Bad Religion The seminal, 37-year-old Southern California band had surprisingly only played Punk Rock Bowling once before Sunday night’s headlining gig at Downtown Las Vegas Events Center. That was in 2013, shortly after the release of 16th album True North, when the band spent a good portion of its time playing new material. Sunday brought a more classic set, with Bad Religion hardly neglecting any fan favorites while dusting off relatively deep cuts like “Modern Man” off of 1990’s Against the Grain and “Come Join Us” from 1996’s The Gray Race.

That gave the show a unique quality, even though only a few hands sprung up from the audience when vocalist Greg Graffin asked how many people were seeing Bad Religion for the first time.

It was also the Punk Rock Bowling debut of drummer Jamie Miller, who appeared to still be in the honeymoon phase after joining Bad Religion a year ago. Miller, a member of … And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead since 2011, was the most animated member, taking obvious joy in the 30-song set and performing sped-up songs like “Do What You Want” and “52 Seconds” with precision.

Bad Religion doesn’t adhere to the sometimes-present punk ethos of disregarding the sound of a live performance. Graffin puts a great amount of pride into his vocals, with guitarists Brian Baker and Mike Dimkich—founding member Brett Gurewitz no longer tours—also consummate professionals.

Bassist Jay Bentley was the only member who dared fool around at Punk Rock Bowling. He handed off bass duties to NOFX’s Fat Mike, wearing a low-cut dress, for “We’re Only Gonna Die” off of 1980’s debut How Could Hell Be Any Worse? a definite crowd-pleasing moment. Bentley later interrupted the flow of “21st Century (Digital Boy)”, perhaps the closest thing to a Bad Religion hit, by appearing to call for Fat Mike to fill in again, but he passed on the second opportunity.

Bad Religion was engaging enough that it didn’t need any more frills.

Fidlar The construction of the schedule doomed the young LA band before it even began, slotting Fidlar in the middle of three of punk’s most beloved bands.

Fidlar drew a few hundred diehard and lively fans near the festival stage, but attention waned back farther back. And the band didn’t do much to win anyone over with a 45-minute set of middling garage-rock with worn-out subject matter like alcohol, marijuana and cocaine.

Choking Victim The reunited NYC band arrived as abruptly to the stage as it once imploded out of the scene. Without any notice—and with background music still playing—the trio ran out and launched into “Death Song.”

Choking Victim also either didn’t notice or care about sound issues, with vocalist Stza Surgeon’s microphone mostly inaudible. Luckily, order was restored before “500 Channels,” “Money” and “F*cked Reality,” the most memorable songs off lone full-length No Gods/No Managers.

Choking Victim broke up while recording the album in 1998 and became urban legend in the punk scene. The band resurfaced last year, and has played a handful of shows since. Few must have felt as kinetic as Punk Rock Bowling, where Choking Victim welcomed numerous members from other bands to the stage to give the set-closing “Crack Rock Steady” gang-vocal treatment.

The Bouncing Souls Festival sets constrain some bands, but the abbreviated time slot seems to liberate these New Jersey veterans, who are best when delivering their melodic punk in sharp bursts to keep the energy high.

During their 45-minute set, The Bouncing Souls pared their expansive catalogue down to its most essential elements, while inspiring the most massive sing-alongs of Punk Rock Bowling’s first two days. The band opened and closed with two songs apiece off 2001’s career-defining How I Spent My Summer Vacation: “That Song” and “Private Radio,” and later “True Believers” and “Manthem.”

It feels like The Bouncing Souls could soon start headlining events like Punk Rock Bowling.

The Dickies “Hello, we’re Aerosmith,” frontman Leonard Graves Phillips announced, introducing his band. “Don’t act like you don’t have any of our records.” That set the tone for a show as silly and enjoyable as you’d expect from the resident goofballs of the 1970s LA punk scene.

Though The Dickies’ antics always seem to overshadow their music, their knack for melody stands out, making them underappreciated among first-wave West Coast punk acts.

The Real McKenzies Vocalist Paul McKenzie, the band’s lone continuous member, joked that there are more bands than ever before playing Celtic punk. But no one would accuse the Real McKenzies of being trendy. The Vancouver, British Columbia-based group was celebrating 25 years—and its Irish heritage. All six members wore kilts, and Aspy Luison’s bagpipes were featured on nearly every song.

Luison showed great skill, but the instrument’s limitations quickly became apparent, turning The Real McKenzies’ half-hour performance into something of a chore.

Lost in Society The Bouncing Souls-mentored New Jersey newcomers hit all the checkmarks of the modern punk sound. Guitarist Zach Moyle relies heavily on power chords underneath his gruff voice, and Nick Ruroede keeps his basslines and pitches in on anthemic choruses.

It’s a style usually better suited for small clubs, but it came across powerfully on the Punk Rock Bowling main stage. While Lost in Society isn’t doing anything particularly inventive yet, the band’s efficiency was an early standout on Sunday.

The Venomous Pinks The Phoenix-based four-piece—an all-female band signed to local SquidHat Records—established itself as a band to watch going forward. The Pinks sounded more seasoned than bands typically slotted to open the main stage do, with driving melodies anchoring their approach.