Hot Rod Rock & Rumble is the Rocky Mountain Region’s premier Kustom Kulture festival. Kustom Kulture is the name for the art, vehicles, and fashions of people who drove and built custom cars, trucks and motorcycles in the US from the 50’s through today. It was born out of the Hot Rod Culture of Southern California in the 60’s. Since then, it has been influenced and redefined by successive waves of creative cultural movements and types. Kustom Kulture is art by democracy, a popular art form that represents a shared history between Greasers, Drag Racers, Lowriders, Mods, Punk rockers, 80’s Rockabilly and later the Psychobilly scene. Each separate culture has added its own style of customization to it’s vehicles, fashions, and music.
The celebration of motorsports and American steel included a Hot Rod car show, drag racing, burnout contests, and hi-banked oval cruising. The trucks, cars and motorcycles had flames, wild pinstriping, chop-tops, metal flake and black primer paint jobs. Each automobile representing a different subculture but all existing under the collective of Kustom Kulture.
Hot Rod Rock & Rumble is much more than a car show. There is something for people of all ages. Over the three days, there were food trucks, beer (lots of beer), pinup contests, vintage camper villages, a swap meet, a pinstripe painter panel, and last but not least a fire department pancake and Bloody Mary breakfast.
With more than 50 years of popular lowbrow musical and entertainment styles to choose from, the 20+ bands, shows, DJ’s & emcees on 4 different stages had plenty of sonic influences to choose from. Colorado’s own Reno Divorce believes that Honky-Tonk and Punk Rock are kindred spirits. Like a quick Nevada annulment, the band plays a fast-straight forward Rock blended with Roots-based Americana, and true to life storytelling. SideOneDummy Records artist Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band is a Country and Blues band from Brown County, IN. The “Big Damn Band” is only a trio consisting of a washboard player, drummer, and guitarist/lead vocalist. The fourth member of the band is guitarist and lead vox Reverend Peyton’s thumb which he uses to produce the bass line as he picks the guitar riffs. The Guana Batz are an English Psychobilly band that was formed in 1982. With more than ten albums of material to choose from, singer Pip Hancox and the band played a lot of classics, but my favorites were the loud frantic rockabilly covers of Bruce Springsteen’s “I’m on Fire,” and Billy Idol’s “Rebel Yell.” Las Vegas band the Delta Bombers embody everything the Hot Rod Rock & Rumble festival is all about. The band plays a modern version of 50’s Rock & Roll with a focus on the genre’s origin in Swampy Blues and Country. Giving it their all on stage, the goal of the band has always been to build something people who wear Gabardine, Denim, or Mohawks could enjoy together. Job well done boys; job well done.
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