Started in 2009 (as Burger Boogaloo) and renamed during the pandemic, Mosswood Meltdown is an annual festival of punk and related music held each 4th of July weekend in Mosswood Park in Oakland, CA The promoters, Total Trash Productions, Marc Ribak and Amy Carver book everything from local garage bands to famous headliners who have included Devo, Bikini Kill, Iggy Pop and The Damned.
This year brought us blazing sunshine and high temperatures, with much of the early arrivers camping out in the shade under trees during the day. This included your correspondent who ran frequently from the photo pit to a convenient tree until things cooled down.
Hot Laundry are friends of ours, so of course we were bitching about how early we had to get out to see them while they sound checked. Bay Area locals, they mix a sixties garage sound with a Detroit girl-group vibe.
Established in 2014, Los Angeles’ hardcore punks Trap Girl came up to NorCal with blistering feminist pink in handcrafted wigs. At one point, they brought on Lynn Breedlove from legendary San Francisco queercore band Tribe 8 for a song.
Wifey is a new project from former professional skater Cher Strauberry, who was formerly in Oakland punk band Twompsax from 2018 to 2023.
Go Sailor were a Lookout Records pop-punk band who released an album and some singles in 1996. The original lineup came back for Mosswood in 2024.
Founded in 1991, Pansy Division have been playing power pop and pop punk with queer themes ever since, touring with bands like Rancid and Green Day and inching towards their target of 1000 shows.
Hunx and his Punx were founded in San Francisco in 2008 playing a mix of bubblegum and punk. The band now includes Shannon Shaw of Shannon & The Clams.
There’s not much more you can say about legendary punks Redd Kross, but they were having such fun up there.
Wrapping up Day One were The B-52s, sounding as good or better than anyone else on the bill
See Instagram galleries of all the bands from Day One below. Day Two is coming soon!