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July 6, 2004

Hootenanny: Best and Worst 2004

(L-R: Miss Erica and DJ Wanda; Courtney and Katie; Lovely Hour Glass Gals)
Best:
1) The weather – this is what people move to California for – perfect weather! Not too hot, not too cold, and very few annoying bugs, unlike our friends on the east coast. Yes, it was hot, but that soft breeze made things wonderful.

2) The location – I am glad they moved back to Oak Canyon, but the traffic situation – ye God! (see Worst) #1) Still, seeing the bands silhouetted against the hills (thankfully devoid of development – for now) as the sun went down was a uniquely Southern California moment.

3) The vendors – many more vendors than last year, with a good assortment of fun things to buy. And many independent vendors, rather than the usual corporate junk. Nice to see.

4) The lack of cell phone reception – it was kind of nice to see folks without a cell phone stuck in their ear. The lack of reception forced everyone to talk to one another.

5) My friends, new and old – even though I never managed to find the people I actually drove with, I did run into an awful lot of other folks that I know and like, some of whom I only see once a year at Hootenanny. This is what makes it so fun for me – the people watching – even above and beyond the band watching and the music.

Worst:
1) The traffic – what was up with the traffic backed up to the toll road? Get some rent-a-cops, get some more ticket takers, whatever it takes. That was a nightmare and totally deprived the bands of audience, since most folks were at least an hour late getting in. Why not just build the price of the parking into the ticket, rather than make everyone stop to dig for $5? Nice job, Bill Hardie.

2) The location – while I love Oak Canyon, this was not an easy in/ easy out situation. The parking at Hidden Valley was much easier, as was entering/exiting. If you are going to have that many people at a venue like Oak Canyon, it’s got tp be thought through a bit more.

3) The lack of security – now, I am not a person in favor of a lot of security, but I saw several pretty bloody fights with not one security guard in sight. And the door security – very lax. Given our current climate of terrorism and fear, the fact that you can bring in a parasol, but not a ballpoint pen, is somewhat laughable. You don’t have to be a national security expert to know that the combination of too much beer, sun, and loud music are going to make people violent. More security was needed, especially near the vendors, where I watched one guy get the crap beaten out of him by a girl.

4) The lack of cell phone reception – I must be a big city girl, cuz I was frustrated by the inability to use my phone to find my friends. The lack of reception made it impossible to ever find the folks I came with, the folks I was trying to meet, and the folks who were trying to find me. This bugged me for about 20 minutes and then I got used to it. I remember life without cell phones.

5) The bands – what can I say about such unoriginal booking? Sure, it was supposed to be the “anniversary” line up, so why not do the traditional headliners and then add some newer acts that folks actually want to see, especially on the smaller stage. How many times can one person see James Intveld, Russell Scott, or Hellbound Hayride? Why not add some bands from out of town? As one person noted, the best music seemed to be coming from the Guitar Center booth next to the KUCI booth. At least those musicians were innovative.

-- Article by Wanda

Posted by DJWanda at July 6, 2004 10:46 PM