Punk In The Park made its way to Thrive Park at Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego on November 16, for an absolutely killer day of music and beer tasting! The day-long punk rock and craft beer tasting event featured nine bands spanning all corners of the punk rock genre. The Offspring and Pennywise headlined the fest, with support from Streetlight Manifesto, Face To Face, Manic Hispanic, Voodoo Glow Skulls, Buck-O-Nine, Slaughterhouse, and Winterhaven throughout the day. This event marked the third stop for Punk In The Park – American Road Trip, following May's Road Trip debut in San Francisco and the September event that took place in Orlando. With music every thirty minutes and (almost) unlimited beer tasting, there was never a dull moment at Punk in the Park!
The irony of going to a punk rock festival is when you walk in and see an overabundance of security and police officers, it may seem a little intimidating, but punk rock festivals are the place I meet the most fun, chill, helpful people of all ages and backgrounds. I rarely see any kind of fights or arguments. It’s the place where everyone can freely express themselves with mohawks, kilts, patches, tattoos, piercings, spikes and band tees. All so different, but all together.
Punk In The Park offered three hours of craft beer tasting from noon-three pm, showcasing a vast selection of craft beers, ciders, and seltzer from a variety of different breweries including a few San Diego locals! Belching Beaver, Societe, Mission Brewing, and Burgeon were amongst the locals with some bigger names such as Monster Energy Beast, June Shine, and BJ’s Restaurant also being featured. For some extra fun, The Monster Energy Beast tent offered Beer Pong, Cornhole, and was even handing out free swag all day like koozies and stickers! Rad Co. Beer was also offering Pennywise West Coast Pale Ale, their collab with Pennywise! We got our cute taster glass and started tasting! We may have gone back for seconds at a few of them! Aside from brews, you could also check out various vendors ranging from clothes, stickers, jewelry, art, and even a booth where you could get tooth gems! One of our favorites was The Bag Lady 666, which was also a mother/daughter team!
Pennywise, who was formed in the South Bay of Los Angeles in 1988, is known for their energetic live shows and anthemic songs, including their signature “Bro Hymn”. They always end their set with that song with a stage packed of friends and family singing “whoa-oh-oh-oh” in unison. Working outside the margins of mainstream, Pennywise has emerged as a staple on SoCal radio and the worldwide festival circuit, while influencing countless bands over the years. I’m not sure I’ve ever heard the crowd sing “Fuck Authority” so loud before, punk is not dead! Staying on theme, of course Pennywise the Clown was out there crowd surfing.
As many times as I’ve seen The Offspring over the last 30 years, I still get giddy excited to see them every time. They continue to add a little more each tour. This night we got some pyro and fireworks shooting out from on top of the stage. They even threw out some beach balls during “Why Don’t You Get A Job”. The Offspring, formed in 1984 in Garden Grove, California, have sold over 40 million records worldwide and are considered one of the most successful punk rock bands of all time. During their set, the band shared some exciting news with fans that their hit “The Kids Aren’t Alright” hit one billion streams on that day!
Punk in the Park 2024 was a blast and we’re already counting down the days til next years addition!
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