Travel Adventures: Rock USA 2016

Ryan and I have been trying to try different music festivals this year to see what we like the best. This last Thursday-Saturday it was Rock USA in Oshkosh, WI. Overall it was a fun experience. The infrastructure of this festival was lacking and I do not think we would camp here again due to this.

Pictures are all courtesy of Chad Naze. 

Favorite performances-

 In This Moment
Man. The lead singer she is out of this world good. Her range when she sings is top notch. She was dancing all over and managing to sing. Their set was almost like a musical with set and clothing changes. I would love to see them in a smaller venue to see all the details. 10/10.



Halestorm
Lizzy Hale is like the female version of Dave Grohl. If you don't understand what I am hinting at she is a music legend/goddess. Her voice is strong and girl can hold her notes forever. Her brother can play the drums just as good as she plays guitar though. I have seen them two times now and they just get better everytime. Great old school rock concert. No frills. Loved every moment.

Five Finger Death Punch
I was so pleasantly surprised. The energy they brought to their set and the funny constant shirt changes was fun to watch. I liked their show and would see them again.

Bobaflex
Noon on a Saturday? Let's rock your face off.
Their set was fun and I like that both brothers are lead singers. It makes it feel like two different bands at times which was not a bad thing at all.
High energy and ran all over the stage.

 Disturbed
Someone needs to tell the lead singer to become an opera singer. He has skill and they sound just like the records. The back drop with fire was fantastic. They handed out lighters for us to all use for "sound of silence". It was beautiful.

We Are Harlot
The lead singer is British and hilarious. The sound kept getting messed up and breaking. At one point he sat on the floor and banged his mike on the drum since it was not working. Just a rocking good time they put on. PLUS, good show when stuff was working.


 

Shinedown
Show of the festival winner!
 O.M.G. This band is so interactive. They make you want to jump/yell/scream to everything they do. Coming into the crowd running around. I have never jumped through an entire song but I did for them. I would see them again in a heart beat. I mean look at this picture the lead singer is giving it his all. Great band.







Food: Just a blurb on the food because a foodie like me cannot ignore this at a festival. It was not good, just meh. The only thing I found that I even liked was the corn stand. They had a little stand serving corn with all kinds of fun flavors. Our favorite was garlic/parmesan.

Festival infrastructure: Mini rant, get your stuff together.
It is not wise to open gates at 11:45AM if a show starts at 12PM. No one ever gets in to see the opener. Which often is a great band. Also, what the heck is with making people pay for a wrist band for everything? I had literally three wrist bands (camping, general admission and drinking) and had to pay for each of them separately. The only take away I liked was the giant cups you could buy and then get refilled throughout the festival.

We had a great time because my friends are the best but I do not think we would all camp again. Maybe come for the day.

Until Next Time~
XoXo Emily