Rebecca BollwittThe festival concert scene has always been important to Vancouver, rain or shine, and with such a culmination of punk/ska, independent and alternative talent the Vans Warped Tour is highly anticipated each year.
The festival rolls into Vancouver August 14th with performances from dozens of bands including NOFX, Alexisonfire, and Bad Religion. Fans can already ramp up their excitement on the tour's website, which has been turned into a social network. The online community features a Google map/tour date mashup, concert-goer profiles, comments, mobile content, and band pages.
When the lineup was initially announced, the tour instantly became a trending topic on Twitter—the microblogging service used by millions globally. In Vancouver we'll see acts like Less Than Jake whom I spoke to last summer at the Commodore about life on their own label and the impact of social media throughout their careers.
Chris Demakes (guitar/vocals) said, "It's funny to think we toured before there was cell phones and the internet." He recalled having to pull over the tour bus to make telephone booth calls to hotels while on the road. "I know we did it but i don't believe that we did it."
Using these tools to connect with target audiences is vital nowadays, and it's particularly important to use these platforms when reaching out to fans.
"Where it helped us is going to places we've never been to - like Brazil," noted Demakes. "We played there last year for 2,000-3,000 kids at each show...You know 15 years ago that wouldn't have happened." Through internet usage and 'word of mouth' online, Less Than Jake also played for thousands in places like Slovenia and Australia—where they don't even get radio airplay. The same rings true in Vancouver where the band (whose had a website up since the early 90s) has been selling out shows for the last decade.
Giving fans a way to share their excitement about upcoming dates (and following up with show reviews and photo upload) is truly the brilliance behind the tour site.