Mark Stern has a long history with punk rock, dating back to a band he started with his brothers Adam and Shawn in 1980 called Youth Brigade and continuing through the label they formed, BYO. BYO would go on to release albums, EPs and splits from the likes of Alkaline Trio, Rancid, NOFX and Hot Water Music but lately, Mark and his brothers have become best known for their annual festival. Punk Rock Bowling started as a small gathering in Las Vegas in the late 90s and has blossomed into a massive festival, and with the 2015 edition just around the corner, we figured now would be a good time to ask Mark Stern five questions.
Do you have a favorite festival outside of Punk Rock Bowling? What lessons have you taken from other festivals?
I don’t have a particular favorite fest. I do go to festivals and complain about everything, so we try to do away with most of the things that we don’t like about most festivals (multiple stages, EDM, too many genres that alienate the audience, expensive drinks, shitty food selections).
We try to keep our prices down and keep the lineups cohesive in substance but still be diverse in style. We also strive to find bands that haven’t played in a long time or bands that reunite to make the performance a little more special than an average show on a tour.
You’ve managed to keep the Punk Rock Bowling day shows all ages over the years, while the club shows remain 21+. Why do you think it’s important to keep the larger portion of the festival all ages and as musicians and as people who have managed bands and put on a festival, do you prefer all ages or 21+ gigs?
We would prefer if all the shows were all ages, as we don’t want to alienate anyone just because of their age, but that’s hard to pull off in Las Vegas. We can at least offer the outdoor festival as an all ages event and still have a bar for the people that are over 21.
I prefer all age shows that also have a bar for 21+ because a lot of people want to get a drink when they are out at shows, so this way it caters to both worlds.
When it comes to punk fans, there are a lot of traditionalists that can be very vocal against mixing eras and subgenres. And yet, PRB does just that, allowing for a ska band, a hardcore band and a skatepunk band to play back to back to back. Why has that diversity remained a staple of PRB and what do you say to people who want the festival to stick to just one style?
When punk rock started in the late 70’s, it was all about being creative and unique in your sound. Bands were inventing their own sounds, so there really wasn’t a lot of groups sounding like each other. All those bands played together and it was refreshing that each sound was unique. Later on, as punk rock became more popular, there became sub-genres of styles (oi, ska, hardcore, etc.). Punk Rock Bowling is about celebrating the diversity in styles that came out of or were influenced by punk rock.
We had The English Beat play on the NOFX bill 3 years ago and I had told the agent that I was a big English Beat fan, but I never go see them play in all the little beach towns up and down the coast. I hadn’t seen them in 20 years, as was the same with most of the crowd at PRB. But I do know that most of those people ARE English Beat fans, and when the band would start playing all those songs that you used to hear a long time ago, it would all come back. And that’s exactly what happened, they absolutely killed it playing to a NOFX audience.
Same thing happened when Devo played. They were the first punk band I ever heard in 1976. People thought they were a “new wave” band, but they were one of the most punk rock bands ever. You try playing a song called “Jocko Homo” in 1976 in Dayton, OH while wearing a bright colored radiation jumpsuit and goggles and see what kind of response you would incite! They were doing things that had never been done and here we are almost 40 years later and Punk Rock Bowling fans are singing to all the songs and dancing around wearing Devo hats! You can’t deny it! People who just want to hear one style of punk rock are kind of missing the point in my opinion. Punk Rock is about breaking the rules, not conforming.
Along the same lines, previous headliners like Rancid, Pennywise and Bad Religion have been a small part of mainstream culture for decades, but would you ever book a more mainstream act for PRB? I’ve heard people throw around names like Offspring, Billy Idol and Rise Against before and just as many people rally against those types of bands. What are your thoughts on this? What do you look for in a PRB headliner?
We are into all bands with relevance. A lot of those punk bands that have had mainstream success, also started out playing in many living rooms and toured in stinky, sweaty tour vans and slept on people’s floors. If you were into one of those bands then, it was because you thought they were great. Well if they were great, then other people will probably hear them and also think the same and the band will start to get popular.
When the band becomes popular and starts playing bigger venues to accommodate their bigger audience, how does that change who they are? I mean some bands are changed by stardom, but a lot of punk bands are the same people, with the same ideals that they had back in your living room. They might be a little more busy now, but you can’t fault them for being popular.
And if Billy Idol wants to play the first Generation X album, then he is more than welcome at Punk Rock Bowling!
There are often complaints here in Vegas that there isn’t a strong enough local band presence on the festival. What do you say to people who have this complaint and what can Vegas bands do to increase their chance to get on the festival in the future?
I seriously listen to EVERY band that submits for the festival. I have a separate list of bands from Vegas and we make it a point to look to that list to try and place local bands. Some local bands aren’t very good, just as some bands from every city aren’t very good. If a band is good and they are from Vegas, then they have a good shot at getting on the event.
We always have local bands play, we also try to include bands from other states as well. We need national bands that tour and are popular to help sell tickets and then we have the lower slots that we try to give exposure to up and coming bands, local bands, etc.
We also reach out to Vegas locals, record stores, club owners and other bands for suggestions on new bands. If you are still learning how to play your instruments and have played a few house parties, then no, you probably aren’t going to be considered for our festival no matter what city you live in. But if you stay at it, start playing clubs and gain a following, become proficient at your instrument and enjoy what you do because you love music, then yes, you will be considered.
Thanks Mark – We’ll see you at Punk Rock Bowling! Tickets are still available for the Sunday and Monday festival shows, and for a few of the club shows as well. Get your tickets.
Swingin’ Utters/PRB photo by Emily Matview
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