The 2018 Abbot Kinney Street Festival - O.G.'s And Babies!

The 34th Annual Abbot Kinney Festival was yesterday, and we could not have asked for a more perfect day. To the point where it was a main talking point all day, like, "Can you believe how gorgeous out it is?!" It really was. Warm sunshine and white fluffy clouds, with just enough light breeze to cool things off and keep it delightful. A picture perfect day, which was great because people were taking pictures all day long.

The street was already jam packed by the time I got there, and everyone was in an awesome mood. It was hard to get anywhere very quickly, because every few feet you'd see someone else you knew and loved - and most likely hadn't seen around Abbot Kinney in a while. The AK Fest is like Venice Homecoming, I always say, as the folks who tend to avoid the tourist trap that AK Boulevard has become still do come out for this annual event. It's great because you get the reassurance that your People are still here.

To that end, it seemed like a lot more of the booths were from locals this year vs. all the realtors and politicians and junk like that of recent years. Things like the Venice Oceanarium, Venice Resistance, Hecho En Venice, and the Free Venice Beachhead were all there, showing off what the real Venice is still all about.

There was a lot of shopping to be done, but who really has time for that when there are so many friends and neighbors to see? But if you did want to get some new gear, there were a ton of unique to Venice places who also set up shop. Burro, Ananda (who hooked me up with some new glasses as the sun was so bright it really did hurt your eyes), Principessa, and Amiga Wild were all there to offer things that really are still Mom and Pop places around here.

There was a lot of art, a lot of jewelry, and a lot of things that really only make sense for a street fair or a festival ... like the giant rainbow headdress that I found myself wanting (just have no place to put it!). I was happy to see this also because I missed the Brazilian samba dancers going by earlier in the day, and I love that.

A large Kid Zone was there for the youngsters, with games and inflatable things to jump on. Faces could be painted, temporary tattoos could be applied, and there were a ton of opportunities to get your kids sugar high.

I really missed the chalk art mandala this year, but by them not being included, it's given us the inspiration to create our own street art/chalk art festival - stay tuned!

Long lines for beer gardens are always avoided by me, and the same goes for food, so you tend to get starving by the end of the day. I always like to check out the Outdoor Grill stand, but they had closed down by the time I made my way back over there, but it sure smelled great earlier in the day.

The "Locals" stage at Andalusia was again our headquarters this year, where you knew you'd see friends, because many of them were performing. Paul Chesne got people dancing in his afternoon set, and we all lounged around in the backstage area enjoying our airplane bottles of booze and lemonade (it's no secret).

It was especially exciting this year for the Festival, as it was the very first one for several little babies I know.

When Matt Ellis and his wife Vavine got up to play the Andalusia stage, it was also the first time on stage for their little daughter, Magnolia. They sang, "Oh, My Magnolia" together (well, Maggie kind of just observed), and it was extra special. Baby Magnolia handled show biz like a champion, and I'm sure it was the first of many family gigs. Love!

There is always so much to see and do at the AK Fest, but again, my favorite part is seeing my friends in real life, and not just on social media - as that medium has only made us all more anti-social.

I caught up with my friends in the band NOCONA before they played, and was once again so inspired and grateful by all of the supercool people that make Venice their home (or are still trying to).

The sun started to set and that meant that soon you began to hear the clanking of poles that signals the end of another AK Fest as all the booths start getting dismantled.

The sky was as beautiful in the evening as it was during the day, and the bright pink clouds escorted everyone on to their next adventure (seemingly either super crowded bars or house parties). Another Abbot Kinney Festival on the books! I hope everyone has as fun as I did, and got to once again appreciate all that we have and all that we are here in Venice.

Happy Homecoming!

Memorial Sunday - BBQs, Beers, Boils, Bands!

You know when all the fun stuff happens on the same day? Well, that was this Memorial Weekend's Sunday ... jam packed, with decisions to be made. The good news was that all of the options were extra fun, so you really couldn't go wrong. One of the highlights of last year's same weekend was the block party happening on Victoria Avenue, so that had to be a top priority this time around for sure.

It was another beautiful, perfect day and people were in the mood for a party, and to kick off this Summer season, after a fairly tough, emotional year so far for seemingly everyone. It was time to celebrate all of the good that this country has to offer, and what better way to do that than with a day chock full of Americana music!

I could hear the music already when I walked down the street, and when I got to the headquarters at my friend Karen's house, I saw that I was just barely in time to catch the Sean Vercos Experience. Young Sean is Karen's next door neighbor, and he's 12. Years old. It's no mistake that his band (made up of his Dad and friends) is called the Experience, as young Vercos is a Hendrixian-style shredder on his electric guitar, and never fails to floor all of us grownups. I already love this kid, but when he threw down the guitar solo on "Purple Rain" (perfectly), he really sealed the deal. It's going to be so fun to watch this guy grow up and blow minds, for real.

No sooner had I arrived than it was time - as tradition dictates - for Karen's Jell-O shots. No one had a problem with that at all, and BAM! The party was on.

The Victoria Avenue neighbors are a wonderful bunch of folks, and my favorite part of the day is always just looking around and seeing the fantastic mix of young and old, every race, gangster or grandma, brand new friends and old friends forever, all having a blast together in the sunshine in the town we love. It's completely awesome.

I was "backstage" for a bit, catching up with the legends Karen and Mo Cotter, and all we kept talking about is how lucky we are. Lucky that everyone is so cool, lucky that we've known each other for so long, and lucky basically just to be alive and still here together. Celebrate!

The music was excellent, and distracting me from our chats, so I had to go see it from the front. Patrolled By Radar was laying it DOWN, and they instantly got put on my list of favorite local bands. REALLY good, and singer, Jay Souza, was wearing a "Bernie" shirt too. Solid.

The Victoria crew had generously provided a taco stand from Berdo's Tacos, where Albert Martinez kept the revelers happy and fed for hours. I can strongly recommend the El Pastor as maybe the best I've ever had. Once again, this was a no permit party - Venice style - and the taco stand was set up right in the street, along with the other food tables and coolers and stuff. No problem whatsoever ... you only had to look out for the renegade children that were joy-riding around in a little electric car like baby Thelma and Louise's. It was impressive.

Nocona hit the stage next and transformed the yard into a honky tonk dance party, where even the oldest party-goers were toe-tapping and moving to the beat. I love Nocona, and as I was listening, I once again just got that very tangible "We're so lucky" feeling. World class music, icy cold beers, the greatest people ... without ever leaving the neighborhood! It's truly the best.

But then we had to leave the neighborhood, because another group of top shelf friends were playing over at The Cinema Bar, and that could not be missed (though a bunch of good bands were missed on Victoria, making me think we all have to coordinate our watches next year so we cal all see everything!) We got to the Cinema right as our dear Lacey Kay Cowden was beguiling the tiny Cinema room with her gorgeous, soulful tunes as the sun streamed in from outside. If you weren't already a fan, you were now.

The place was packed solid, and as I made my way out to the back patio, it was one big embrace after another, as the day only got better. Out back there was a crawfish boil in full swing, helmed by Chef Brian Dunsmoor from Hatchet Hall.

People lined up to get themselves a basket of crawfish, corn, potatoes, and sausage all in that garlic butter spicy sauce that throws any kind of manners out the window. You just slurp and suck and make a total mess - and love every minute of it.

The alley became a spot to get some fresh air after being squeezed tight in with all your friends, and that's nice, but only for so long because Paul Chesne was up next. And Chesne is the best.

I don't even remember which songs Chesne and his rock solid band played, but I know the whole place was dancing. I looked around to see that some of the other folks from the Victoria block party had also made their way over to Sepulveda, and now the parties were merging. Excellent.

A breather out back after Chesne wasn't really a breather, because DJ Bright Moments (Paddy Wilkins) was back there spinning, and every song had us singing and dancing along (it may or may not surprise you that the big crowd pleasers were "I've Had The Time Of My Life" from Dirty Dancing and "All Night Long" from Lionel Richie ... tipping the hand that perhaps we'd all been teens in the later '80's). It was an absolute blast.

Back inside we went to get down to Matt Ellis and his band, sounding as great as ever on that little stage - so tiny that bassist Dustin Bookatz just played from right in the crowd. Vavine Tahapehi joined her husband for a couple tunes, and as we all sang along and loved each other, there again was that LUCKY feeling. And the AWARENESS of it.

After the bands all finished, everyone danced and sang some more out on the patio until we got the boot. The party adjourned and several of us met up to sing even more around a campfire. As the stars came out and everyone started to get sloppy, I gave a moment of thought to what the day was about. Yes, Memorial Day is about remembering our fallen Veterans of wars, but it's also about remembering what they fought for. I've known plenty of Veterans (I was thinking mostly of Tomas Young on this particular day), and none of them signed up to fight for oil rights or to prop up foreign dictators who play along with the American agenda. No, they all signed up to protect US, and days like we had on Sunday. Friends and families gathered together to celebrate each other, and to celebrate Freedom. To break bread together and listen to the music that defines who we are and what we're about. To live together, in unity, with justice for ALL. THAT is what it's about. And that is what WE were about on this perfectly wonderful day under the Stars and Stripes. FREEDOM.


THANK YOU to every single person involved, whether you organized it or attended it, it was great because of you being there.

The Venice Art Crawl: Holiday Edition!

The Holiday version of the Venice Art Crawl took place last night, and as usual, it was a complete treat for the neighborhood. Also as usual, you pretty much need a jet pack to get around to all the spots, but even without the jet pack (that we were promised by now!), I did pretty good. REALLY good, considering I was on foot (slightly faster than actually crawling) and had no map.

I was wrapping up things with work to get away for the holidays, so didn't get down to the Venice Pier in time to see the Electric Bike Parade take off, and would have loved to have taken part in that, seeing all the fun they had. I got home and hit the ground walking, starting off at Will Leather Goods on Abbot Kinney where Jules Muck was back in town and doing live paintings on leather. Of peoples' pets!

People queued up to get their little dog or cat portrait painted by Muck on a wallet, bag, or even a soccer ball. It was great to see Jules again, and great to see people get so excited about both her work and their pets.

Carrying on down Abbot Kinney, there were a lot of people out and about, but I was on a mission that could not be stopped unless it involved art. I got to In Heroes We Trust just a little too late to enjoy their  holiday nog ...

... But the holiday cheer was in full effect nonetheless, with revelers bundled up to combat the slight chill that we all think is Winter here. There was art, there was hula hooping (even in tiny toddler sizes, that one little moppet kept slamming into me with, and it was no problem), and there were gifts galore in case you could tear yourself away from the partying to check some things off your list.

I checked a great thing off of my list when I headed over to General Admission to have my Locals Only (awesome SoCal skate culture in the '70s photo book) book signed by the photographer, Hugh Holland. They had prints and Tshirts of the iconic photos available as well, which would make the perfect gift for the surfer or skater in your life (as would anything from Venice Originals, but they were closed for the night).

Across the street at Gotta Have It, it was going off, with both live music and live coloring, courtesy of their featured artist, Jared Hoffman.

They aren't included on the VAC map (that I still couldn't find and vastly prefer to the phone app to check things off!) for some reason that needs to be sorted out, because their art and parties at the Art Crawls are always one of the highlights for me.

Last night was no different, as a packed house spilled out on to the sidewalk, where I added a little purple to the coloring poster outside. Super fun, every time, bumping into friends left and right - which is actually the very best part of the VAC, even more than the art.

But the art is always rad, and the point of it all. I hitched a ride down to Washington to say hello to my fun friend, Michelle Blackmon at her great new space that featured the art of Lindsey Nobel, the live music of Christopher Hawley, and a light show by Todd Alter (and a spin art thing that you could do yourself!). It was great, and extra festive over there.

We passed some urban Carolers on the street, which I always love (my name is a verb at this time of the year!), and hit up Arbor (where you could get your photos printed on wood by Lindsey from The Blocksmith) and The Cow's End (where the great Outi Harma, Mark Saterlee and Roitash Rao were showing their work, and in Rao's case, live painting on trash. Awesome).

We popped in to Maui and Sons to see the work of Todd Goodman and Martin Cohen - awesome again. We're SO lucky to have so many talented people everywhere you turn! It sure keeps it interesting in these parts. Snowflakes were projected on all the buildings in Washington Square, so we could kind of fake that we have Winter (and it WAS pretty cold by the water).

I still couldn't find a map, so I missed some places that I didn't know were showing, but had heard there were things happening in the Venice Pier parking lot. Due to time, I missed the whole actual pier (which I found out later had art in all the little alcoves along the pier - bummer), but I did finally get to see inside of the Yellow Submarine. It was kind of strange, with people just climbing in, sitting on the fuzzy benches, and staring it each other. Okay, great, Clark Griswold nod, bounce.

Someone told me there was a giant Nativity scene set up in the parking lot made out of black lights and glow in the dark stuff, which sounded so Venice and awesome, it was kind of the point for us heading that direction. We looked all over and saw nothing of the sort ... until I saw a little cluster of people looking at the back of a pickup truck bed. We walked over and sure enough, there was the Nativity. Not exactly life sized, as I'd heard, but beautiful all the same, and had made by someone's Dad, according to the dog eared map I finally found on the ground. It was lovely.

I got a text to get over to the party at the corner of Venice and Abbot Kinney, which I guess is now called The Kinney Collective. I stopped at my house to drop stuff off, and when we walked down Abbot Kinney to the party, it was simply great. I could hear the music of my friends in the band, Nocona, welcoming the whole town to come and celebrate the holiday.

Local artists (Gary Palmer, etc ...), artisans (some of the cutest lingerie I've seen in a long while by CantiqLA), and neighbors came together to kick up our holiday heels right there on the corner in the center of Venice, and it was a blast. The Electric Bike Parade wound up there too, so we all came full circle, and we all loved every minute of it, staying put there until the end.

As I talk about becoming the circle, this morning I had to head back over to Washington to see in daylight the mural by Francisco Letelier that was rescued from the Pioneer Bakery, titled Becoming The Circle. It shows our People, residents of Venice, as we continue to endure the rapid change here, while trying desperately to maintain what we love about Venice. Like wonderful things such as the Art Crawl.

It was a perfectly festive note to wind up the Art Crawl year, with warmth and good tidings tangibly felt at every stop (and, as ever, apologies to all the stops I missed!). Thank you to all from the VAC that continue to work hard to provide such an absolutely Venice experience for everyone who attends. And HAPPIEST Holidays to you all!

With love.

The 2015 Abbot Kinney Festival - A Locals Reunion

When the sun rose yesterday morning, you just knew it was going to be a great day for the 31st Abbot Kinney Festival. It was HOT, it was bright, and everyone was all the way ready for it. I live right around the corner from Abbot Kinney, so you could feel the anticipation (and hear the tent poles clanking) all night long leading up to the big day.

Booths lined the boulevard from Venice Boulevard to Main Street, where you could purchase or learn about pretty much everything under the sun. I have a friend who saves her jewelry budget all year to get new things at the Festival, and this year probably gave her a huge haul, as there were so many great artisans selling their original pieces. You could buy art, soap, clothes, chimes, hot sauce, or even get a massage ... the only problem is having enough time to see and do everything - which I never do.

The Abbot Kinney Festival is great because it ends up being a big reunion of your favorite Venice locals, many of whom now totally avoid Abbot Kinney these days, due to its influx of chain stores and scenesters. We again had an advantage this year to meeting up with our locals by having the "Locals" stage located at Andalusia.

With the School Of Rock kids kicking it off, then Kim Michaelowski, then our Venice Symphony Orchestra, it definitely was the place to find your favorite people. In fact, the line-up was so good that it actually made it hard to leave and see any of the rest of the Festival! A good problem to have. We had the pleasure of watching our dear Lacey Cowden make a whole slew of new fans, while accomplishing the major feat of getting a festival crowd to be stone silent while they listened to Cowden weave her musical spells. It was awesome.

The Spirit Of Venice Awards were appropriately given out at the Locals stage, and I was so happy to see my friend, Edizen Stowell of Venice Paparazzi, receive her richly deserved honor.

WIth a break in the music, it was time for a quick lap to see what and who else we could see. The kids area down at Westminster was very popular for families, though the Ferris wheel looked a little rickety for my taste. Also on Westminster was an area for the chalk artists, a Gary Palmer spearheaded project that hopes to become its own fun festival soon.

Kids were taking part in a big colorful chalk mandala, exactly the kind of participation and color you want to see during your neighborhood festival.

After a quick spin through the Roosterfish, and stopping every few feet to greet a new old friend, we made it back to Andalusia to see Matt Ellis and his band blaze through their set.  Ellis organized the Locals stage, so it was beautifully curated with all our talented friends playing. His own set was a true highlight of the day, as our gang all congregated and danced around. Ellis and his wife/bandmate Vavine arrived in Venice ten years ago exactly, and the Festival was their welcome to town, so it was extra special to have them playing at it.

With all the hoopla of the day, I have to envy a kid who can sleep this soundly through it all. Beckett wins! I bet he had awesome dreams.

The great National Anthem played next, a fun and purely rocking set. My friend Quinn's reaction was not a good review of the band, it just got loud.

I kept running into long, lost faces, and to me, that is the very best part of the Abbot Kinney Festival. We always call it "Venice Thanksgiving", and this year was no different. People will avoid AKB all year, but they'll come back for the Festival. And they'll have a blast.

It's great to live right around the corner now, so we can have a headquarters. A place to take a break, use the bathroom, get out of the sun, take a nap, make road drinks ... I did none of that myself, but it was nice to know I could. There was too much to do to hang out at home!

Our friends and neighbors Nocona headlined the Locals stage, and have quickly become one of our favorite bands after complete throw down shows at block parties earlier this year. We love them.

I also love that their kids and their kids' friends all play instruments, and are gearing up to take on the Locals stage for years to come. This year it was enough for them to watch their parents rock.

The sun began to set on the 2015 Festival, but things only got more heated up. Crowds flocked to all the watering holes and beer gardens up and down the street, DJs took over for bands, and everyone either kept dancing, or stumbled off to watch the lunar eclipse go down (I did the former and totally forgot about the eclipse until it was too late - oh, well.).

The annual sweep down the street by the lights and sirens came along to clear out the people, and with it, the clanking of the tent poles dismantling for another year.

It was a completely beautiful day in every way, made most so by all the beautiful, wonderful people that came out to celebrate our home. I don't think of the Abbot Kinney Festival as a celebration of the boulevard, but as a celebration of the man, Abbot Kinney. As an all day opportunity to toast the cool dude who created the playground where we now dwell, and thank him for it.

On days like yesterday, you forget about any differences among us and our individual ideas and ideals for Venice, and just get down with your people. Gratefully.

Cheers to another year of the Abbot Kinney Festival, and to all of us - for being there, and for being Venice.