The third annual KAABOO music, food and comedy festival was held from Thursday, Sept. 15 to Sunday, Sept. 17. In true San Diego fashion, young families, teenagers, Millennials and Baby Boomers alike congregated at the Del Mar Fairgrounds to see a wide variety of attractions.
With notable classic rock n roll acts such as Eric Burdon and the Animals, Michael McDonald, Dave Mason, Jackson Browne and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers performing alongside recent pop acts like Ke$ha, Pink, Muse and David Guetta, the festivalgoers were ultimately introduced to new musical realms.
Ice Cube was there. T-Pain was there. Even DJ Diesel (Shaquille O’Neal) performed a set under his new-found moniker. Major names in comedy were also drawn to the festival, and judging by the crowds packed in to see their favorite comedians, like SNL alums David Spade and Norm Macdonald, former talk show host Arsenio Hall and road warriors Patton Oswald, Nick Swardson, as well as newcomer Al Madrigal, the comedy aspect of KAABOO was a major hit with festivalgoers.
Perhaps one of the more interesting areas of the festival was the air-conditioned “Palette,” or the higher-end arts tent geared to showcase local artists and artisans in their element – creating live art. Here, one could bid on art, as well as pick up some craft wares, before heading to the Sunset Cliffs or Trestles main stages to catch a headlining act. While excessive noise from the musical acts proved to be a major objection to the festival’s existence, predominantly by surrounding residents of Del Mar, KAABOO organizers went the extra mile this year to avoid any issues.
Festival creator and CEO Bryan Gordon addressed their lengths to avoid “noise pollution” at a Sept. 14 media conference. Here, Gordon said that the organizers had hired “audio engineers, speaker companies, and audio scientists,” to make sure that they had all their bases covered.
Whatever technology they utilized to avoid excessive noise seemed to work, for it was difficult to hear music from outside of the fairgrounds. The festival’s conclusion on Sept. 17 marked another successful year in the books for KAABOO. Next year’s festival will be held from Sept. 14 to 16. Early bird tickets are now available at www.kaaboodelmar.com.