Warped Tour is officially back. Last week, the former traveling punk festival announced it would celebrate its 30th anniversary with three special shows in Washington, D.C., Long Beach, and Orlando. The organizers have been revealing daily lineup additions ever since, dubbing the rollout 30 Days of Warped. With this in mind, we started reflecting on past lineups and thinking about the bands that should play Warped Tour this year — so we threw the question to our readers. Their answers are just as nostalgic as you’d expect. Find the top fan picks ranked below.
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5. The Used
The Used dominated Warped back in the 2000s and appeared at the 25th anniversary shows in 2019 (where they performed “All That I’ve Got” with their mentor John Feldmann at the California date), so seeing them at this year’s events would complete the circle. After all, the band have always been an outlet for Bert McCracken’s rawest emotions, and whenever they hit the stage, that intensity just makes the room swell. If you don’t believe us, look at McCracken jumping off a monitor and into the crowd during “Say Days Ago” in 2003 below.
4. Pierce the Veil
Pierce the Veil played a handful of Warped Tours in the 2010s, so it’d only be fitting if they appeared at one of the 30th anniversary shows. It’s been a whirlwind decade since they last played in 2015, navigating personal growth, moving away from their classic sound, and operating with an enlivened perspective (“There are a lot of songs on The Jaws of Life that we couldn’t have made before now,” bassist Jaime Preciado told us last year). Basically, it’d be great to see the band up on the main stage, playing a mixture of their early and modern cuts, but given that PTV will be busy with a world tour in the spring, it all feels up in the air.
3. My Chemical Romance
It’s about to be a huge year for My Chemical Romance. The band are preparing to play their 2006 rock opera, The Black Parade, in its entirety across stadiums this summer — and our readers believe that headlining Warped Tour would be the icing on top. MCR only played in 2004 and 2005, right when they were in the midst of their Three Cheers era, so it’d be a grand return for the emo legends. Considering that they played back-to-back nights at When We Were Young last year, another festival appearance doesn’t seem off the table, but perhaps it’s wishful thinking on behalf of our readers.
2. Bring Me the Horizon
Come on, Bring Me on the Horizon back on the Warped stage would totally rip. The band weren’t really staples of the festival, but they made their first appearance in 2008 and came back a couple of more times in the 2010s. Considering those performances were in their metalcore days, imagine how hard their set would go, shifting between pop-metal choruses to blistering breakdowns. BMTH have ascended to headliner status over the past few years, so our readers would be stoked to see them join the Warped lineup (and maybe hear their Oasis cover live).
1. A Day to Remember
You can’t be surprised at this result, right? A Day to Remember returning to Warped Tour, headlining or not, would be epic — which is precisely why they snagged the top spot. The band played the Atlantic City date in 2019, marking their first appearance at the festival in five years, so joining the lineup feels within the realm of possibility. Also, ADTR just celebrated the 16th anniversary of their landmark album, 2009’s Homesick, so imagine hearing those songs screamed back at the festival.