Pennywise have been added to the Less Than Jake Soundwave 2014 Sidewaves just weeks out from their kick-off.
Playing headline sideshows with pop-punk Soundwave-billed acts Bowling For Soup and Zebrahead, Less Than Jake are set to perform at Sydney’s Manning Bar and Melbourne’s The Hi Fi in less than two weeks’ time.
Punk veterans Pennywise will now be joining the triple-billed show in Sydney as a late addition to the bill, as confirmed by a bizarre press release from Soundwave organisers today that recounts a bizarre exchange from promoter AJ Maddah.
Humorously described as a ‘A Tragedy In One Act’, the official press release recounts a semi-fictional account between the Soundwave boss, his wife, and Pennywise guitarist Fletcher Dragge detailing how the Californian four-piece were added to the Less Than Jakes shows. It’s almost too strange for summary – read the transcript below.
4:33am EST Australia
***Phone Rings***
***And rings***
***And rings***
Wife: Answer your phone asshole
Promoter: Yes Dear
Caller: Hey A.J it’s Fletcher from Pennywise!
Promoter’s Internal Monologue: Oh fuck what does that crazy fuck want? I hope he is not outside my window in the bushes with an axe…
Promoter’s External dialogue: Hi Fletcher. It’s lovely to hear from you!
Caller: I have a great idea!
Promoter’s Internal Monologue: Oh fuck son of a bitch motherfucker. This is going to be bad…
Promoter’s External Dialogue: Awesome Fletcher I love your ideas!
Caller: We want to play a small show. You know like at a small bar. Like back in the day…
Promoter: Dude, you have never played small bars in Australia. I was on your 1st tour. We did 1000 to 3000 capacity rooms
Caller: Don’t interrupt me! As I was saying, like back in the day. We also want to play a show with our friends Less Than Jake
Promoter: But LTJ already have a show. Besides, I am paying you to play bigger venues
Caller: I will crush you like a bug
Promoter: OK, you can play at Less Than Jake’s Sydney show with Bowling For Soup & Zebrahead!
Limited tickets still available!
***Caller hangs Up***
Promoter: Well that could have been much worse
Wife: Take your phone, your pillow and go sleep in the car
Promoter: Yes dear.
The strange account of the Pennywise lineup addition arrived shortly after news broke that Megadeth had pulled out of the Soundwave 2014 lineup, and is probably intended as a tongue-in-cheek attempt by Maddah and the Soundwave team to convey the struggles of being a promoter that deals with world-class bands.
In any case, Maddah has taken a far more serious tone when dealing with Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine, apologising to the singer-guitarist in a series of tweets after Mustaine officially announced the band had cancelled on Soundwave 2014 following a dispute over Newsted – the titular heavy metal act of ex-Metallica bassist Jason Newsted – being dropped from the bill of Megadeth’s own Soundwave 2014 Sidewave shows.
Long story short, Pennywise will now join Less Than Jake, Bowling For Soup, and Zebrahead for their performance in Sydney next month (dates below) and are the latest in a series of sideshow announcements from Soundwave.
In festival tradition there’s a number of triple-billed shows, featuring Mastodon, Baroness, and Gojira, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Glassjaw, and Dir En Grey, plus Eagles Of Death Metal, Rocket From The Crypt, & Mutemath, Alice In Chains, Down, and Walking With Papers, Less Than Jake, Bowling For Soup, and Zebrahead, as well as Jimmy Eat World, Panic! At The Disco, with Alkaline Trio.
Other sideshows include Soundwave 2014 headliners Avenged Sevenfold, AFI with ††† (Crosses), Rob Zombie & Korn, Alter Bridge & Living Colour, Finnish rockers HIM,Richie Sambora, Black Veil Brides, Biffy Clyro, Placebo, and Clutch.
In related news, Maddah is also looking to switch the closing Perth leg of Soundwave from the Claremont Showgrounds to Arena Joondalup, mirroring Big Day Out’s last-minute venue change following ongoing battles with Claremont Council.
“We’re trying to move (Soundwave in Perth). Not sure if we can,” Maddah tweeted recently. A venue change to Joondalup would also require a change of date, as Future’s underage Good Life 2014 festival already has Arena Joondalup booked for the same date as Soundwave’s Perth leg.
Less Than Jake Soundwave 2014 Sidewaves
with Bowling For Soup and Zebrahead
Plus Pennywise (Sydney only)
TICKETS ON-SALE: FRIDAY JANUARY 31ST @ 9: 00AM AEDT
MONDAY 24 FEBRUARY – SYDNEY, MANNING BAR – 18+
Tickets: www.oztix.com.au
WEDNESDAY 26 FEBRUARY – MELBOURNE, THE HI-FI – 18+
Tickets: www.thehifi.com.au
Also performing at:
Soundwave 2014
Saturday 22nd February – Brisbane, RNA Showgrounds
Sunday 23rd February – Sydney, Olympic Park
Friday 28th February – Melbourne, Flemington Racecourse
Saturday 1st March – Adelaide, Bonython Park
Monday 3rd March – Perth, Claremont Showgrounds
Tickets on sale via: soundwavefestival.com, oztix.com.au & other outlets
