Malibu’s 7th Annual Malipalooza music festival is rocking toward us. The yearly celebration of music and family fun will again take place at Bluffs Park on Saturday, August 24, starting at 4 p.m.
This year’s theme is going retro, with the featured movie (slated to begin at dusk) being the 1985 Robert Zemeckis classic “Back to the Future.” The festival’s featured bands will also tune up to classic rock and roll, whether the musicians are youngsters or more of the snowy rooftop variety.
“Everyone playing this year is a Malibu resident,” city Recreation Supervisor Kristin Riesgo said. “Our Youth Commission selected the younger bands after staging a battle of the bands last spring. But we also have the Malibu Senior Choir. So we go from A to Z.”
Malipalooza is loosely based on the music festival Lollapalooza, a rock festival created by Perry Farrell as a farewell tour for his band, Jane’s Addiction, back in 1991. What started as a farewell moment more than 20 years ago has ended up one of the most popular music festivals in the world, playing internationally to crowds of 200,000 over a three day period, and introducing such artists as Beastie Boys, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Rage Against the Machine, Arcade Fire and Lady Gaga.
Malipalooza has more modest goals, Riesgo said.
“This is about Malibu’s end of summer celebration,” she said. “We don’t make any money on this event. It’s just about the community coming together as a family and having one last blow out of the summer.”
To help enjoy the music and movie experience, several food trucks will be in attendance (for those who forgot the picnic basket). Cheer Burger, the White Rabbit Truck (Vietnamese fusion) and Palalolozztruck (for gelato desserts) will be serving. There will also be plenty of merchandise booths and vendors, and activities for the children.
Malibu Art Barn is providing a children’s art booth to unleash end-of-summer creativity, and bounce houses, a Velcro wall, video games and interactive activities for all ages will be available for a dollar.
But the music will be pure Malibu. One of the bands, The Dume Effect, played at last spring’s Battle of the Bands and was asked to play for the music festival. Comprised of just-graduated 5th graders from Point Dume Marine Science School, this will be a first performance of The Dume Effect before a large general audience.
“We mostly do covers right now,” Ian Lamont (keyboards, “sometimes the flute”) said. “When we decide on a song, we learn it at home, then come to rehearsal and practice it. We did the Gold Rush Musical last year. But this festival will be really interesting. I like to play The Beatles.”
In fact one of their featured songs will be an early Beatles classic, “Twist and Shout,” which was originally written by Bert Berns, grandfather to The Dume Effect’s guitarist and lead singer, Marcus Berns. The band also includes Hudson Tarlow on trumpet and Quinn Graham on drums.
“We do a lot of old songs, like ‘Heat Wave’ or ‘I Fought the Law,’” Graham said. “This is the first time we will perform in front of all of Malibu which is great, because playing in front of a lot of people makes me happy.”
Malipalooza is free to the public. Bring blankets and chairs (and maybe a sweater) to enjoy the evening’s activities.