Diversity in entertainment rocks the RocknRoots Festival at Bakersfield's Stramler Park - By N.L. Belardes
I never saw a schedule for the RocknRoots event at Stramler Park in Bakersfield, Ca. I just went where my feet would take me and kept in a path that literally followed the sound of music. A portion of the time I hung out with Matt Munoz of Bakotopia/Mento Buru…
The mosh moves in a circle while The Warriors perform
The sets were short and the bands were many among the sparse fan attendance. There were three stages and if you blinked you might miss a band; or if you were feeling lazy and wanted to sit down you could miss half a dozen performances. Yet, the festival did exceed my expectations after last summer's Reggae Fest. The set-up was better and accessibility to each area made for easy movement between stages.
There may have been well over 40 bands throughout the day. There was no way I could see them all, but I did get enough of an earful of music that I could walk away pleased with the incredible diversity in performances.
Why weren't their more Bakersfield bands? I think that answer rests with labels and band partnerships. If a higher tier band attended, they could have a say and determine whether other band affiliates could attend. Some of the bands were on tour with other bands, so they came in groups, like the four band combination of Sherwood, Paulson, House of Fools, and Daphne Loves Derby.
I saw House of Fools (North Carolina), H.R. (Formerly of Bad Brains of Washington D.C.), Daphne Loves Derby (Kent, Washington), Sherwood (San Luis Obispo, CA), 30 Seconds to Mars (Los Angeles, Ca), Lords of Anger (Bakersfield, Ca), The Warriors (Tehachapi, Ca) and a couple of other bands who I never got their names. I also spoke with members of The Outline (Echo Park, Ca), The Fuzzy Pink Slip-Ons (Bakersfield, Ca), Vanity Avenue (Bakersfield, Ca), Mento Buru (Bakersfield, Ca), and Another Year (Bakersfield, Ca).
The Fuzzy Pink Slip-Ons hang out and talk about ska music
reaching a young generation... the third skaliscious generation
I had requests to see Soulajar (Bakersfield, Ca) and Aroarah (Sacramento, Ca) but missed their performances. I was especially bummed I didn’t see Aroarah. Their manager, Gigi had messaged me about an interview to follow up on last year’s phone conversation… These girls are great. They’ve done TV commercials, almost hit the bigtime with Verizon and got written up in the BBC over their MySpace popularity. Keep your eye on these girls.
First order of the day was a band from Tehachapi where Matt and I both said, "Dude, a big man with a guitar and wild hair is always the coolest." We went over and both snapped photos of Javier in The Warriors. Go check out their nicely edited video of their song, "Downbeat"...
While Matt interviewed a few folk I wandered over to see that The Outline had parked in a route just outside the back main stage area. Munoz and I eventually wandered over and I snapped a few photos of an interview with Graham, Max, Austen and Ryan.
The Outline and their mascot, a ceramic dog bought for $2
(I want my $2!)
Matt "Ska King" Munoz talks shop with the boys from Echo Park
The ceramic dog seems to listen during the Bakotopia interview.
The interview was hilarious and you be able to hear it soon on Bakotunes Radio. I had seen them perform in Bakersfield on their only other visit, a Halloween gig at the Montgomery World Plaza where they performed with Rocket. I wore a skeleton costume that Graham unfortunately remembered and had a laugh over.
They gave me a demo and you should go to their myspace site for some good tunes... I definitely dig their music.
I had never seen H.R. (short for Human Rights) of Bad Brains even though I’m a child of the 1980s. (read more about H.R. here). Matt Munoz brought CDs to be signed by H.R. and we had fun watching the Rastafarian sing about his love for humanity.
H.R., the legend of punk/reggae
A hardcore punker listens in on some reggae
Event organizer Tim Gardea wanders the Stramler Park grounds
I wandered away and saw House of Fools perform while Munoz hung out with the H.R. reggae vibe. Lead singer, Josh is a great talent with his smooth vocals. He could hit the notes and looked like he would have sang just as energetically whether he were in a Southern truck stop, New Mexico dive bar, or Fresno pool hall. They mixed dueling guitar solos with electric piano and his own acoustic guitar for a three-guitar set-up that drew a crowd.
Their set ended with a memorable mini-Pink Floyd tribute filled with guitar solos that left the crowd pumped for more of the day's festivities.
Josh of House of Fools rocks the crowd...
They remind me a little of now defunct Bakersfield band, Norfolk
I met a few of the band members afterwards, including Josh who sat alone and quietly ate a tri-tip sandwich. How do you bother a rock star when he's hungry as hell? Just walk up and be as polite as possible and hope he doesn't bite you rather than his sandwich... House of Fools was my favorite band of the day (I didn't see them all); it was the vocalist and shredding guitars blended with the folksy musical atmosphere. I will be following them in the cyber realm of MySpace as they journey in their path to rock and roll stardom...
I saw the Lords of Anger were setting up... I hadn't seen them yet but I headed to the main stage area when hearing some rather loud music echo from the area.
Thrash metal from the heart of Bakersfield...
30 Seconds to Mars launched into a powerful set on the main stage that really had the crowd pumped. They performed their song "The Kill" with lead singer Jared looking like a deathly priest in eye shadow and emo hair cut.
The crowd went crazy for Jared. He sang his heart out but probably didn't kiss the girl holding up a sign asking that he smooch her because it was her birthday. 30 Seconds set entertained a rowdy crowd drenched in water and chips. Oh yeah, as I was taking photos from the stage I really wanted to grab a Dorito for a snack, but Jared grabbed the mostly eaten bag and dumped it on his fans. I've never seen fans lust for chips as much as for hard rocking progressive alternative sounds.
30 Seconds to Mars feeds the hungry...
Take a look at the girls' faces in the front...
Crowd surfers were hilarious with the mass carrying individuals overhead and dumping them onstage. Fans waved frantically to the crowd and then madly dove back into waiting hands. Security personal dragged a few off the stage and shoved others back into the crowd. Two fans were too quick and dove back into the audience before security could lay hands on them.
Diving from the hands of secrity
Crowd surfer shoved back into the masses...
Drooling over a rock star
Intense pain in the front of the stage as fans get hot...
30 Seconds to Mars was an intense blend of music and performance with Jared cursing at some fans and at one "bearded guy to get the fuck out of here if you don't like the music!" The crowd went crazy for Jared and couldn't wait to swarm a nearby kiosk after their set to buy merchandise and meet the band.
San Luis Obispo band, Sherwood and Kent, Washington's Daphne Loves Derby performed on the smaller stages. Both are pop alternative bands with growing fan bases. Daphne has an incredible amount of MySpace friends as does Sherwood with thousands of supposed song "plays" per day.
The power pop sounds of Daphne Loves Derby was loved by the young girls...
Sherwood rocked with their alternative sounds...
Part of the MySpace phenomenon is rock bands collecting of 'friends'. Bands gather friends any way they can and add them by the thousands. Sherwood added me probably a year ago, so it was interesting to see a band who had added my own myspace site. I've been listening to their music for some time now... (Add myspace.com/nlbelardes to your friends).
I met someone named Lyndsay selling merchandise for Sherwood (also a name for hockey sticks I used to use...) I bought a CD that has a video about the band (check out some funny favorite physical deformities among band members), including downloadable graphics and songs. I asked Lyndsay about scene writers in SLO and she looked a little confused. Yeah, I heard their art scene was lacking in the area of having decent writers cover events. No wonder she crinkled her nose.
I decided to go home but not before seeing the Lords of Anger rocking on one of the smaller stages. They had a mosh pit with a really big guy smashing the hell out of everyone. I'm telling you he was crushing his opponents.
Lords of Anger play to a mini mosh pit with a big guy smashing opponents brains
Three band groupies rocked so hard that their hair flew and their heads swished like crazy. I snapped a few photos, rocked out, and called it a day as the Lords of Anger also packed up their gear...
One of my favorite photos of the day: hardcore chicks headbanging
A fitting sunset for the Lords of Anger to scream their blood lust
Even hardcore rockers have to eventually call it a day
The mosh moves in a circle while The Warriors perform
The sets were short and the bands were many among the sparse fan attendance. There were three stages and if you blinked you might miss a band; or if you were feeling lazy and wanted to sit down you could miss half a dozen performances. Yet, the festival did exceed my expectations after last summer's Reggae Fest. The set-up was better and accessibility to each area made for easy movement between stages.
There may have been well over 40 bands throughout the day. There was no way I could see them all, but I did get enough of an earful of music that I could walk away pleased with the incredible diversity in performances.
Why weren't their more Bakersfield bands? I think that answer rests with labels and band partnerships. If a higher tier band attended, they could have a say and determine whether other band affiliates could attend. Some of the bands were on tour with other bands, so they came in groups, like the four band combination of Sherwood, Paulson, House of Fools, and Daphne Loves Derby.
I saw House of Fools (North Carolina), H.R. (Formerly of Bad Brains of Washington D.C.), Daphne Loves Derby (Kent, Washington), Sherwood (San Luis Obispo, CA), 30 Seconds to Mars (Los Angeles, Ca), Lords of Anger (Bakersfield, Ca), The Warriors (Tehachapi, Ca) and a couple of other bands who I never got their names. I also spoke with members of The Outline (Echo Park, Ca), The Fuzzy Pink Slip-Ons (Bakersfield, Ca), Vanity Avenue (Bakersfield, Ca), Mento Buru (Bakersfield, Ca), and Another Year (Bakersfield, Ca).
The Fuzzy Pink Slip-Ons hang out and talk about ska music
reaching a young generation... the third skaliscious generation
I had requests to see Soulajar (Bakersfield, Ca) and Aroarah (Sacramento, Ca) but missed their performances. I was especially bummed I didn’t see Aroarah. Their manager, Gigi had messaged me about an interview to follow up on last year’s phone conversation… These girls are great. They’ve done TV commercials, almost hit the bigtime with Verizon and got written up in the BBC over their MySpace popularity. Keep your eye on these girls.
First order of the day was a band from Tehachapi where Matt and I both said, "Dude, a big man with a guitar and wild hair is always the coolest." We went over and both snapped photos of Javier in The Warriors. Go check out their nicely edited video of their song, "Downbeat"...
While Matt interviewed a few folk I wandered over to see that The Outline had parked in a route just outside the back main stage area. Munoz and I eventually wandered over and I snapped a few photos of an interview with Graham, Max, Austen and Ryan.
The Outline and their mascot, a ceramic dog bought for $2
(I want my $2!)
Matt "Ska King" Munoz talks shop with the boys from Echo Park
The ceramic dog seems to listen during the Bakotopia interview.
The interview was hilarious and you be able to hear it soon on Bakotunes Radio. I had seen them perform in Bakersfield on their only other visit, a Halloween gig at the Montgomery World Plaza where they performed with Rocket. I wore a skeleton costume that Graham unfortunately remembered and had a laugh over.
They gave me a demo and you should go to their myspace site for some good tunes... I definitely dig their music.
I had never seen H.R. (short for Human Rights) of Bad Brains even though I’m a child of the 1980s. (read more about H.R. here). Matt Munoz brought CDs to be signed by H.R. and we had fun watching the Rastafarian sing about his love for humanity.
H.R., the legend of punk/reggae
A hardcore punker listens in on some reggae
Event organizer Tim Gardea wanders the Stramler Park grounds
I wandered away and saw House of Fools perform while Munoz hung out with the H.R. reggae vibe. Lead singer, Josh is a great talent with his smooth vocals. He could hit the notes and looked like he would have sang just as energetically whether he were in a Southern truck stop, New Mexico dive bar, or Fresno pool hall. They mixed dueling guitar solos with electric piano and his own acoustic guitar for a three-guitar set-up that drew a crowd.
Their set ended with a memorable mini-Pink Floyd tribute filled with guitar solos that left the crowd pumped for more of the day's festivities.
Josh of House of Fools rocks the crowd...
They remind me a little of now defunct Bakersfield band, Norfolk
I met a few of the band members afterwards, including Josh who sat alone and quietly ate a tri-tip sandwich. How do you bother a rock star when he's hungry as hell? Just walk up and be as polite as possible and hope he doesn't bite you rather than his sandwich... House of Fools was my favorite band of the day (I didn't see them all); it was the vocalist and shredding guitars blended with the folksy musical atmosphere. I will be following them in the cyber realm of MySpace as they journey in their path to rock and roll stardom...
I saw the Lords of Anger were setting up... I hadn't seen them yet but I headed to the main stage area when hearing some rather loud music echo from the area.
Thrash metal from the heart of Bakersfield...
30 Seconds to Mars launched into a powerful set on the main stage that really had the crowd pumped. They performed their song "The Kill" with lead singer Jared looking like a deathly priest in eye shadow and emo hair cut.
The crowd went crazy for Jared. He sang his heart out but probably didn't kiss the girl holding up a sign asking that he smooch her because it was her birthday. 30 Seconds set entertained a rowdy crowd drenched in water and chips. Oh yeah, as I was taking photos from the stage I really wanted to grab a Dorito for a snack, but Jared grabbed the mostly eaten bag and dumped it on his fans. I've never seen fans lust for chips as much as for hard rocking progressive alternative sounds.
30 Seconds to Mars feeds the hungry...
Take a look at the girls' faces in the front...
Crowd surfers were hilarious with the mass carrying individuals overhead and dumping them onstage. Fans waved frantically to the crowd and then madly dove back into waiting hands. Security personal dragged a few off the stage and shoved others back into the crowd. Two fans were too quick and dove back into the audience before security could lay hands on them.
Diving from the hands of secrity
Crowd surfer shoved back into the masses...
Drooling over a rock star
Intense pain in the front of the stage as fans get hot...
30 Seconds to Mars was an intense blend of music and performance with Jared cursing at some fans and at one "bearded guy to get the fuck out of here if you don't like the music!" The crowd went crazy for Jared and couldn't wait to swarm a nearby kiosk after their set to buy merchandise and meet the band.
San Luis Obispo band, Sherwood and Kent, Washington's Daphne Loves Derby performed on the smaller stages. Both are pop alternative bands with growing fan bases. Daphne has an incredible amount of MySpace friends as does Sherwood with thousands of supposed song "plays" per day.
The power pop sounds of Daphne Loves Derby was loved by the young girls...
Sherwood rocked with their alternative sounds...
Part of the MySpace phenomenon is rock bands collecting of 'friends'. Bands gather friends any way they can and add them by the thousands. Sherwood added me probably a year ago, so it was interesting to see a band who had added my own myspace site. I've been listening to their music for some time now... (Add myspace.com/nlbelardes to your friends).
I met someone named Lyndsay selling merchandise for Sherwood (also a name for hockey sticks I used to use...) I bought a CD that has a video about the band (check out some funny favorite physical deformities among band members), including downloadable graphics and songs. I asked Lyndsay about scene writers in SLO and she looked a little confused. Yeah, I heard their art scene was lacking in the area of having decent writers cover events. No wonder she crinkled her nose.
I decided to go home but not before seeing the Lords of Anger rocking on one of the smaller stages. They had a mosh pit with a really big guy smashing the hell out of everyone. I'm telling you he was crushing his opponents.
Lords of Anger play to a mini mosh pit with a big guy smashing opponents brains
Three band groupies rocked so hard that their hair flew and their heads swished like crazy. I snapped a few photos, rocked out, and called it a day as the Lords of Anger also packed up their gear...
One of my favorite photos of the day: hardcore chicks headbanging
A fitting sunset for the Lords of Anger to scream their blood lust
Even hardcore rockers have to eventually call it a day
This entry was posted by N.L. Belardes, on
Sunday, June 04, 2006.
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sounds like quite an eventful day... and as always, great pictures!
FACELESS AND SPLITMINDED ROCKED IT METAL STYLE FOR REAL EARLIER IN THE DAY, but like always the media neglects metal!!!!! no worries hardcore and emo will die just like the rest of the trends, love paul!!!!
Splitminded has a great metal hockey song on the Growing Up Fighting: Bakersfield Hockey Vol. 1 CD titled "Crosscheck". Ouch!
Splitminded has a great metal hockey song on the Growing Up Fighting: Bakersfield Hockey Vol. 1 CD titled "Crosscheck". Ouch!
You're so multi-talented... great report and incredible pictures.
Tim Gardea and Rockin Roots emo tard fest was lame...emo will die out soon..metal and punk have and always will be around
My kid says he doesn't like emo, but I know he secretly does... don't tell him I wrote this.
I'm still searching for a good definition of emo. All I can mostly tell is it is slightly poppy sound with an old Beatles hairdo to compliment... which looks good on some, sloppy on others...
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