John and I boarded Marta and took the train down to Piedmont Park for day one of Shaky Knees 2025. For us, today was about getting acquainted with the new venue, perusing all the fun activations, deciding on what merch to purchase, and of course catching all the great bands performing on my birthday! I thank them for making my birthday an epic one.
First, my favorite thing all day, was what I call “large Ozzy.” A larger-than-life Ozzy costume with a huge bat with whom I had some fun interactions. He was walking around near the media tent and food row and tried to “bite my head off.” It was hilarious. It is a great tribute to the late rocker. The coolest activation we found is the two-story Patron Tequila bar. It looks like a real bar and restaurant with lounge seating upstairs and DJ’s spinning every hour. They even have their own DJ line-up you can enjoy. I’m definitely going to spend some time there today upstairs during the day. We also ran into our friend, Steve Craig, DJ at 99x and had a great chat about Inhaler that they were going to interview that day. I didn’t know Elijah Hewson; the lead singer is Bono’s son. Yes, that Bono. I wish we had made it to their show now.
We made our way to the Piedmont stage to check out Idles first. I was really impressed with their sound; it really is a throwback to punk of old with a mix of grunge, rock elements, and a strong bold voice. I don’t know if this is what they were going for, but it was like Rage Against the Machine with a mix of Dead Kennedys, Henry Rollins, and then a grunge influence. I am not a huge Rage fan but love Dead Kennedys and grunge, so I enjoyed the performance. But what I really like is his voice. It is bold, deep, and commanding.
What who we really went to see were Pixies and Deftones. Starting with Pixies, I first discovered them in 1999 from the Fight Club soundtrack. Where is My Mind was an anthem to the times and still rings true today, so immediately I was hooked. This performance was just as good as all the ones I’ve seen before, with Doolittle and crew singing everything from poppy, surfer rock, Here Comes Your Man to grungy Gouge Away to one of my favorites, Monkeys Gone to Heaven. Fitting that the T-shirt they were selling for this tour is a monkey with a halo in clouds. I had to have it.
This leads me to the headliner of the night, Deftones. We literally just saw them about 4 months or so ago at State Farm Arena where they filled an entire arena with fans. They have seemed to have a resurgence in popularity lately and we are here for it! What strikes me every time with Deftones is their use of light and video in tandem with the Chino’s melonic voice. Their performance is always spot on and they know how to keep a crowd engaged sticking mostly with the hits. Deftones performed several of my favorites including Quiet and Drive (Far Away) to start then proceeding with My Own Summer that launched their career, Knife Party, then slowing it down a little with Diamond Eyes and Digital Bath. The hits kept coming with some of their new album, that is absolutely amazing, but nothing is better live than Change (In the House of Flies). The sun rising behind Chino is just chilling and beautiful. Deftones stock has risen! Now, how do I get them to play my favorite of their songs, Passenger from White Pony.
With acts like Weezer, Sunny Day Real Estate, Dinosaur Jr, and Foo Fighters,
this year’s Shaky Knees spoke to my Gen X heart.
New Band highlight
Something we’re highlighting this Shaky Knees beyond the stout 90’s band line-up are the new bands that we catch. On Friday, the first one is Ax and the Hatchetmen, a young indie 7-piece out of Chicago with tons of energetic big band sound, funky, rocky, and beachy all rolled into one fun time. I felt it was a mix of Cage the Elephant-esque, the strokes, and a hint of Ween. A great show where they ended the set with The Strokes, “Last Night.”
Another band that we hadn’t seen is and enjoyed is Late Night Drive Home out of Texas. The lead singer, Andre Patillo, came out with a red mask on that had frills at the bottom. They’re a blend of punk, rock, 90s with swelling choruses. But they also play a wide variety of rock sounds including 90’s reverb. We loved they sang Blur, “Song No. 2.” to end the set. I love that song!
Next up on Saturday, was two bands: Microwave and Dead Poets Society. Microwave is out of Atlanta, which I didn’t know, and has a variety of sounds from loud, hard rock to 90’s fast slow, and then some punk. The other was Dead Poet’s Society out of Boston that had hard riffs that reminded me of Rob/White Zombie up front, thrash, but then the vocals come in softer and higher for a fun mix of sounds.
Then, finally on Sunday, we caught a newer band we had not heard of until the festival, Arcy Drive. They are out of New York with a mash-up of varieties of sounds like indie, 90s fast slow, two-step, and singsong talking and singing mix. Not all at the same time, for example one song would be songs that are softer almost ballad-like that erupt into heavy guitar for the chorus. Then, the next song would be a rock song with more of a southern twang and have some two-step influence. I enjoyed lead singer Nick Mateyunas’ voice, it is smooth yet gritty. The one we really like is called Wicked Styley, which is the one they started with. It is a fun upbeat rock song with lots of 90’s influence and reverb.
Top 5 Favorite Artist Moments
5. Finally hearing “Seven” live from Sunny Day Real Estate
4. Billy Idol throwing shirt into crowd
3. Dead Poets Society lead singer, Jack Underkofler, fell into the crowd and crowd surfed while singing one of the first songs.
2. Dinosaur Jr embracing the downpour. Putting on the best show despite the rain coming down so hard it caused a flood! Bravo! Plus, they covered The Cure!
1. Ax and the Hatchetmen. A genius way to get people to listen to your new song is to hand out water with a QR code to your song on the side. They even named it HatchetWater. Love.
Our two favorite performances
The Downpour. About 5 minutes before Dinosaur Jr. went on the Ponce De Leon stage, the skies opened, and a torrential downpour started and lasted for almost the entire set. People were caught in the rain, and it was so much that even us with ponchos got soaked. Especially our feet in ankle deep water near the front of the stage flowing into the crowd. No one seemed to mind too much, and it electrified the audience. John quipped at one point, “it’s like we’re back in the 90’s.” And he was right, the energy from the crowd was noticeably high! They even broke out into mosh pits and a sea of crowd surfers dotted the front. It was a sight to behold! Plus, the music had a lot to do with the mood! If you don’t know Dinosaur Jr, they are what I call hard skate rock. Something I imagine skaters on their boards would listen to in their ear buds. Songs like “Feel the Pain” and “Over It” are melodious with heavy guitar and just plain fun. Plus, the covered The Cure, “Just Like Heaven.” It was a great show.
That brings us to Sunny Day Real Estate. They are one of those 90’s bands that I just got introduced to by John a few years ago and we started watching their videos on YouTube. I call them the quintessential fast slow early 90’s band. Melodious verses and vocals erupt into a barrage of heavy guitar and pounding drums, Sunny Day Real Estate satisfies song after song. This performance was just that, song after song, humming along as they played the entire Diary album for its 30th anniversary. It was AMAZING. Plus, we found out that 90’s band Super chunk members were also playing with them. It’s almost like a super group!
90’s band extravaganza at this year’s Shaky Knees
Our favorite of the bands we know is Metric out of Canada. A band that played on 99x back in the day, and that I know probably 5 songs from was thoroughly enjoyable. Emily Haines, the lead singer, came out in a bright red shinny body suit. If you know Metric, they are heavy on electronic and keyboard, yet rock and 80s infused. Reminiscent of Garbage to me, “Help I’m Alive,” was the highlight for me. I hadn’t heard it live and it was my favorite of their music then and now.
Unfortunately, we had to miss Offspring because we had never seen Sunny Day Real Estate and we’re going to spend time with a band that we hadn’t seen. We love Offspring, I saw them back in 1994 for the Smash tour and several times over the years including the last time they were at the Tabernacle. I heard they did an incredible show.
Have you ever found yourself driving too fast on the interstate? You might have been listening to Queens of the Stone Age. What I call fast driving music, Queens of the Stone Age are very drum forward with deep and heavy beats, beautiful guitar riffs and Josh Homme’s great voice. Plus, they visually never disappoint, this year with roaming light show. Last time we saw them they had a large video board with LED visuals that really went well with the music. Did you know Dave Grohl (Nirvana, Foo Fighters) also did the drums on “No One Knows” which you can tell by the drums! But my favorite of their songs after last night is “Go with the flow.” I always liked it but realized it is more diverse musically than some of the others.
My boyfriend back in 1994 gave me a non-descript bright blue album as a present. Little did I know that that album would be in my top 5 all-time records, and Weezer would cement themselves into rock god status in my life. I’ve seen Weezer over the years from them playing large festivals to arenas to a small stage at the Braves stadium and they always sound perfect. What I call garage or college rock, Weezer has a distinct sound that no one else can create and that sets them apart from some of the other 90’s bands, don’t get me wrong, I love most early 90’s bands! The underlying hum of the guitars, explosions of rock juxtaposing the smoothness or River’s voice, it all comes together completely. What I love about them live is they really play up the guitar and show their musical prowess, plus, visually, they always have their W front and center. If you’ve never seen them live, you must; it is an experience.
I’m just going to come right out and say it, we left before Foo Fighters. We’d seen them before, and the weather had made the main stage too muddy. Plus, we had stood in ankle high water for an hour, so our feet were wet, and we had a long weekend. We will catch them next time.
Billy Idol
After our Dinosaur Jr. experience, we headed back over to see Billy Idol and found the main stage to be a mud bog. People without shoes dancing in the sprinkles, drenched friends with smiles on their faces. We saw him back in 2015 during Music Midtown and his show has always been top notch! Billy Idol is always a good time singing greats like White Wedding, Rebel Yell, and Cradle of Love that anyone will sing and dance with. Visually, he had some fun LED graphics and seems to have not aged a bit and still sounds good live! He even took his Billy Idol shirt off and threw it in the crowd.
Around the Festival
It wouldn’t be a large music festival without festival polls, our favorite was the blown-up stick of butter. Plus, we were blown away by the food court with some great Atlanta and regional restaurants like Hattie Bs. Finally, we experienced a cool activation, Liquid Death Country Club. It was an actual small house with grim reapers guarding the entrance where you can “sell your soul” to get some water inside. You can also get free water with a whole in one on their golf green and airbrushed tattoos inside. It is much fun and on brand for Shaky Knees.
Premier festival producer Danny Wimmer Presents kicks off its 2023 season with DWP’s longest-running annual festival, Welcome To Rockville. The festival brought together 150,000 fans in 2022 and the 12th edition of the event will be held for its third installment at the hallowed grounds of “The World Center of Rock,” Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida.
The 2023 event takes place from May 18-21 and features a massive lineup featuring headliners Tool, Slipknot, Avenged Sevenfold and Pantera plus Deftones, Rob Zombie,Godsmack, Evanescence, Incubus, Queens of the Stone Age, Alice Cooper, The Mars Volta, Puscifer, I Prevail, Chevelle, Coheed & Cambria,Hardy and Trivium. Jose “Metal Ambassador” Mangin will host the event with on-stage appearances and fan meet and greets.
“We are so excited to be bringing this fantastic lineup to Welcome To Rockville,” says Danny Wimmer, Founder of Danny Wimmer Presents. “Our fans have been wanting Pantera and along with one of Avenged Sevenfold’s first live shows in five years, crowd favorite Slipknot, AND one of the greatest rock bands of all time, Tool, we are delivering a jam-packed weekend to the ‘The World Center of Rock.’ Can’t wait to see everyone in May!”
“Danny Wimmer Presents has done it yet again, producing a spectacular, anticipated lineup of legendary rock bands for the 2023 edition of Welcome To Rockville” says Daytona International Speedway President Frank Kelleher. “The event is fast becoming a tradition here at The World Center of Entertainment, hosting 150,000 concertgoers from all over the world. It’s a huge win-win for our guests and our community. We can’t wait for next May.”
For the first time in Welcome To Rockville history, Early Bird Passes sold out before the lineup was released. Single day and weekend passes for Welcome To Rockville are on sale now at www.welcometorockville.com. Passes can be purchased as general admission, VIP, or Daytona Owners Club, and layaway is available starting as low as $10 down, only through December 31, 2022. Passes are expected to sell quickly, and festival promoters Danny Wimmer Presents recommend fans purchase early to secure the best price.
The current Welcome To Rockville 2023 lineup is as follows (subject to change):
Thursday, May 18: Slipknot, Rob Zombie, Queens of the Stone Age, Puscifer, Trivium, Bullet For My Valentine, Black Veil Brides, Suicidal Tendencies, Avatar, Black Stone Cherry, Converge, Band-Maid, Austin Meade, Stray From the Path, Brutus, Rain City Drive, Bloodywood, Malevolence, Vended, Rivals, Nevertel, Widow7, Conquer Divide, Budderside
Friday, May 19: Avenged Sevenfold, Evanescence, Hardy, I Prevail, Motionless In White, Asking Alexandria, Sleeping with Sirens, Badflower, Ayron Jones, Memphis May Fire, From Ashes to New, Born of Osiris, The Warning, Mothica, Des Rocs, Varials, Tallah, Tigercub, Slay Squad, Ryan Oakes, Tuk Smith and the Restless Hearts, Bastardane, OTTTO, Until I Die
Saturday, May 20: Pantera, Godsmack, Alice Cooper, Chevelle, Alter Bridge, Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Evening, Knocked Loose, Rival Sons, Yelawolf Presents: Sometimes Y, Pop Evil, Suicide Silence, Sepultura, The Bronx, Poorstacy, Ho99o9, Zero 9:36, Maylene and the Sons of Disaster, Dayseeker, Dead Poet Society, Kreator, The Violent, Starcrawler, Hammerhedd
Sunday, May 21:Tool, Deftones, Incubus, The Mars Volta, Coheed & Cambria, Pennywise, Ghostemane, Grandson, Sueco, Filter, Deafheaven, Anti-Flag, Senses Fail, New Years Day, Nothing, Nowhere., Angel Du$t, Nova Twins, Point North, Wargasm, Bob Vylan, Capital Theatre, Uncured, Reddstar
Welcome To Rockville features 95 musical acts over four days on four stages, amusement rides, a giant water slide, artwork installations, partner experiences, award-winning spirits, and delectable eats.
Passes for Welcome To Rockville are on sale now for as low as $109.99 plus fees. Full pass type options can be viewed at www.welcometorockville.com. Festivalgoers are encouraged to buy early to save as pass prices increase throughout the coming months, based on level quantities. A limited number of specially priced tickets for military personnel and first responders are on sale now via GovX.
Welcome To Rockville VIP pass holders will be living their best lives with access to all GA areas as well as a commemorative VIP laminate and wristband for access to dedicated Festival VIP Fast Track entrance lanes, access to all VIP lounges, and shaded patio areas which feature comfortable furniture with live audio & video streams of both Main Stages. VIPs will have dedicated VIP main stage viewing areas, access to a dedicated festival merchandise booth**, dedicated guest services team, private locker rentals with charging capabilities**, air conditioned & flushable restrooms, and premium food & drink offerings** (**for additional purchase).
After a record sell-out in 2022, the Daytona Owners Club VIP returns for 2023. In addition to being a festival VIP, a commemorative Daytona Owners Club laminate and wristband will be provided, granting exclusive access to an enclosed air-conditioned lounge with a private hosted bar (all-inclusive beer, cocktails, wine, and non-alcoholic drinks will be available at dedicated bars throughout the Owners Club and VIP bars) and comfortable seating and live audio & video of both Main Stages. The show can be enjoyed with a bird’s eye view of a main stage under a covered/shaded platform. Additional amenities include complimentary hors d’oeuvres during lunch and dinner hours, a dedicated festival merchandise booth**, complimentary Wi-Fi, air-conditioned and flushable restrooms, private locker rentals with charging capabilities**, a dedicated “Owner’s” services team, dedicated Owner’s Club Fast Track entrance lanes, and one premium parking pass included with each Daytona Owners Club Pass order (**for additional purchase).
Welcome To Rockville campers get the ultimate experience. They will spend five days on the festival field in the middle of all the action with the quickest access to all the stages. Amenities include indoor restrooms and showers, in and out privileges, and a general store for supplies. A limited number of Weekend Camping Packages are available for both car and tent and RVs. Admission to the festival is not included in Weekend Camping Packages and must be purchased separately. Campers can also look forward to a kick-off party on Wednesday, May 17 and themed contests throughout the weekend.
Welcome To Rockville is produced by Danny Wimmer Presents, one of the largest independent producers of destination music festivals in America.
Welcome to Rockville is proud to host premier partners Bud Light Seltzer and Jack Daniel’s.
“Bud Light Seltzer is happy to be back supporting Welcome To Rockville for the 3rd year in a row as we continue to bring new and exciting flavors to Rockvillians from around the country!” – Grant Herman, Trade Marketing Manager Anheuser Busch
“Jack Daniel’s is committed to supporting musicians now more than ever as we continue our long-standing connection to the music industry dating to Mr. Jack Daniel himself. We have been at Welcome To Rockville for some great musical moments and are excited to continue that partnership. Jack Daniel’s is just about as close to the music as you can get, without actually making the music.” – Greg Luehrs, Director Partnerships Jack Daniel’s, Brown-Forman Corporation
More partners and experiences will be announced closer to the show.
For more information on #WelcomeToRockville, visit:
