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Meet the Couple Who Got Engaged Before a Power Trip Set at This is Hardcore

Love was in the air for THREE couples at This is Hardcore. We talked to one of them.

A member of Power Trip, the happy couple, and a grown man dressed like a Whoopee Cushion

A bizarrely romantic series of events unfolded in the hardcore community this weekend. By the time This Is Hardcore Fest 2015 came to a close there were at least three confirmed newly engaged couples.

The first couple to announce their engagement was none other than festival founder Joe Hardcore, who proposed to his now fiancé Jessica Parr backstage at the festival midday yesterday. Then halfway through The Exploited’s set last night, Philly tattoo artist "Don Juan" Salleroi asked for his girlfriend Patricia Greta’s hand in marriage.

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Perhaps the most surprising moment was when a young woman from New York proposed to her girlfriend on-stage at the onset of Power Trip’s set. It’s always a somewhat confusing, overwhelming, and beautiful moment when someone pops the question up there. For Power Trip of all bands to host a proposal seemed completely out of the ordinary, but the reaction from the crowd was absolutely incredible. After the set, I ran backstage and quickly spoke with vocalist Riley Gale about what just went down. He was ecstatic for the young couple and was surprised at the string of contingencies that allowed for the moment to come together. Had the airline never lost one of the band’s guitars, the timing simply wouldn’t have worked, but he was glad it did. Typically speaking, he finds on-stage proposals kind of cheesy, but when he realized the enormity of the situation and what it stands for, he was honored to have been a part of their moment, which represents the newly equal marriage landscape in America.

After spending a few minutes with Riley, I went on a search mission with some of the other guys in Power Trip to find the newly engaged couple. It wasn’t long before we sat down together and discussed the defining moment.

Power Trip at This is Hardcore 2014

Tell me what just happened. Vicki, you proposed to Alice right? Why today? Why Power Trip?
Vicki: Why not? I mean, because it’s here, and it’s hardcore… Last year they had girls twerking on stage, so I figured might as well do it with them…

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How long have you two been dating? How did you two meet?
Alice: Not that long [laughs], a few months. We met on line at a Joyce Manor show at the Bowery Ballroom.

So did you two hit it off right away?
A: I was like, “Who is that!? I need to talk to her!” Then we kept seeing each other at shows and we caught up every time, then we finally started talking…

Would you say hardcore has been a very instrumental part of you two getting to know each other?
A: We probably wouldn’t have met if we didn’t go to shows.

Were you planning on doing this?
V: No, it was spur of the moment, might as well.

What was going through your head? How long was it between when you decided you were going to propose and actually going through with it?
V: It was about 10 minutes. I told my friend Amber, I was like, “Um, hey, I have this crazy idea, I’m gonna tell Allie on stage that I want to marry her…” She said “Ok, I can tell someone, and we can do this…” So we tried to find Joe Hardcore, couldn’t find him, so we just asked Power Trip and they said we could do it right now, so I just did it. It was kinda scary.

Did you second guess yourself once you got up there with the microphone?
V: No, [laughs], I was just like, I’m already here, let’s do it. So I went through with it.

Let’s take a step back, Alice, what’s going on with your leg right now? [she’s wearing a knee brace]
A: During the first day, during Code Orange I sprained my knee. I was in there for literally 30 seconds and it bent out like a noodle. [laughs]

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And you decided it was a better idea to stay for the rest of the festival than to go home and rest your leg?
A: I didn’t drive here for nothing.

Is this what you always imagined when it was time to get married, that you’d be asked on stage at This Is Hardcore before a Texas thrash band?
A: No, [laughs], but it’s cool I guess!

So where were you in the crowd, because you couldn’t get onto the stage because of your leg?
A: I couldn’t get up. I was in the middle standing with a few of my friends, and then I look and Victoria is on stage, I was like, “Uh oh,” then I heard her and she made me come up there. I waddled up to the front of the stage.

What did you even say, do you remember or was the adrenaline pumping?
V: I was stuttering, I didn’t know how to say it, I don’t even know, I was like, “This is my girlfriend, and I want to know if she wants to marry me…”
A: I was dumbfounded. I couldn’t tell if she was kidding or if she’s serious, but she was serious. [laughs]

Were you scared getting up in front of a room of nearly 2,000 people?
V: Yeah! I’ve never done that. All I saw was a guy dressed like a giant whoopee cushion and I was like, “Oh my god, why is he dressed up like that?” And he was just smiling at me, and I just stared at him…

Are you going to get engagement photos done in Nails and Cruel Hand shirts?
A: [laughs] No!
V: We’re not that corny.

I’m guessing you didn’t bring a ring or anything like that…
V: No. I think we should get tattoos.

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Victoria & Allie

The happy couple

So you’re pretty young, is marriage something you’ve thought about a lot, or is this because the Supreme Court finally opened up their eyes about marriage equality in this country?
V: For a while I thought I’d never get married in my whole life, and now, I might as well. How long do I have to live?

You seem very relaxed about making such a big life decision. When you’re in love it’s that easy?
V: [smiles] Yeah, I guess so! It’s shocking.

What was your first move after that, you watched Power Trip’s set?
V: We had to sit down. We needed air.

Now whenever you hear Power Trip will you just romanticize this violent heavy music?
V: I just asked the singer, like, “Yeah… I got a question for you…” And he was like, “What….” I was like, I need to do something right before this… and he was like, “If you want to….” Their faces were shocked.

What are the plans for tonight? Is champagne in order?
A: We’re leaving tomorrow. Yeah, we’re gonna party! [laughs]

So how long do you wait until getting married?
V: Well, the question came up the other day about babies. She said I have to have one within four years, because that’s what she wanted…

So at 26, it’s time to be a mom? Are they going to be hardcore kids?
A: Around there, and yes. He doesn’t have to go into the pit.
V: When he’s ten he has to be ready to go in the pit. I’m gonna test him. If he’s a boy, I’m gonna ask him, “Are you a real man? Are you really hardcore?” And then throw him in and see what happens.

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What if it’s a girl?
V: She has to be hardcore.
A: We’ll give her a few more years.
V: No, no we won’t. She’s gonna learn about Bikini Kill and she’s gonna learn a lot. And she’s gonna stand in the front and she’s gonna scream at boys if they come near her.

What would your dream hardcore wedding be?
A: I don’t want anything big.
V: Justice Tripp [from Trapped Under Ice] is going to walk me down the aisle.

What kind of music?
V: Obviously we’re going to walk down to Killswitch, “My Curse.”
A: NO, NO, NO!
V: I don’t know, my parents had a hardcore wedding. They had a mosh pit. They walked out to “My Curse,” they had an orchestra playing it down the aisle.

Are you going to tell your parents?
A: Eventually, we’re gonna break it to em.
V: They’re not going to be very happy.

Why not? Are they super traditional? Or is it because you’re so young?
A: My dad will be cool with it.
V: Both, my mom, she’s pretty ok with it, I think they’re both pretty ok with it, but I think they imagined like, the typical wedding, with a man and a woman.

What bands do support same-sex marriage?
V: Obviously Power Trip does.

Derek Scancarelli didn’t get engaged. He’ll be forever lonely on Twitter.