How many of you readers out there have heard of Warped Tour? Probably a good percentage of the people reading this article.
Well, Through The Crowd has played Warped Tour. And I know you’re thinking, “yeah man, a ton of bands have played Warped.”
Although, not all Warped bands have a drummer that goes to Ferris. You read that right, ladies and gentlemen.
The alternative, pop-punk band consists of Connor Ragan on vocals and guitar, Andrew Heiler on lead guitar, Tony VanBuren rocking the bass, and Ferris’s own Justin O’Donoghue on drums.
The band’s biggest influences are that of Blink-182, Sum 41, Nirvana, Alkaline Trio, The Wonder Years, and The Story So Far.
Justin O’Donoghue is what some would consider a rock star. I know I sure as hell do.
I got the privilege of meeting Justin when he came here at the start of the school year from New York. I’m not gonna lie, I fan-boyed a little bit when he told me that his band has played Warped.
According to O’Donoghue, he and Andrew both graduated Avon High School together in 2012, and Connor and Tony both graduated Geneseo High School in 2013. Everyone met due to the proximity of their schools.
“We actually just signed with management for the first time,” O’Donoghue said. “We have been completely [independent] to this point, and we’re excited to see where the Inner Late Agency can take us; we’re looking to tour this summer.”
“The environment behind the scenes at Warped is crazy and to think that some bands do it every day makes us appreciate them that much more. They’re working their ass off every day,” O’Donoghue said. “The online Ernie Ball Battle of the Bands was how we landed the spot; it worked out for us really well. When doing that, you can’t half-ass it because if you do, you’ll fall off the charts. So we decided to go really hard on it and it paid off. Warped Tour is where we sounded our best and had one of the best atmospheres as far as the crowd goes so it was definitely one of our favorite shows we’ve played as a band.”
The band anticipates landing a spot on stage for this year’s Ferris Fest.
“Dude, we better! Honestly, if we don’t get a slot for the main stage or second stage, we might just come and have a huge house show somewhere,” O’Donoghue said. “We will play Ferris Fest, mark my words.”