#iamagamechanger

Game changers, in less Skate and Surf festival will be upon us!  I don't know about you, but 2015 has flown by so far!  I’m sure information like a festival map, set times, and much more will be released very soon, so before information starts flying lets get caught up on anything from the last month.

Some of the VIP perks have been announced.  Several of the artists lined up to do meet and greets in the VIP lounge have been named, and those are as follows: Hit the Lights, Elder Brother, Major League, Atilla, Chunk! No, Captain Chunk! There are still more to be announced as well.  A photo booth, full bar for those legally of age, couches, and an air hockey table are just some of the additional perks the SoundRink VIP lounge will feature!

I had a chance to check out John D’s interview on the Gunz Show via Idobi Radio.  If you have a chance, take a listen!  It’s full of information on how John got some of the reunions, why he thought this was the perfect year to go back to the festival’s roots, and much more.  One bit that he did release is that the main stage will be in the park this year, and more of an intimate stage will be featured in the alley way where last years main stage was.

The newest venture, Taters Half Baked, will be at Skate and Surf.  The food truck will also feature vegan options.

Gamechanger will be hosting the Food Truck and rock Festival this year at Oak Ridge Park.  The festival will be the weekend of September 18th and announcements will start around Mid-May. 

Game changers, get yourselves prepared for all of the information that will arrive in the upcoming weeks!  And don’t stop preparing for the amazing weekend that is ahead of us!  It is going to be  good one, I have this feeling!

Hey there game changers!  I hope everyone is enjoying the slightly warmer weather we are all having these days.  If it’s still not enough for you, just keep thinking about how amazing it’s going to be in May at Asbury Park for Skate and Surf!  That should help you get by. 

The information given out the last couple of weeks has been more about the behind the scenes part of Skate and Surf.   Vendor spots are still open for any businesses looking to sell their goods at the festival.  If you are interested, please email: [email protected]   for more info! 

Interested in being a part of the Skate and Surf Street team?  There are still spots open for that as well!  Head over to any of the official Skate and Surf Festival social media sites to fill out the form to become a member. 

Starting March 27th, Game Changer World will be hosting job fairs for anyone looking to help out the company.  Jobs will include some of the other Game Changer festivals, not just Skate and Surf.  There are three different days for this free open event and they are as follows: Friday March 27th: 6-9pm Saturday April 4th: 12pm-3pm Sunday April 19th: 12p,-3pm For more information on the events, feel free to email: [email protected]. 

The Break Contest is well into the semi-final rounds!  If you have a chance to check out any of the shows at any of the three venues, we strongly encourage you to!  Supporting your local music scene is very important to keeping these young bands going! 

The weekend of May 16th and 17th is rapidly approaching Game Changers!  Any ideas or thoughts on who the other bands playing could be?  We encourage you to get involved, let us know your ideas, your wish lists of bands, or simply share an old video/photo of an artist that’s playing!  We want you guys to get involved! 

Hey Game Changers,

Long time no chat! Time has been passing by us quickly this season, or so it seems for us. I feel like every time we are ready to come up for air and get going again, we get hit with another snowstorm. Anyone else tired of shoveling yet? Anyway, as we prepare for this next round of storms (at least for those of us in New York), we just wanted to touch base and let you know we’re still here! And we haven’t forgotten about you or this blog!

I know it has been a while since our last post; we have been MIA it seems this season, but we apologize. Life has been a bit crazy for all of us and time has gotten away. We do hope you will forgive us!

Before we say too much more, we must say this year’s Skate and Surf line up is amazing. We are counting down the days to the festival this year. It is going to be an incredible year, and there are still more bands to be announced. How much greater can this line up get? What do you all think of the line up? From those of you we’ve heard from, you seem to agree the line up this year is great! Who else would you like to see get added to the weekend?

Back to some IAmAGameChanger stuff, as mentioned earlier we have been busy this year. We are still working out who is doing what this year and how we will manage our schedule. Due to work conflicts and life, Sharon will not be joining us again this year. We wish her all the best and will miss having her as part of our team. 

I know in recent years, our following has dwindled, which is fine. We are happy to have the fans who still follow us. Several years ago when this team was put together, there were many other applicants who wanted to join and write along with us. I think the time has come where if we want to continue, we need your help! We need new people to come on board and write about their favorite bands and talk about what they are looking forward to this year. If this is something you would be interested in, please message us! There will be a post with more details about how to apply or how to help coming soon, but for now, feel free to message us and let’s get to know each other!

As always, if you have any ideas for the blog–things you want to see, things you love, things you wish were different–leave us a comment, send us a message, tweet us… just let us know. We love to hear from everyone!

Good Evening Game Changers!  It's been awhile since we've all last met.  I don't know about anyone else, but all of the latest Skate and Surf announcements have me already dreaming of May and listening to some of my favorite bands with the Asbury ocean breeze blowing!  If some of you have not had a chance to catch any information,hints, etc. etc. over the last few months, have no fear! I will catch you up to speed right now!

In July, the Town of Asbury Council approved Skate and Surf 2015 to return to Asbury Park on May 16th and 17th of 2015.  This time though, they have granted Skate and Surf beach access.  I'm excited to see if the team uses it!

All of the behind the scenes action of Skate and Surf will be filmed this year.  John D tweeted that a camera crew will be in the offices this year.  They also started filming test trailers last week.

John D has been busy as usual.  A tweet last week let game changers know he was already working on set times and stage placement.

Speaking of stages: Skate and Surf let us know on Friday that there will be 5 this year.  There will also be a Halfpipe Skate competition and a wrestling arena thanks to JCW.  The wrestling arena will showcase local talent and even some Skate and Surf talent going up against WWE legends.

Dropkick Murphys are the only act OFFICIALLY announced to play the festival.  They will play Saturday, May 16th.

There will be NO pop or hip hop acts this year.  Skate and Surf is going back to its roots and will only feature acts of that nature.

Break Contest Registration is up and running!  The prizes this year are insane!

Basic weekend passes and VIP tickets will go on sale at 8pm on December 18th.

The first line up announcement will be made around December 17th/18th; just in time for those tickets to go on sale I'm guessing!

In true Skate and Surf fashion, I have heard that there are some line up rumors floating around.  It has come to my attention that at the Real Friends show last week at GameChanger World, there might have been some line up announcements made.  Nothing has been made official by Game Changer or Skate and Surf Festival, but lets just say if any of them are true, a pop punk fan would be very happy! 

Were any of our game changers at the show?  If so, can you share the gossip with the rest of us!?!

That's all for now game changers, but this is the best time of year for us.  All of the announcements and exciting news will start rolling in from now till May!

#MidtownMonday

Written by MikeYabs Note: With Skate and Surf right around the corner, each of the writers for this blog are going to post their list of five bands to check out every week leading up to the festival. Yea, we all know that people are excited for Fall Out Boy to be playing the festival. Or maybe you're excited for A Day to Remember or Macklemore. You'll have to find somebody to watch throughout the weekend leading up to those acts.

 1. Death Spells

Death Spells is Frank Iero and James Dewees. Their resume's speak loudly enough, but for those who don't recognize the names: My Chemical Romance, Leathermouth, The Get Up Kids and Reggie and the Full Effect all sit somewhere between the two of them. This strange dance/hardcore project formed in an apartment in California during after hours of My Chemical Romance's writing sessions for their follow up to Danger Days (which sadly, we'll never get to hear). They just recently did a short tour in support of Mindless Self Indulgence, and now that they've warmed up I'm excited to see what they bring to the table. See Death Spells on May 18.

2. Hostage Calm

Hostage Calm have a very interesting flavor of punk. There's a little bit of Springsteen's signature style of rock infused with melodies you thought were left behind with the Beach Boys. And they're punk as fuck. That's important to remember. If there are no bands that you know playing the same time as Hostage Calm, I urge you to go watch Hostage Calm. Seriously. I'll be hard pressed to find someone that at the least won't be impressed with the energy they give off during their set. See Hostage Calm May 19

3. Candy Hearts

You like cutsy pop/rock songs? Look no further. Easy on the ears, Candy Hearts writes fun, catchy songs reminiscent of early Paramore and Lisa Loeb. These are the songs you listen to and think of that girl/guy you're crushing on. This band only has one place to go from here and that's up. Don't be surprised if you hear them on the radio one day. They've got it. Catch them on May 18th before all the cool kids at school figure out about them (It's totally gonna happen).

4. Glassjaw

It's weird to think that Glassjaw is one of the older bands on the lineup. Considering how Glassjaw is only sporadically active these days, I wouldn't miss an opportunity to see them. They played maybe a dozen shows total last year, and so far this is their only show of the year. If you're unfamiliar with this band, check out Worship and Tribute. There's something for everyone. Don't miss Glassjaw May 19!

5. Andrew WK

WHEN IT'S TIME TO PARTY WE WILL PARTY HARD. Seriously, do I have to say any more about Andrew WK? Go fucking party with him May 18!

Written by: MikeYabs Note: Sorry in advance for any rants/tangents this post may go on.

Recently, Texas based Eisley launched a kickstarter for them to go on tour in support of their upcoming record, Currents. They have some pretty cool incentives for people who choose to back the kickstarter, such as exclusive merch, handwritten lyric sheets, unreleased demos, etc. There's just one small problem.

They're asking for $100,000.

I have no problem with bands using kickstarter. I could rattle on many names of bands that used it successfully. Kevin Devine's goal was to raise $50,000 to fund two records and to help him tour in support of them. He ended up making over double that amount. James Dewees of Reggie and the Full Effect just successfully ended his campaign to fund one record and to help him tour. He also asked for $50,000. Plenty more have asked for reasonable amounts of money to fund recording/touring. Eisley didn't.

Eisley want $100,00 just to tour. This isn't to help fund a new record; their label already did that for them. They want this amount of money so they may purchase a bus large enough to transport the band and their families, as four members have all had children recently and they would like to bring their four infant children on tour with them. I have no issue with bringing children on tour. As parents that is their decision and their decision alone to make. But if you can't afford to do it, you probably shouldn't, especially if "can't afford it", means you have to ask for $100,000 from your fans. They are funding a tour, but there is no incentive that includes a ticket to a show, besides the hefty $500 pledge that gets you guest-listed for the show [EDIT: This doesn't even apply to the upcoming tour that they've announced. Thanks for pointing that out Victor!]. To fund a band touring, it just seems wrong to not offer a general admission ticket to the show somewhere within the pledges.

Speaking of the rewards for pledges, lets take a closer look at what they're offering. Some of the rewards I think are well priced, like the online show stream for $1, an exclusive EP for $15, the $25 shirt or $40 cardigan that will be exclusive to backers (both of those come with that EP was well!). Beyond that, some of the rewards are a little out there. $50 gets you a digital download of unreleased demos. I have a feeling there's a reason those songs remained unreleased, on the cutting room floor. They probably aren't that good. For $100, you get a signed lyric sheet. That's cool I guess, but definitely not $100 cool. You don't even get all those unreleased songs or the kickstarter EP at that price. $500 get you guestlisted for a show, and maybe you can get coffee with them before the show. I'd like to know if I get to have my damn cup of coffee. $1,000 gets you to pick a song for Eisley to cover, just for you. That's cool, but is it being recorded, and from there, is it being recorded properly, or is it just gonna be a mic held in the middle of a room while they play a cover they learned to play an hour before they hit the record button? That's a gamble I'd rather not make with a thousand dollars. $4,000 for a house show. Since I don't know what kind of guarantee Eisley makes per show, I can't really criticize them too much for this. The $5,000 handmade guitars with hand drawn artwork by the band is really cool (I'm a big fan of Sherri's artwork), but only serious fans/serious guitar players will bite at that (so far, nobody has pledged for it).