A bangin’ time: Shabang photo recap

Zoe Lodge, Editor-in-Chief|May 11, 2023

Zoe Lodge

Shabang Arts and Music Festival encompasses the values of the “SLO life:” good times, happy people, and freedom of expression.

“Respect the Funk,” a colorfully inflatable elephant, is one of the largest art installations at the festival and watches over the surrounding artists and vendors. (Zoe Lodge)
Saint Luna was one of the hottest early sets of the festival, taking over the main stage and energizing the 3:35 crowd. Saint Luna is an indie band from San Diego, earning their spot at Shabang as the San Diego “Battle of the Bands” winner. (Zoe Lodge)
A common sight at Shabang is festivalgoers wrapped in pashminas, a type of cashmere scarf that provides both warmth and shelter from sun, dust, and smoke. Many vendors sold pashminas in a wide variety of colors and patterns that reflect the festival’s bright ambiance. (Zoe Lodge)
The Cuesta Ridge stage was the smallest at this year’s festival but was apparently the same size as the largest stage at Shabang 2022. This year, the Cuesta Ridge stage housed the edgier, gritter bands that tended towards punk and metal influences. (Zoe Lodge)
Vundabar performed on the Laguna Lake stage, the main stage, at 6:20 on Friday evening. The indie band hails from Massachusets and is best known for their song “Alien Blues,” which went viral on TikTok in 2022. (Zoe Lodge)
Men I Trust was Friday night’s headliner, having traveled all the way from Quebec to perform their soft indie tunes. The lead singer, Emmanuelle Proulx, noted that California was much colder than she was expecting. (Zoe Lodge)
Lunar Vacation is the proprietor of what they call “dreamy pool rock,” in the Atlanta indie music scene. The band began creating music together in 2016 and have since continued releasing songs and working their way up to playing shows as large as Shabang. (Zoe Lodge)
Lunar Vacation captured quite the crowd despite their early set time, encouraging dancing and singing along to their music. (Zoe Lodge)
Doll Riot is an all-girl punk rock band from the San Diego area, venturing out of their typical garage and house show scene to entertain Shabang. (Zoe Lodge)
Doll Riot’s set produced one of the largest and most electric crowds at the Cuesta Ridge stage. They encouraged head-banging, moshing, and jumping, and the crowd was happy to participate. (Zoe Lodge)
The Funk Safari stage was, in some ways, the heartbeat of the festival. One way was the visceral pounding of the bass from the speakers that boosted across festival grounds, but another was the electrifying crowd and endless energy fueled by rave-style EDM music. (Zoe Lodge)
At the Funk Safari, everyone can be friends. Shoutout to these guys who saw Zoe’s camera and asked to hop in a picture with her. (Sofia Perrine )
Jawny had the Laguna Lake crowd jumping, clapping, and shouting his whole set. He sang his hit 2019 single, “Honeypie,” and had the crowd help him sing Taylor Swift’s “You Belong With Me,” a cappella style. (Zoe Lodge)
The crowd at the main stage eagerly participated throughout Jawny’s set. (Zoe Lodge)
A sort of flash-mob style drum circle kept popping up throughout the weekend, in front of the vendors, during sets, at the silent disco, and anywhere that could be imagined. (Zoe Lodge)
Happy Shabangers danced along to the drum circle’s funky beat. (Zoe Lodge)
The Death Valley Girls closed out the Cuesta Ridge stage on Saturday night from 8:00-9:00. (Zoe Lodge)
Hippo Campus was the main event of the festival, and they brought the heat. Jake Luppen and Zach Sutton, the lead guitarists and vocalists of the group, played together in an electric rendition of their song “South.” (Zoe Lodge)
It seemed like the entire festival flocked to the Laguna Lake stage at 8:30 to sing and dance with Hippo Campus. (Zoe Lodge)
Zach Sutton took over vocals during “Yippie Ki Yay,” earning screams from crowd members and press alike. (Zoe Lodge)
Jake Luppen was bathed in blue during “Bad Dream Baby,” kudos to the tireless tech guys in the lighting booth for this one. (Zoe Lodge)
Goodnight, Shabang, and thanks for a great weekend for everyone. This was one for the books. (Zoe Lodge)