Red Elvises at the Strawberry Festival

Ah, strawberries! Red, sweet, lovely and delicious, just like Our Favorite Band…how perfect that Red Elvises should play the Strawberry Festival, the newest addition to the list of California festivals attended by yours truly for the sole purpose of enjoying a kick ass rokenrol show on a warm summer afternoon. This event was just before Memorial Day so technically it wasn’t officially summer yet, but it sure felt like summer and I got a little bit of a sunburn, so I say it was close enough.

Oxnard is a family-friendly town, very scenic with lots of wide open spaces, about halfway between the San Fernando Valley and Santa Barbara, accessible from the 101 freeway. That would put it northwest, I think, of Santa Monica by about 70-90 minutes, if you use Santa Monica as an epicenter of Red Elvises activity. I had been to Oxnard before but never knew they held an annual strawberry festival there, or even that the area was known for strawberries. I have since learned that it is known as “California’s Strawberry Coast.” Kinda makes it sound like the beach along there should be pink, right? Or maybe even red…or pink sand with red water…ooh, surreal! But, sorry to disappoint you -- as far as I know, it’s just the normal beach color. This is a big festival, and I don’t think it’s even that close to the beach; it takes place on a 75-acre parcel of land called Strawberry Meadows at College Park. There were two major entertainment stages, food and beverage booths with excruciatingly slow-moving long lines, arts and crafts exhibits and lots of strawberries. It was very crowded but people seemed to be having a good time. I saw one girl who had a bit too much of a good time and had to be carried out of the food area unconscious after, it was rumored, she drank too much alcohol in the hot sun.

Once we braved the food lines and got our chicken sandwiches and sodas, we headed back over to the Dr. Kato Amphitheater stage where the Elvii were hanging out waiting to go on. Igor was walking around in baggy knee-length orange shorts, shirtless, with a white shirt on his head. Why? I didn’t ask. He looked like he was trying to keep cool in the heat. I told Adam, “See, I told you that you guys were playing here!” – because at the previous show at Rusty’s I had mentioned this festival show to two different band members, one of whom was Adam, and neither guy seemed to know anything about it. He laughed and said that in the future he’d be sure to check with me to see where they were playing next. If he knew me better he’d know not to ever rely on my memory on most things but since there aren’t as many local shows these days as in years past I do tend to remember and look forward to each one. Adam’s wife, Dawn, opened a large container of fresh strawberries to share with us, and boy, were they good! I’ve become somewhat addicted to fruit and could happily eat strawberries like that every single day. Too bad they’re only in season in summertime.

The two Olegs, otherwise known as Oleg and Schramm, soon changed into their stage suits and looked very sharp indeed. The original Oleg wore his shiny red suit from Thailand, which he loves. It looks very good on him. Adam had on a new red sparkly shirt with long sleeves and was afraid he’d be too hot with the suit on. I think these guys will need summer versions of their stage clothes soon, especially if other parts of the U.S. have a heat wave like southern California is starting to have. Igor disappeared for a little bit and his headgear and shorts for his animal print suit, and they were ready to begin the kick ass rokenrol show! My companion and I ran around to the other side of the stage where one of us sat under the canopy and I watched and videotaped the first three songs from the side before giving in to my overwhelming urge to get out in the front for a better view. The easiest, quickest way to get in front was climb up on that side of the stage, go to the front and jump down off the stage, which, fortunately for me, wasn’t very high. It was a large stage width-wise and the guys had plenty of room to move around in, with plenty to spare, so even though I definitely didn't want to be distracting, I wouldn’t exactly be running into any of them on my short journey across. So I waited for a break between songs and then made my dash, and no one seemed to mind. A while later, my camera battery died and I had to go back across the stage to get to the side where I’d left the bag containing the other battery, again between songs. Oleg grinned at me when I did that.

They started with “I’m Not That Kind of Guy” and then told the large crowd of people seated on the grass that they should come closer and dance. Some of them did but maybe the sun was too hot for some people to move around very much, or maybe a lot of them were just very comfortable sitting on the grass watching. Either way, the sound was great and the guys played with tons of energy and enthusiasm. The next song was “200 Flying Girls,” followed by “Telephone Call From Istanbul.” Other songs, in order for once, were “Gypsy Heart,” which got people moving, “Boogie On The Beach,” “Lovepipe,” then a song I always think of as “Rock This Joint,” although I know that’s not the exact title, which escapes me at the moment (see what I mean when I say people should not rely on my memory for things?). They continued with “Night Butterfly,” “Jerry’s Got a Squeeze Box,” which got everyone who wasn’t already sitting on the grass down, and then popping up like toaster pastries at the right moment, and the ever popular “Sad Cowboy Song.”

Then, the world exploded into bubbles all around me! Well, actually, the bubbles poured out of the bubble machine on the side of the stage opposite from where I happened to be standing, at the beginning of “Sex in Paradise,” and all the little kids immediately ran over there to play with the bubbles as they slowly flew across the front of the stage. Neat trick, distracting the kids with bubbles so their parents could enjoy the hand and pelvic motions of (arms waving back and forth) “stupid bluebirds fly…(fingers flapping against thumbs repeatedly) eating butterflies…(hip thrust, hip thrust, hip thrust) sex in paradise!” That song and those bubbles produced more smiles per square foot than anything I’ve seen since the previous Red Elvises show (also reviewed in this issue!). It sure was a lot of fun.

The show continued with Closet Disco Dancer in all its finger pointing glory, because it’s just not possible to disco dance, or to sing a song about disco dancing, without pointing one finger heavenward and moving it back and forth diagonally up and down across one’s body while singing and dancing in the revered disco style. All Igor needed was a blinding all-white suit, although I really prefer the tiger stripes. By now, more people were joining in the dancing, including a lot of the little bubble-loving kids who were mainly jumping up and down. The sounds of a hipster with a purpose: “I am a closet disco dancer…I wanna dance all night…” filled the afternoon air as fingers and hips gyrated wildly.

A big difference between bar shows and festival shows is that the entertainment at festivals is usually quite tightly scheduled, forcing each band or performer to confine their show to a certain timeframe, so that the next band can go on at the right time. Because of this, we couldn’t scream for encores, shout in chorus, “One more song!” or tragically plead for more with threats of spoiled-brat tears in our eyes, like many of us have been known to do at Red Elvises shows elsewhere. This, like most festival shows, was one set, no break, just the abovementioned string of fun, solid, expertly played, dance-your-ass-off great songs all in a row. They ended the set with “I Wanna See You Belly Dance,” with even more people by now dancing close to the stage. We all grooved in the sun and shook whatever we could. After the last song, huge numbers of highly-energized people surrounded the merchandise table and Vladimir had his hands full for quite some time. The crowd really seemed happy and like they enjoyed Red Elvises’ music, as most crowds end up doing wherever they play. I even had some converts! My co-worker, whose parents live in Oxnard, came to the show and brought her 11-year-old son, who as it turns out has excellent taste in music, and two nieces. They really liked the band a lot and afterwards her son wanted a CD. They’re both looking forward to the next show they can attend.

Beautiful blue skies, sunny weather, strawberries and amazing kick ass rokenrol music from Our Favorite Band…who could ask for more? You too can have this much fun, next time Red Elvises play any festivals in your area (or any shows at all, really, that you can get to). Go see them and you’ll be very happy you did! Unlike strawberries, Red Elvises are always "in season!"