The Vans Warped tour returns to the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater in St. Louis on Monday, July 5. Like every year, the tour has its fair share of bands that appeal mostly to "the kids" -- Hey Monday, Never Shout Never, the Cab, etc. But this year's model features plenty of acts with actual musical cred -- meaning that you can attend the show with your dignity intact. Here are twelve bands you'll see on Monday that fit the bill.
Alkaline Trio
The Chicago dark-punk trio -- long a favorite of St. Louisans -- released This Addiction, a nod to their rawer roots, earlier this year. The album debuted at No. 11 on the Billboard charts and sold 25,000 copies in its first week of release.
Motion City Soundtrack
Signing to a major label hasn't dulled Motion City Soundtrack's edge: This year's Columbia-released My Dinosaur Life is fraught with as much anxiety and angst as ever, despite smoother keyboard-pop textures and vocalist Justin Pierre's refined singing chops.
The Dillinger Escape Plan
Although Dillinger Escape Plan vocalist Greg Puciato doesn't have a ceiling from which to hang -- like he did at Pop's last year -- expect the band's set to be nothing short of a throat-grabbing, math-metal hurricane.
The Casualties
Street-punk doesn't get much more authentic -- or Mohawk-melting -- than the Casualties. The New York band is marking its twentieth anniversary this year; its latest album, We Are All We Have, came out last year.
