To some, fame comes easily. One hit song. One father with a worldwide hotel chain. The music industry is full of the nouveau famous.

And then there are those who have to work for it.

Those like Minneapolis pop-punksters Motion City Soundtrack, who sweat it out for years on the road, hoping one day they'll get to step up to the big show.

Well, for MCS, that day has come.

Playing their fifth goaround on the Vans Warped Tour, the five-piece bundle of seasoned road hounds are taking to the main stage for the first time this year.

MCS was born in 1997, with bass player Matt Taylor joining the mix a few years later. Taylor says it's nice to finally be taking the leap into the big leagues.

A leap which even includes appearances on late night talk shows Conan O'Brien and Jimmy Kimmel Live.

"We've literally been on the road for four years straight now," says Taylor.

"All of our hard work is starting to pay off ... it's nice."

Taylor describes the sound of MCS as one "influenced by really aggressive music, and really poppy music."

"Kind of like we've had too much caffeine."

Being Warped Tour vets, MCS have seen the face of the touring festival change. One thing they've noticed, says Taylor, is the crowds are starting to even out, taking in more of the secondary acts on the side stages.

But that's not to say being on the main stage isn't a good thing.

"People will definitely camp out and mark their spot," he says.

"It's getting us in front of a lot more people."

Not a band that likes to preach, and not a band that just shuts up and plays, Taylor says MCS is a perfect show for those out there looking for a good old fashioned rock show.

"It's kind of neat, doing your research through bands," he says.

"There's bands out there driving their message, which is OK ... some bands like to exploit ... but our songs are stories.

"We don't lean either way ... we just tell personal stories ... and we tend to mix some fiction in to keep them entertaining."

MCS just re-released their last album, Commit This to Memory, with a bonus DVD included, titled Hooray for the Madness.