Emmure get a lot of shit here, from readers and staff alike, and I often feel like the odd man out for ranking their last record, Felony, among my favorites of 2009. Yet I experienced firsthand the collective love for the band when I caught their engaging, riotous set at the Warped Tour stop at New York’s Nassau Colisseum this weekend. To paraphrase my dear friend Elise from Reign in Blonde, who also witnessed this memorable performance, it’s easy to forget how popular Emmure are if all you rely on are metal websites. The young crowd were deeply into the band’s music, shouting along with the lyrics, windmilling wildly, and generally having a great time. It makes me wonder if you online sourpusses even know how to have fun, or have even so much as kissed a girl.

For me, the highlight of their Warped Tour set was a surprise cover of an early-Naughties dance-pop hit: Alice Deejay’s “Better Off Alone.” Without warning, Emmune-branded beach balls were thrown into the crowd, as frontman Frankie Palmeri led the eager audience in a singalong. After one last acapella take, the band segued quickly into “Bars In Astoria,” a song I really identified with from Felony. There was a certain artfulness to pairing the two tracks together, since “Better Off Alone” is almost certainly the type of song one would hear at a Queens nightspot over the past decade. Perhaps Palmeri has some less than pleasant memories associated with the track? Check out the fan-filmed video footage above of “Better Off Alone/Bars In Astoria” from a different date on the 2010 Warped Tour. Remaining tour dates are below.

07/20/10 Merriweather Post Pavilion Columbia, MD
07/21/10 Virginia Beach Amphitheatre Virginia Beach, VA
07/22/10 Verizon Wireless Amphitheater Charlotte Charlotte, NC
07/23/10 Vinoy Park St. Petersburg, FL
07/24/10 Cruzan Amphitheater West Palm Beach, FL
07/25/10 Central Florida Fairgrounds Orlando, FL
07/26/10 Aaron’s Amphitheater at Lakewood Atlanta, GA
07/28/10 Riverbend Music Center Cincinnati, OH
07/29/10 Marcus Amphitheater Milwaukee, WI
07/30/10 Comerica Park Detroit, MI
07/31/10 First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre Tinley Park, IL
08/01/10 Canterbury Park Shakopee, MN
08/02/10 Sandstone Amphitheatre Bonner Springs, KS
08/05/10 Northlands Grounds Edmonton, AB
08/07/10 Utah State Fairgrounds Salt Lake City, UT
08/08/10 Invesco Field Denver, CO
08/10/10 Cricket Amphitheatre San Diego, CA
08/11/10 Pomona Fairplex Pomona, CA
08/12/10 Sleep Train Amphitheatre Marysville, CA
08/13/10 Idaho Center Amphitheatre Nampa, ID
08/14/10 Gorge Amphitheater George, WA
08/15/10 Washington County Fairgrounds Hillsboro, OR

-GS