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0 The City of West Hollywood celebrated a significant milestone in its illustrious history this past weekend as 10,000 music fans descended upon The Sunset Strip for the second annual Sunset Strip Music Festival. The three-day music event wrapped on Saturday, September 12 with something that has never been done before as the strip of Sunset Boulevard was closed down on Saturday afternoon from San Vicente and Doheny.
The closure lent itself to host two music stages featuring Ozzy Osbourne, KORN, Pepper, The Donnas on one and LMFAO, Shwayze, Shiny Toy Guns, Kottonmouth Kings, Unwritten Law and Fishbone on the other. In addition the street also accommodated an artist signing tent, beer garden, a “Taste of The Sunset Strip” food area, VIP tent and viewing area and unique vendors.
Attendees also checked out bands Onesidezero, The Pain, SSX, The Hopeless and The Illectrolytes in the Whisky A Go-Go; Endless Hallway, Earl Greyhound, Eulogies, The Ringers, Boomkat and The Tender Box in the Key Club; Super Mash Bros, The Knux, Iglu & Hartly, Andre Legacy/Dirt Nasty/Beardo, Awolnation, Terra Incognita, Nico Vega, Iration, Rob Roy, The Pricks and Split Authority at The Roxy Theatre; and Lonely Drunks Club Band, Dilana, Kottak, Vains of Jenna, Diamond Lane, Cast of Kings, Lady Jack, Volume, Radius, The Shrill, The Ashes, Motor Gun Hotel, No Thanks, Alex Calise, The Irish Goodbye and Sky Delamey. 98.7 FM’s “Rockstar” semi-finalist performers 1 Away, Audible Mainframe, Entice, Eyeshine, Fat City Reprise, Fight From Above, George Stanford Band, La Infinita Protesta, The Limetree Warehouse, Me & Heath, Non-P, Oh No Not Stereo, Vogue In The Movement, Wallburds and Zarathustra played opening sets throughout the clubs.
“As someone who grew up on The Strip I have seen many changes, ups and downs, legends born, and legends fade away,” noted Nic Adler, owner of The Roxy Theatre and a SSMF organizer. “What happened this weekend is a testament of how it is possible to wake a sleeping giant. The reason this worked cannot be attributed to one person, one band or one business. This was a collective effort that brought together a city, its residents, its businesses and the bands that found their way on this legendary strip of road. The one takeaway that everyone left the festival with is that ‘THE STRIP IS BACK!!’”
The festival garnered rave reviews across the board:
“In fact one of the best parts about the music selection on the outdoor stages was how the well the bands matched up.” — Tony Pierce, LOS ANGELES TIMES (9/13/09)
“The SSMF went all out this year. They got the permission, apparently for the first time ever, to shut down Sunset for the party. They launched a huge, multifaceted marketing campaign, tried to get the word out that this was to be a different kind of festival than LA has seen of late. And, to a degree, it was. In addition to the two stages at opposite ends of the Strip, the clubs along the blocks, including the Key Club, the Roxy, the Cat Club, the Whisky A-Go-Go and the Viper Room, hosted bands throughout the day, which made it feel a little like a mini SXSW. The people jumped from club to stage and back all day; it was a good chance to see bands you might have missed elsewhere. Or to just wander around on Sunset screaming about Ozzy Osbourne.” – Randall Roberts, LA WEEKLY (9/14/09)
“Ozzy Osbourne was back in the old neighborhood on Saturday, howling and drenching fans with a fire hose at the second annual Sunset Strip Music Fest. For years, he lived just blocks away in a house made famous during four seasons of The Osbournes, reinventing the Prince of Darkness as a befuddled, foul-mouthed family man. But with his annual Ozzfest tour on hiatus, the heavy metal frontman used the weekend’s outdoor setting to reignite selections from his ominous hit parade.” – Steve Appleford, ROLLINGSTONE.COM (9/14/09)
“The seeming disunity of musical genres marked one of the most successful aspects of the fest -– everyone had something to listen to. And with Ozzy’s infamy setting the standard for years to come, it appears West Hollywood may now claim ownership of one of the more diverse (and perhaps most profitable) single-day music festivals in the L.A. area. Kudos, Hollywood, kudos.” – David Hall, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER (9/13/09)
"Sunset Blvd. came to life like never before during The Sunset Strip Music Festival. The festival injected a healthy dose of heavy metal, pop, punk and hip hop into the streets of LA, bringing together an entire community. It was a monumental and historic occasion for music fans and Los Angeles residents. Plus, it happened to be one of Korn’s most brilliantly bludgeoning performances ever…An unforgettable experience…" – Rick Florino, ARTISTDIRECT.COM (9/15/09)
“For the first time in the history of Hollywood, the infamous Sunset Strip was closed for a day of music. In case you’re not familiar with the Sunset Strip, here’s a bit of info: it houses some of So Cal hottest clubs, hotels and boutiques, as well as famous music venues like the Viper Room, The Key Club and The Whiskey A Go-Go. The first ever festival for the strip closed down a few blocks of the strip (primarily where all the concert venues are, totaling only a few blocks really)… potential to be a notable standout in the festival circuit.” – Kristie Bertucci, YELLOW RAT BASTARD (9/14/09)
In addition to the street festival, the clubs hosted a diverse lineup of artists Friday and Saturday nights as well including: Talib Kweli at the Key Club; Augustana, HoneyHoney and Huntingfield at The Roxy Theatre; Ace Frehley, Oh No Not Stereo and Something To Burn at the Viper Room; B Real, Wild Child, The Faded Spades, Hypnogaja, Hyro Da Hero, Static Pulse and Ablaze at the Whisky A Go-Go; Glay at House of Blues; and Out Of Grey, Tarsha and Mr Crowley at the Cat Club.
The 2009 Sunset Strip Music Festival was sponsored by Virgin America, V Australia, Guitar Hero 5, 98.7 FM, Jack Daniel’s, Miller Lite, Art Guitar, Ticketmaster, Whole Foods West Hollywood, LA Weekly, Signature Creative, City of West Hollywood, West Hollywood MVB, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, and the Andaz West Hollywood. Street production for the festival was provided by Swing House.
www.sunsetstripmusicfestival.com
www.myspace.com/sunsetstripmusicfestival www.facebook.com/sunsetstripmusicfestival
Twitter: @SunsetStripFest / @TheSunsetStrip
Photo courtesy ErikVoake.com
Photo: Fans watch as Ozzy Osbourne performs
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