by Washington Washington
The internet is buzzing, and the East Coast Tsunami Fest in Phoenixville is to blame. On Saturday June 12, legendary acts such as Sick Of It All, H20, and Earth Crisis will share the stage with fifteen other acts at Saint Michael’s Park (Jacob Street – Monte Clare) starting at 11am. Hardcore kids, punk kids, and metal kids from all over are talking about what can only be described as the premiere summer music festival for our town.
“This fest has turned into an event we never dreamed could happen,” said Chris Mahmood of OTW Booking in Allentown, co-organizer of the festival. Mahmood was brought on board to help pull the whole thing together by Adam Engle (Phoenixville) and Ryan Zeigler (Schwenksville) of Stay On Point Booking who conceived the fest. The idea derived from Phoenixville native Chris Brickhouse’s previous festivals, popularized by his insanely popular website – Stereokiller.com.
Stereokiller.com has been responsible for the majority of the buzz surrounding the festival. After making the announcement on Sunday, the site has since garnered over 20,000 hits, and over 700 comments. The punk / hardcore / metal focused social networking site who’s motto is “Because your mom ruined Facebook” has over 250,000 users and on a daily basis, gets 5000 unique sessions, and around 1.5 million page views a month.
That exposure should contribute to an incredible festival turnout, and one hell of a party. Mahmood expects 1,000 to 1,500 attendees on Saturday. The two day festival begins on Friday June 11 with Death Threat, CDC, Barricade and four other bands taking the stage at the Polish Club (328 High Street) st 5pm.
I recently caught up with Mahmood to get some more info on the festival…
Why did you choose Phoenixville for this event?
“Our friends Brickhouse and Gavlick did a PA Hardcore fest at the same site a couple years back. It was a great time for everyone involved. Phoenixville itself is a very easy location to get to from all highways.”
This is definitely a hardcore lineup… Is that due to the influence of Stereokiller.com?
“Well all of us were basically hardcore kids. The lineup is sort of a dream lineup for all of us involved. Stereokiller is a central meeting point for many of us. It has over the years become somewhat of a greater hardcore community and family. Chris (Brickhouse) has done a tremendous job with the site. It’s almost an addiction for many of the people on there.”
The event has the potential to get out of control, will there be abundant security?
“Yes absolutely. There will be a heavy security presence to keep an eye on things all day and night. We will not tolerate any fights, underage drinking, or any type of out of control behavior. Anyone that fucks up will be escorted out, no questions asked… Even if they are friends of ours. At the same time however, our security grew up in the scene as well. They are not muscle head tough guys that are looking to bully people. People are going to be in a very safe and pleasant environment. I’m planning on having my 7 year old there, and there will be many other children there so everything will be safe. We truly are making this a family friendly event!”
What is the main objective of this festival?
“Really it’s simple… We want the sickest show with a ton of people’s favorite bands / reunions in an outdoor setting. In Europe, there are so many outdoor festivals and I think we need to have more here. Plus outdoors, you can escape the music if you want to. There is going to be volleyball and pick up football games and great food for everyone. I’ve personally wanted to do an outdoor fest like this for the last 10 years and now we finally have the opportunity.”
Anything else you’d like to add?
“Ziggy, Adam, and I would like to thank you for hooking up this interview. I’d also like to thank my man Richie Krutch from Wisdom In Chains for all his help and Chris Brickhouse too. There’s also a couple awesome fests coming that people should check out like the Black N Blue Bowl in NYC which has an insane HC lineup. There’s also This Is Hardcore in Philly at the end of summer as well, which speaks for itself. It’s really amazing that the hardcore scene is alive and thriving, and all these great shows are testament to that.”
Tickets for the East Coast Tsunami Fest go on sale this Friday (4/2) and can be purchased HERE
Phoenixville resident, personal chef and owner of The Comfort Gourmet, Stephanie McKeon Krzywanski, has been selected as one of 24 chefs nationwide to participate in the Sears Chef Challenge. The grand prize is a complete kitchen renovation valued at over $35,000, plus an additional $20,000 donation to the winning Chef’s charity of choice.
