The only thing better than BottleRock’s first day was its second — at least for me. Not only did I get to see my favorite band perform but the food was ACTUALLY GOOD this time! So let’s dive right into it.
Since I was going to be willingly trapped at the Presidential stage barricaded till after five o’clock, I decided to get something big to tide me over. And while size doesn’t matter, a foot long hot dog would definitely fill my mouth and stomach. Coming from Sumo Dog, the Godzilla was a super solid all beef dog, good snap from the natural casing, sweet tinge from the relish with a nice kick from the peppers, though I wish the chili had a stronger flavor because it was extremely hard to discern amongst the other ingredients.
Mine and Amy’s day at the big stage started with the Ramones’ tribute band, The Return of Jackie and Judy. Pulling out the classics like “I Can’t Make it on Time” (which I definitely didn’t, showing up 20 minutes late to their set), “I Wanna Sniff Some Glue” (a great substitute for drinking wine if I’ve ever heard one) and, of course, rounding it off with “Do You Remember Rock ‘n’ Roll Radio?” (which everyone obviously did).
Next to the main stage was the one, the only, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts. Now this was a hardcore showcase! The band opened with a montage of Jett’s punk history, setting the tone for the rebel antics of the performance to come. Alongside The Blackhearts’ hit numbers the likes of “Do You Wanna Touch Me” and “Everyday People,” Jett also pulled from her discography back when she was apart of the Runaways, belting out both “Cherry Bomb” and “You Drive Me Wild,” the first song she ever wrote. The Blackhearts’ amped up display ended with a three song blitz of “I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll” and “I Hate Myself for Loving You” before closing with “Bad Reputation.”
Having stood in essentially the same spot, only moving to inch closer to the barricades, for three hours at that point, thirst and foot cramps settling in none of that mattered when I saw their image pop up on the Jumbotron with the words I’ve been dying to hear all day long: “Next up… AJR.”
You can read my very lengthy play by play of their performance somewhere on this website, so I will just skip to the good part — see what I did there? Jack and Ryan bounced around the stage and their primary discography, so every album after “The Click.” AJR’s performance included radio hits from “OK Orchestra” like “Bang!” and “World’s Smallest Violin,” but also a plethora of my personal favorites, like the criminally underrated “Burn the House Down,” and what is in competition for the best song ever, “Karma,” all before ending off on the song that introduce me to them in the first place, “Weak” – and what’s wrong with that?
Finally escaping those energized barricades, I slipped off to unwind at the Backstage by United for a quick pickup with flipturn, who play a dialed back, 30 minute set where I got to sing along to the chorus of “Chicago.”
Time for dinner, I went to one of my most hotly anticipated bites of the festival, the Hemi from Drewski’s food truck. While my hopes were already high and mouth salivating, it was the woman who told me she came here yesterday and that it will be worth the wait is what sealed the deal. Sandwich secured, that lady was not kidding: tender pulled pork, sweet and tangy BBQ sauce, beautifully toasted bread and gooey mac n’ cheese, who can ask for anything more?
Amy and I then took the rest of the night off, lounging on the astro turf of the Culinary Garden, watching The Foo Fighters on the TV. Great music, even better food and, at least for me, the performance of a lifetime, BottleRock 2026 day two will forever be a festival to remember.
