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he California Roots Music and Arts Festival
has spread like wildfire, evolving into a magical three-day reggae-rock play
land of green conscious music bliss, having all of the elements for a most
triumphant 2014 fifth annual Memorial Day weekend festival.
The "Cali-Roots Fest"
will feature current trend-setting music, with both new and upcoming bands;
live-art stage painters encapsulating a true art-to-music experience with live
painters interpreting the music, creating their masterpiece for all fest-goers
to witness. There will be a multitude of ethnic dishes available, with
off-site tent and RV camping facilities, efficient shuttle services and a
zero-waste festival policy. Between the past and projected sold-out events, the
California Roots Music and Arts Festival has notably become the largest
festival of its genre, with 23,500 attendees last year and an expected 30,000
projected sell-out for the 2014 Memorial Day weekend festival.
The reggae-rock genre came to fruition in the
nineties; birthed from the band Sublime, which combined ska, Jamaican rooted
reggae and modern-day rock and roll, encompassing the one-love movement, while
blurring creed, race and religious boundaries. Bands as Sublime with Rome, Slightly Stoopid,
311, The Dirty Heads, Pepper, The Expendables and Iration kept the new sound alive and
with festivals as the California Roots Music and Arts Festival and its founders
Jeff Monser and Dan Sheehan, they are quickly carving the reggae-rock path, making
history in the genre through their California Roots reggae-rock festivals.
This year, the music alone will take center stage
at California Roots Festival with some of the most recognized national reggae
and reggae rock touring acts in the genre, such as Grammy winning artists Damian and Ziggy Marley;
sons of the legendary Bob Marley, as well as Billboard's
#1 reggae selling band Rebelution, along with the triple
platinum album artists 311, Steel Pulse; who's
band is widely recognized for streaming a live performance nationwide for
Bob Marley's memorial and also for their philanthropic mission donating 100% of
its proceeds to Haiti to benefit solar electric health clinics with their
single "Hold on 4 Haiti," and SOJA with a collective 40 million
Youtube views and three million Facebook fans attracting an almost
Grateful Dead-like international following, all giving precedence to the this year’s
attractions. Forty-two other genre-favorite acts will perform celebrating
music, community and the movement of the genre.
The festival has brought back an element of music
history, with "Pop Fest"
memories at the nostalgic and picturesque Monterey County Fair and Events
Center; formally named Monterey County Fairgrounds. The 1967 Monterey Pop
Festival drew record-breaking audiences, with major acts of its time as: Jimi Hendrix, The Who,
Ravi Shankar, Otis Redding, Jefferson Airplane, The Mama's & The Papas,
Janis Joplin and many
more, which became the true template for other music festivals around the
globe, as it was widely promoted, well-attended and now an instrumental piece
of music history. "It's been our dream to expand to the main arena stage,
where Jimi Hendrix lit his
guitar on fire while performing. We want to give the main stage artists
and headliners a piece of that history and with current projections on sales;
it looks as if we will have another sold-out festival and packed arena for
those artists. It's a shared dream come true for both artists and myself,"
says festival co-founder Dan Sheehan.
"Last year was an endearing experience
peering out to the mass-crowds from main stage, to see thousands upon thousands
of fans holding hands, swaying to the music and singing the lyrics of these
artists in harmony and to know that this year we'll see that on even a larger
scale, with the strung white lights in the main arena is beyond words,"
says artist-media liaison Tanya Moore. "I have been brought to tears quite
a few times. Being a once "Deadhead," there is truly nothing else
today, quite as reminiscent!"
The Grateful Dead movement, along with the ever-endearing Bob Marley
cross-cultural followers, has greatly affected today's impact on the
reggae-rock movement, whether it be the past bohemians, romantics or the Haight Ashbury hippies;
these same folks have either joined, or birthed a new generation of young
adults, who embrace individualism in an all-encompassing movement of liberty
and freedom that the reggae-rock genre not only supports, but spreads.
"We are elated to be a part of this
movement. We think of this more as a three-day safe haven, where families and
music lovers can come, relax, throw some blankets down and simply be
themselves, without judgment, while embracing unity and friendship - both new
and old," says Sheehan. "By having the help of our many sponsors,
media partners, staff and volunteers this festival wouldn't be what it is
today. We now have all of the elements for an all-inclusive festival experience
with the recent partnership of Mazda
Raceway Laguna Seca Campgrounds for both tent and RV campers, and by adding
our shuttle service, California Roots Ride with pick-ups from Monterey
Peninsula College parking lot, as well as to and from the off-site
campgrounds running from 9:00-1:00am each day, will provide fans
with everything they need to be comfortable and enjoy themselves.
The festival line-up is as
follows:
FRIDAY, MAY 23:
SOJA * STEEL PULSE * JBOOG * KATCHAFIRE * STICK
FIGURE * PASSAFIRE
B SIDE PLAYERS * CISCO ADLER * KIMIE * MAOLI *
THE EXPANDERS * SIMPKIN PROJECT * BUMPIN UGLIES * THE STEPPAS * THE STIRCRAZIES
* REEFORM
SATURDAY, MAY 24:
REBELUTION * ZIGGY MARLEY * IRATION * ZION I *
ALBOROSIE * NAHKO AND THE MEDICINE FOR THE PEOPLE * AER * LOS RAKAS * CAS HALEY
* KATASTRO
SARITAH * TRUE PRESS * OJO DE BUEY * TATANKA *
PAPAFISH * DEWEY & THE PEOPLES
SUNDAY, MAY 25:
DAMIAN "JR. GONG" MARLEY * 311 *PEPPER
* THE GREEN * SKUNK RECORDS 25TH ANNIVERSARY LIVE ON STAGE * GROUNDATION * THE
MOVEMENT * NEW KINGSTON * HIRIE * MICAH BROWN * BEYOND I SIGHT - FEATURING
GONZO * KROOKED TREEZ CLEAR CONSCIENCE * BLACK SALT TONE * IRIEFUSE……..WHITE
GLOVE SERVICE.
In 2013 the California Roots Music and Arts Festival expanded its vision, by
incorporating a one-day East Coast festival, "The Carolina Sessions"
based in Wilmington, North Carolina at the Battleship Park, bringing the
Cali-vibes to fans in the eastern states. The inaugural festival brought in
upwards of 4,500 fans. The producers have doubled the experience this year, by
adding another day, making it a two-day Cali-Roots "Carolina
Sessions" which will be held September 13-14, 2014. Additionally, the
festival founders have launched their new merchandise stores, both online and
at a retail location in Brentwood, California.
Another notable mention of the West Coast
California Roots Festival is the dedication to environmentally friendly, green
practices. "We've partnered with The Offset Project (TOP) for a couple of
years now, a local nonprofit, who helps to reduce waste in the landfills and
educate vendors, concessions and fest-goers as to the proper way to separate
compostable materials and recyclables. It's all done by volunteers," says
Sheehan.
Green
Pedal Couriers are
encouraging attendees to bring their bicycles, skateboards, long-boards,
rollerblades and even strollers to their green-valet area, where they will be
secured with on-site staff.
If driving, festival producers encourage
carpooling and ridesharing, with sites as ZimRide.com; a ride-share site where
music lovers can post whether they are a driver with available seats, or a
passenger looking for a ride. Site forum posts will state how many seats are
available in a car and a dollar amount required for a passenger gas-share, in
addition to having matching destinations.
The first round of pre-ticket sales released were
sold in a mere eight hours and the second round sold-out in twenty-four hours.
Festival producers are expecting an early and complete sell-out this year for
the second year in a row, even with the festival expansion to the main arena.
TICKET PRICES ARE AS FOLLOWS:
Friday Single Day Ticket -
$65
Saturday Single Day Ticket -
$65
Sunday Single Day Ticket - $65
2-Day Weekend Pass Advance
(Saturday & Sunday Only) - $115
3-Day General Pass - $160
3-Day Parking Pass Only - $75
Children 10 & Under FREE -
with a Paid Adult Ticket
For more information on tickets, off-site
camping, nearby accommodations or other festival details, please visit the
California Roots Music and Arts Festival website at:www.CaliforniaRootsFestival.com. To view the online
merchandise store, visit:www.CaliforniaRootsMerch.com. The retail store is located
at 50 Sand Creek Road, Unit 30, in Brentwood, California, with the Monterey
County Fair and Event Center being located at: 2004 Faigrounds Rd., in
Monterey, California. The official hashtag for Cali-Roots is:
#itsamovement. You can follow the festival on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and
Youtube.
........................................................................................................................................................Copyright 2014 Caribbean E-Magazine All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without credit..
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