Oakland's Burger Boogaloo, the DIY music fest, turns 10 at Mosswood Park
OAKLAND, Calif. (KTVU) - One form of self-preservation would be not submitting yourself to the unrelenting 24-hour news cycle. It would be a simpler, more carefree life where you don't read daily about what even members of Congress are calling U.S. "concentration camps."
There would be time for more joyous occasions.
- For Myleen Hollero's full Burger Boogaloo photo gallery click here.
One of those occasions is the Burger Boogaloo in Oakland's Mosswood Park. Over the weekend, Bay Area-based photographer Myleen Hollero captured the essence of escapism at the cultural event, where expression is king, freak flags fly and birds of an oddball feather flock together.%INLINE%
The two-day DIY music festival reached a milestone this year with their 10th anniversary. Put on by the locals at Total Trash Productions in conjunction with Southern California's Burger Records, the fest stayed true to its mission, by transforming the outdoor space into a vibrant fantasy land.%INLINE%
This year's incarnation was slightly smaller, down from two stages to one, in order to share space with the growing homeless population, something the festival had previously been criticized over. It is also worth noting that The Jesus and Mary Chain headlined both nights, a task no band had previously been assigned. %INLINE%
The festival had long outgrown its humble roots of playing various dive bars in San Francisco after it started bringing in acts like Ronnie Spector, Iggy Pop and Devo.
Filmmaker, author and self-professed ‘Pope of Filth' John Waters reprised his role as emcee, a tradition he seems to have taken a genuine liking to. He pulled no punches when it came to criticizing politicians. No presidential candidate was safe in a space that proudly sold ‘Summer of Filth' T-shirts at the merch booths.%INLINE%
Waters pondered out loud whether President Trump shaved his nether regions. He chided Sen. Elizabeth Warren for never having told a joke in her life. He lumped Sen. Kamala Harris in with the ‘once a cop, always a cop' narrative, and somehow referenced Shirley Chisholm in a joke about Sen. Cory Booker all in a single breath.
In the robust vendor booth area, it was refreshing to see newcomers like West Oakland Punks with Lunch distributing NARCAN with literature on how you can actually save someone's life if they have suffered a drug overdose.%INLINE%
But even more refreshing were the offerings of nearly 10 food vendors. Usual suspects Aburaya served Japanese Fried Chicken. Barrett's Burgers and Carolina BBQ were on hand to serve meat lovers and for those seeking organic options, Lydia's Kind Foods had you covered.%INLINE%
For this writer, the Boogaloo meant more than embracing front-row glitter bombs from Timmy's Organism. It was about rockers coming from as far away as Australia and Puerto Rico, to celebrate Oakland's underbelly of DIY culture for what is now a decade-old tradition.%INLINE%
For Myleen Hollero's full Burger Boogaloo photo gallery click here.
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