The final day of Jacksonville, Florida’s Welcome to Rockville festival got off to a rough start with weather forcing a delay before doors had even opened. The delay was extended indefinitely while a brutal storm rolled through and gates didn’t end up opening until 3:30 PM. Unfortunately, the first four bands on the lineup got scratched from the shortened schedule, making Grandson and Yungblud the first bands to take the stage at 3:55 and 4:05 PM respectively. Festival producers DWP did manage to get an extension from the Jacksonville Mayor allowing curfew to be extended so the majority of bands still got to play full sets.
The first band to play on the Metropolitan Stage for the day turned out to deliver one of the most standout performances of the entire weekend. Lead by vocalist/guitarist Jordan Cook, each member of Reignwolf decided to jump down onto speaker stacks in front of the stage, with the drummer moving his entire kit to the front of the stage. The band interacted so well with each other and the extra closeness managed to make a festival setting feel more like an intimate show.
Architects and Fever 333 had originally been scheduled to play during the same time slot, but thanks to the rain delay, they were rescheduled with a slight offset so that those who couldn’t decide could catch a little bit of each set. The UK native members of Architects rarely tour the states and pulled a sizable crowd for their set, which mostly consisted of songs from their 2018 album release ‘Holy Hell.’
Throughout the day, many people had been talking about wanting to catch Fever 333’s set. The band played on the side stages of many festivals last year and were so well received that they got invited back with an upgrade to the Main Stage. Fever 333 also pulled a large crowd that got to witness the unbelievable energy from vocalist Jason Aalon Butler and guitarist Stephen Harrison. Even drummer Aric Improta manages to do jumps from behind his drum kit!
The Struts followed up with more lighthearted energy. The UK native quartet delivered a set of catchy tunes while Luke Spiller “strutted” his stuff with impressive dance moves all across the stage. Los Angeles native band The Interrupters kept the lighthearted mood, interjecting a different but fun style of ska-punk music into the day’s lineup. It’s hard to resist vocalist Aimee Interrupter’s flashing smile and the lyrics are so catchy that the entire crowd was singing along whether they’d heard the songs before or not.
Over at the River Stage, some of the wildest fans of the weekend had amassed, ready to experience the face-melting metal of Meshuggah. The obviously dedicated fans were crowd surfing before the Swedish band even appeared on stage. There were some minor technical difficulties early in their set, but vocalist Jens Kidman addressed them gracefully and the rest of their performance went on without a hitch.
The rock and metal music scene suffered a blow earlier this year in March when Keith Flint of The Prodigy took his own life. The Prodigy was supposed to perform as one of the headlining acts on Welcome to Rockville, Epicenter and Sonic Temple festivals, but needless to say, the band canceled their forthcoming tour dates, including those festival appearances.
Papa Roach was called upon to fill in the space, and there was a little backlash as the band has grown to become a beloved part of the festival circuits in America. Instead of saving the best for last, the band came out ready to rumble with what’s arguably their most well-known song to this day, “Last Resort.” Vocalist Jacoby Shaddix was full of personality, hopping down from the stage to high-five, hug and sing up close and personal with fans along the barricade. Though their entire set could be considered a highlight, one standout moment was during “Born For Greatness,” when a crowd surfer caught Shaddix’s eye during the song and he exclaimed, “If you’re crowd surfing in a wheelchair, YOU were born for greatness!” Additionally, Papa Roach went on to dedicate a cover of The Prodigy’s “Firestarter” to Keith Flint before closing their set with “…To Be Loved.”
Meanwhile, the main stage had been decorated with massive speaker stacks and risers. An audio recording played as the band members of Bring Me The Horizon plus multiple dancers filled out the stage. The recording ended with, “Welcome to Mantra,” and huge blasts of CO2 fired from all sides of the stage, opening with the lead single “Mantra” off their latest album ‘Amo.’ The band has been out on The Second Base Tour in support of the album, which dropped on January 25th, this year. Despite vocalist Oli Sykes recently dealing with a ruptured vocal chord, he seemed to have made a full recovery and sounded better than he has in years at Welcome to Rockville. Bring Me The Horizon have stepped up their game in terms of both production and performance, putting the amongst the most standout acts of the entire weekend.
Incubus is another one of those bands that have been around for so many years that it’s almost easy to skim over their name on a huge festival lineup – but their live show certainly isn’t worth skipping. Vocalist Brandon Boyd still sounds the same as he did 19 years ago when they released ‘Make Yourself,’ the album that launched them into the mainstream spotlight. Incubus performed a smattering of their popular singles from over the years, including, “Megalomaniac,” “Pardon Me,” “Stellar,” and everyone’s favorite, “Drive.”
Finally, it was time for the bittersweet end to the weekend as Tool closed out as the final act of the festival. Despite the poor weather and rain delay pushing their set back to nearly 10:00 PM, the crowd size made it obvious who fans were there to see. Tool opened up with “Ænema” and as if to troll the crowd, renowned vocalist Maynard James Keenan said, “Thank you and good night!” at the conclusion of the song.
Thankfully the joke didn’t hold much weight and the band went on to play a 10 song setlist, which included the live debut of two new songs, “Descending” and “Invincible.” Given that the band hasn’t released any new music in 13 years, fans were ecstatic and both songs are expected to be on an upcoming album which has been confirmed for an August 30th release date.
Welcome to Rockville was founded in 2011 and has grown to be one of the staple rock and metal music festivals in the country. With nine years since its inauguration, there’s little room left for improvement – even the daily lineups are down to very little overlap and the severe weather delays were handled as elegantly as they could be. Welcome to Rockville is more than just a festival, it’s an experience that unites bands, brands, and fans together over one common ground: music. Welcome to Rockville will celebrate its 10 year anniversary next year and we’re already looking forward to what surprises will be in store.
