We're willing to guess that you're a wee bit excited about a certain summer festival tour. One that involves cooking tasty BBQ, drawing straws and ... oh yeah, rocking out.

We're talking about the Warped Tour, of course, and if you're as excited about it as we are, you don't want to wait until the June 20 kickoff in Pomona, California, to get the party started. So in the spirit of getting pre-psyched, we're catching up a bit ahead of time with bands that will be hitting the pavement for the best hootenanny pop-punk has to offer.



First up are Set Your Goals, the San Francisco melodic hardcore five-piece you probably know best for their "cover" of Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz's "Put Yo Hood Up" on this year's Punk Goes Crunk compilation. The band also hit up London's Give It a Name festival last month, playing alongside 30 Seconds to Mars and Paramore.

In fact, Set Your Goals have a friend in P-more, as Hayley Williams told the following to Buzznet in an interview in early May:

"I'm a big fan of a lot of heavier music. I've been listening to stuff like H20, and Set Your Goals' new album, Mutiny!"

Mutiny!, Set Your Goals' debut, dropped way back in July 2006, although the album got another look when a deluxe edition of it dropped late last month. Expect the band to continue to mine that release on Warped this year, although with another album slated for next year, maybe some new material will be in store.

As far as what else the band has planned for Warped, expect them to be chowing down on Boca burgers, messing around with squirt guns and ... catching up on some summer reading. Don't believe us? Read out first  "Warped Tour Warmup" installment, with Set Your Goals singer Matt Wilson.

Buzznet: Share some highlights, good or bad, of past Warped Tours you've played or attended.

Matt Wilson: Last year we did 15 dates on the Warped Tour in our van with 10 people. BAD IDEA. There was no air conditioning and way too many people. I'm glad we'll have a bus this time around, I don't think we could survive it in our van! My favorite part of each day was watching Killswitch Engage play, even though their [tour manager] would never let anyone onstage :(

Buzznet: Which bands are you most looking forward to seeing perform? Who do you think will blow up after Warped?

Wilson: I'm excited to see Anberlin, All Time Low, The Bouncing Souls, Just Surrender, Paramore and The Dillinger Escape Plan. After Warped I think A Cursive Memory, Just Surrender and Broadway Calls will definitely blow up. They all deserve it!

Buzznet: What will you be doing to kill time on the tour bus?

Wilson: I plan to catch up on some books I've started reading recently, as well as lots of snacking and Xbox 360.

Buzznet: What's the best way to cure the heat while touring with Warped?

Wilson: Last year I found that most people dealt with the heat by wearing next to nothing, sunglasses, flip-flops, bringing squirt guns, staying hydrated and hanging out by the misting fans all day haha.

Buzznet: How has Warped evolved over the years in your opinion?

Wilson: I don't think it's as diverse as it once was. For a while there were way too many bands, but I think they've done a good job of slimming it down and keeping it somewhat diverse by swapping bands out throughout the tour so that wherever you catch The Warped Tour, it's a slightly different lineup.

Buzznet: List a few items on your rider that we might not expect.

Wilson: We put boxer briefs and socks on our rider just in case someone decides to be generous. We've only gotten them once, but it was much needed and tremendously appreciated!

Buzznet: Do you have anything unusual planned for your set, whether it be cover songs, tracks you normally don't play?

Wilson: That's top secret ... you'll just have to wait and see ;)

Buzznet: Are you planning any props, backdrops, screens or anything else in terms of stage setup?

Wilson: We might have a banner, nothing too crazy. Most of our budget for Warped is going toward our bus.

Buzznet: What's the best part about playing Warped?

Wilson: Hanging out at the band BBQ at the end of each night and just relaxing, meeting fellow tourmates and eating Boca burgers!

Buzznet: Any tips for people going for the first time?

Wilson: Bring flip-flops and a bike. Both will prove to be invaluable. Other than that, stay hydrated!

Keep checking back for more "Warped Tour Warmups" in the coming weeks. And don't miss these pics of Katy Perry, Beat Union and more at the Warped Tour kickoff show on April 11 in West Hollywood, California – click on the image below to check 'em out.



Get psyched for summer with Buzznet's Warped Tour 2008 gallery.

[Click on picture to view the rest.]

See which females will be rocking out on Warped this summer:


[Click on picture to view the rest.]

And see which acts are hopping on the trek for the first time:


[Click on picture to view the rest.]

Find out which Warped artists are out of their twenties:


[Click on picture to view the rest.]

Warped Tour dates:

6.20: Pomona, CA @ Pomona Fairgrounds
6.21: San Francisco, CA @ Pier 30/32
6.22: Ventura, CA @ Seaside Park
6.25: Phoenix, AZ @ Cricket Pavilion
6.26: Las Cruces, NM @ N.M.S.U. Practice Field
6.28: Salt Lake City, UT @ TBA
6.29: Denver, CO @ Invesco Field
7.1: St. Louis, MO @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
7.2: Kansas City, KS @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
7.3: Dallas, TX @ Superpages.com Center
7.5: San Antonio, TX @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
7.6: Houston, TX @ Sam Houston Race Park
7.9: Atlanta, GA @ Lakewood Amphitheater
7.10 : Orlando, FL @ Central Florida Fairgrounds
7.11: Tampa, FL @ Vinoy Park
7.12: Miami, FL @ Bicentennial Park
7.13: Jacksonville, FL @ St. Johns County Fairgrounds
7.14: Charlotte, NC @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
7.15: Virginia Beach, VA @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
7.16: Washington DC @ Merriweather Post Pavilion
7.17: Cleveland, OH @ Time Warner Cable Amphitheater at Tower City
7.18: Detroit, MI @ Comerica Park
7.19: Toronto, ON @ Downsview Park Allen Road
7.20: Montreal, QC @ Parc Jean Drapeau
7.23: Boston, MA @ Tweeter Center for the Performing Arts
7.24: Buffalo, NY @ Darien Lake Performing Arts Center
7.25: Camden, NJ @ Susquehanna Bank Center
7.26: Uniondale, NY @ Nassau Coliseum
7.27: Scranton, PA @ Toyota Pavilion
7.28: Englishtown, NJ @ Raceway Park
7.29: Pittsburgh, PA @ Post Gazette Pavilion
7.30: Cincinnati, OH @ Riverbend Music Center
7.31: Indianapolis, IN @ Verizon Wireless Music Center
8.1: Milwaukee, WI @ Marcus Amphitheatre
8.2: Chicago, IL @ First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre
8.3: Minneapolis, MN @ Canterbury Park
8.5: Saskatoon, SK @ Credit Union Centre
8.6: Calgary, AB @ Race City Speedway
8.8: Boise, ID @ Idaho Center Amphitheatre
8.9: Seattle, WA @ George Amphitheatre
8.10: Portland, OR @ Columbia Meadows
8.13: Fresno, CA @ Save Mart Center
8.14: San Diego, CA @ Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre
8.15: San Francisco, CA @ Shoreline Amphitheatre
8.16: Sacramento, CA @ Sleep Train Amphitheatre Lot
8.17: Los Angeles, CA @ Home Depot Center

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