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via CAMP's Facebook
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Clarion Alley
Let's be clear: We rarely turn down a chance to see Oakland's
The Younger Lovers, the power punk trio headed up by zinester-dancer-unofficial star of the queer performance art underground
Brontez Purnell, no matter where they're playing.
But pair The Younger Lovers with the sneering surf-punk of
Grandma's Boyfriend and the dreamy, dark-tinged indie pop of
Be Calm Honcho, not to mention Assateague, Sonny Smith, and about a dozen others, all in an event completely free from corporate sponsorship, to benefit one of our favorite arts organizations, the
Clarion Alley Mural Project? Yep, we're there.
That wonderland of a walkway between Mission and Valencia and 17th and 18th Streets, for the uninitiated, is more than just a place to take your visiting parents to show them that your overwhelmingly gentrified neighborhood still has some vestiges of bohemia. Since 1992, the all volunteer-run CAMP has been equal parts artists' collective and community association, supporting and advocating for street artists while providing a place where the neighborhood's struggles and triumphs come to life through painting — like
this tribute to transwomen activists from a couple years ago.
Now in its 16th year, this annual
daylong block party in and around the Alley (this Saturday, Sept. 25, from noon to 10pm), will include DJs in addition to live music, video projections, live street performance, and general revelry. Here's some Younger Lovers to get you in the mood.
