TBT: Sad Summer Festival 2024 at The Stone Pony Summer Stage, Asbury Park, NJ

Sad Summer Festival is an annual pop-punk alternative rock festival that takes place during the summertime. The Festival is presented by Journeys and Converse and has ran every summer since 2019* Throughout the years, headliners have included Mayday Parade, The Maine, All Time Low, Neck Deep, etc. Sad Summer Fest has toured throughout the U.S., hitting cities like New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and more. 

Last year, bands that played (in August in Asbury Park, NJ) are Mayday Parade, The Maine, The Wonder Years, We the Kings † , Real Friends, Knuckle Puck, Hot Milk, Daisy Grenade, and Diva Bleach.  While Sad Summer 2025 has not returned this summer, we still can’t stop thinking about last summer’s show. Lara Ziccardi‡, photographer, writer, and co-founder here at Punk Pulse Media, and friends § went down to Asbury Park to catch the show!

*Sad Summer 2020 did not take place due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

† We the Kings have not performed at Sad Summer 2024 in Asbury Park on 8/10 instead of 8/4 due to inclement weather and a rain date check. 

‡At the time these photos were photographed, Lara was photographing and writing for her college radio station, 90.3 WMSC, § along with the friends featured in this article.

DIVA BLEACH - Lee

Diva Bleach is one of my favorite bands ever and I knew they wouldn’t but they did not disappoint! They have such fun energy on stage and sound even better live. You can tell they had an absolute blast on stage and it really got the crowd excited! I got to meet them a little while after their set and they are genuinely one of the sweetest bands I’ve ever met. The Divas played their super cute, unreleased love song called “I Like You”, which seems to be in the process of getting finished up to be released! Almost everyone I talked to at the festival told me how much they loved their set and how they were gonna start listening to them. If you need a sparkly, girly pop rock band to get into I, with every fiber of my being super strongly recommend Diva Bleach! I’m not even joking, watching their set somehow made me want to go out and buy pink hair dye. If you like what you hear, you should keep an eye on them because I strongly feel there will be an album and/or tour coming soon.

DAISY GRENADE - Lee

Daisy Grenade is the other band that I love that I initially bought tickets for. They’re another super fun girl rock band that also had an amazing stage presence that I’ve been wanting to see for a while! I kept joking to my friends that my favorite animal is me when Daisy Grenade plays their song “Cult Classic” and oh man, I definitely lived up to that. They also played their cover of “King For A Day” by Pierce the Veil and absolutely everyone in the crowd had a blast for that one. No other song gets a crowd hyped like that and Daisy Grenade absolutely delivered! Another band that has a great time performing, I mean you should have seen them doing the splits during the bridge of their song “Guts”! They opened for State Champs this winter along with Meet Me @ The Altar, and Knuckle Puck!

HOT MILK - Amber

If there is one statement that reigns true, it’s that Hot Milk is an emotion. Hailing all the way from Manchester, England, Hot Milk is an Alternative Rock duo consisting of singers/guitarists Han Mee and Jim Shaw that formed in 2018. Ever since then, they have been a driving force in the scene, with their explosive sound and heavy-hitting lyricism. After the first attempt at Sad Summer Asbury Park got rained out, the band announced they would not be in attendance for the rescheduled date due to rejoining Blink-182’s tour that same day. However, they jumped right back on the lineup at the last minute after the first two dates of the tour they were supposed to play got canceled. Every time I see this band live, it’s more magical than the time before it. Their set was absolutely phenomenal and I wish it could have lasted forever.

KNUCKLE PUCK - Lara

Knuckle Puck is where the crowd really started to get crazy - the pit opened up and the crowdsurfers just kept coming. It was such a joy to see everyone screaming their lyrics in the crowd. Some of my highlights include, “Double Helix,” “Untitled,” and (my favorite), “Want Me Around). During “Double Helix” it was crowdsurfer, after crowdsurfer, one after the other. Knuckle Puck had the crowd rowdy and high energy. Not only was the crowd running wild (in a good way), but so was the band. I loved seeing lead vocalist, Joe Taylor, bop around on stage. While I didn’t crowdsurf to their set during Sad Summer (I went during Real Friends), I got to crowdsurf when they opened for State Champs! Knuckle Puck is always a fun band to see - especially if you enjoy getting in the pit!

REAL FRIENDS - Alyssa

I’ll be honest; Real Friends was a band I was not the most familiar with before the festival. However now after their set at SSF, they are probably one of my favorite live performances I have seen. Each and every member on stage had such palpable energy while performing that it made the crowd go ballistic. The Real Friends pit was one of the most alive pits I have been a part of with people crowd surfing and moshing left and right. Even the band’s lead singer, Cody Muraro, couldn’t help himself as he even crowdsurfed at one point during their set. Personally, I really enjoyed hearing one of their newer singles, “Waiting Room” live because it was obvious how much both the band and the audience loved the song. Overall, Real Friends are an incredible band and I look forward to seeing what they have in store for their 2024 tour. 

THE WONDER YEARS - Amber

In my opinion, The Wonder Years are one of the best things to ever come out of Philadelphia. The excitement I carried for months leading up to this year’s Sad Summer is partially all because of them. Being able to sing along to classics like “Came Out Swinging” and “Passing Through A Screen Door” at the top of my lungs is a feeling I’ll never forget. The Wonder Years were exceptional live and honestly one of my favorite parts of this year’s lineup.

THE MAINE - Lara

I have been thinking about The Maine ever since their set started. They were one of those bands I’ve always wanted to shoot. Back in 2017, their album Lovely Little Loney had 15 year old Lara in a CHOKE! HOLD! When I saw that they were performing at Sad Summer 2024, I just knew I had to be there. The Maine played a perfect melody of songs from their discography. Some of my highlights include “Blame,” “Bad Behavior,” and “Girls Do What They Want” - where they even brought a fan on stage to sing the bridge and final chorus!

But I needed a moment to talk about a very special moment in their set - this night holds a core memory of mine. During their song “Sticky,” (specifically at the bridge), lead vocalist, John O'Callaghan, made his way into the crowd to sing the last chorus of “Sticky.” With his wired mic and everything, he stopped right in the middle of the pit - and I just so happened to be standing right there. Right when the beat dropped to sing the final chorus, everyone was jumping and singing along. It was one of the most magical moments I’ve ever experienced at a show. And to top it all off, O'Callaghan crowdsurfed his way all the way back to the stage.

The Maine is one of those bands I think anyone a fan of the genre should see at least once. Not only are they good performers, their music is spectacular live - their songs and sound transitions very well live. They were one of my favorite sets of the night - they brought energy, enthusiasm, and such a damn good setlist!

A special moment just for the "Sticky" pit!

MAYDAY PARADE - Alyssa

My first introduction to Mayday Parade was when I was around 6 years old living with an emo 13 year old sister. They stayed consistent in my music rotation as I grew older and eventually I got to see them live for the first time in 2022 in Sayreville New Jersey. After seeing them absolutely nail their set, you could imagine how excited I was when they were one of the headliners for Sad Summer Fest 2024. After showing up to Asbury Park (for the second time), it was clear how many people showed up to see Mayday perform. As the night went on, the audience was buzzing with excitement for the band to take the stage. From the second they walked on their daisy-covered stage with their iconic background and "Summer Loving" by Olivia Newton John and John Travolta starting playing, the pit became alive. This show only solidified for me how iconic this band truly is in the pop punk community. Lead singer, Derek Sanders, showcased his love and appreciation for his dedicated fans between belting his heart out during songs. I chose to showcase my love for Mayday by crowd surfing for the first time during Anywhere But Here off of their timeless 2009 album. With songs such as "Jersey," "Oh Well Oh Well," and "Jamie All Over," their setlist was absolutely stacked. All in all, I truly enjoyed watching Mayday Parade do what they do best and I hope to see another appearance from them during next year’s Sad Summer Fest!