Codefendants Pool Party at 2025 Punk Rock Bowling & Music Festival
Sam King of Codefendants at Punk Rock Bowling and Music Festival 2025 - All Photos courtesy of Paul Holstein
Codefendants pool party at the Citrus Grand Pool Deck, on the roof of the Downtown Grand Hotel
This was the second pool party of 2025, after Teenage Bottlerocket had killed it the day before. Shitfire and Upchuck had already played the main festival, and Codefendants would hit the Monster Street Party Stage later in the day. Shitfire and Upchuck were both great on the big stage but I was looking forward to the more up close and personal sets at the Citrus Grand Pool Deck. The big question was, will Codefendants come out in their usual full black suits in this 100-degree heat? They did, almost.
Shitfire from Louisville, KY, was up first, and they had a blast. Singer Hannah Blakeman had a wireless microphone, which allowed her not only to head out into the pit but also to walk around the edge of the pool and sing directly to the pool mosh pit. It was an animated set that I enjoyed much more than their main festival appearance, and afterward they were at their merch table and signed a copy of their "AM I" flexi disc for us.
Upchuck from Atlanta, GA, was just as animated and also blew away their main festival appearance. Something that is always impressive for a band is that their singer, guitar player, and drummer switched positions for different songs. KT, the main vocalist, also went out into the crowd for a few songs. People were not only enjoying their set but also starting to move up closer to stake their spots for Codefendants, which would play next.
Ceschi Ramos of Codefendants at Punk Rock Bowling and Music Festival 2025 - All Photos courtesy of Paul Holstein
When we had first gotten to the pool party, we headed directly to the Monster Energy tent for a limited edition silkscreened poster. Two for two, they were already gone, but I did notice that Ceschi was at the Codefendants merch booth, both hanging out and talking with fans. I headed over and got him to sign a couple of photos that I had taken of them at their recent Detroit show on the NOFX final tour. Ceschi loved the photos and talked a little about how nervous he was to come out with NOFX for "The Decline". He signed the photo with NOFX, "Ceschi of NOFX."
They did come out in their full suits. Well, almost, as Sam King did have bare feet with fish flip-flops. It was an amazing set that included my favorite, "Suicide By Pigs," as well as their new song, "The Right Wrong Man," that they wrote with Fat Mike. Unfortunately, two of the band members were replacements after visas were denied for their usual members. The new guys were flawless, and the set was probably the best that I have seen. I couldn't imagine a better set on the main stage, but I was already planning to get over there to see the Sunday lineup, including a second Codefendants set in the same day.
