by two frontmen, brothers Shawn and Marty McCoy, it was interesting to see them trade between guitar and lead vocals on the songs. This time around, bassist Jerod Mankin also took on the role as lead vocalist, which he does on Bobaflex’s latest full length album “Hell In My Heart.” Closing out the set with their latest single “Bury Me With My Gun” which is featured on Bobaflex’s new EP “Chemical Valley.” The band has several tour dates in the USA between now and the end of October. You can find those dates on their facebook page.

Third on the bill was Burn Halo, kicking off the set with their well known single “Save Me” (off their self-titled debut album). With their loud guitars and straight Rock-n-Roll attitude, the crowd couldn’t seem to get enough of these guys from start to finish. Founded by vocalist James Hart after his time with the well known Orange County metalcore band Eighteen Visions, Burn Halo just released their second album, “Up From The Ashes.” Their first single from the new album, “Tear It Down” has been breaking ground on SiriusXM’s “Octane” station as well as various radio stations around the world. You can hear James talk about the new album, shooting the video and more in the interview Musician Photo Journal did with James before this show.

Fourth up was Memphis TN natives Egypt Central. Kicking off their set with “Taking You Down,” the high octane energy and crunchy guitars blowin away the crowd from the start. That energy never let up as their memorable stage presence kicked the crowd into overdrive. They played a mixture of songs from their self-titled debut album as well as songs off their latest release “White Rabbit.” Playing “Ghost Town,” “Kick Ass,” “You Make Me Sick” and the first single track from the new album “White Rabbit,” as part of their set, what wasn’t to love? Find out more about the new album, the struggle the band went through to get it released and what the Memphis rock n roll scene of today is like with the interview Musician Photo Journal conducted with Vocalist John Falls before the show. You can also hear John talk about what is into the future for Egypt Central.

Then The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus was to take the stage. This was the first time seeing this band and I did not know what to expect. They came out an owned the stage. Recently, guitarists Duke Kitchens and Matt Carter had left the band “to focus on their personal lives”; they have longtime Red Jumpsuit Apparatus fan Josh Burke on guitar and lead singer Ronnie Winter’s brother, Randy Winter, filling-in as the second guitarist. Mark your calendars for August 30th, as The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus will be releasing their third studio album, “Am I the Enemy.” You can catch them on tour now with Godsmack until September.

The crowd was hyper and full of anticipation for the headlining artist, Massachusette’s own All That Remains to take the stage. With just brief glimpses of band members off to the side of the stage, the crowd erupted in a roar and soon started chanting “ATR” they could not wait for them to start. I’ve seen All That Remains several times before, each show has gotten an excellent crowd response, but this was hands down one of the best audiences that I have witness this band having despite the “no moshing” rule of the venue.

All That Remains kicked of the night with their intro “Now Let Them Tremble” and went straight into the heavy hitting “For We Are Many” followed by “The Last Time” and “Forever In Your Hands.” Once they got some of the “radio friendly” tunes out of the way, they kicked the intensity up a few notches with songs like “Dead Wrong” which features the crazy double bass drumming skills of drummer Jason Costa (formerly with Diecast). One thing that All That Remains is known for is for being heavy and in your face, especially at radio stations shows and this show was no different. Oddly enough, there was no moshing allowed during their set, which vocalist, Phil Labonte acknowledged and encouraged the crowd to instead raise a sea of fist in the air. They rounded out their set with their singles: “The Air That I Breathe” “This Calling” and “Two Weeks.” All That Remains is currently playing selected dates in August, taking a break in September, and will embark on a tour with Five Finger Death Punch, Hatebreed, and Rev Theory in October.

This was my first time at the Papermill Island stage; I have to say, the crowd that came out was amazing to watch. They knew how to rock out and have a great time, yet keep the vibe positive while looking out for one another. That is something you don’t always get from a sold-out crowd at a radio show. I will definitely be looking forward to Sausage Fest 2012.

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