Drop Dead Festival
Encyclopedia
The Drop Dead Festival is the largest DIY festival for art-damaged music. It books as many as sixty five bands per event, and has been known to attract attendees from over 30+ countries. Drop Dead is an electro
, post-punk
, synthpunk
, and experimental multiple-day festival, annually held in New York, NY and Europe
with additional smaller events having formerly been held in Los Angeles
, Philadelphia, Boston
, and New Jersey
. The festival is also notable for its elaborate stage designs, bazaar of vendors of scene paraphernalia, movie screenings, and a dance floor featuring underground DJs from around the world.
. The festival was originally held at the famous CBGB
s punk rock
club, but subsequent Drop Dead Festivals moving to the much larger Knitting Factory
, also in lower Manhattan
. Although the main event moved to larger locations CBGB's traditionally held pre-parties and after-parties for the festival until it closed. In 2005, the Drop Dead Festival grew to four days, during Halloween
week. Over 5,000 people attended this event, featuring headliner Nina Hagen
.
In 2006 the Drop Dead Festival was held at the Knitting Factory, on Labor Day
weekend, September 1–3. This was a last regular Drop Dead Festival in the US.
Electro
Electro or Elektro may refer to:* Electro , the name of various fictional villains from Marvel Comics and Timely Comics**Electro , from the Spider-Man comics being the best known...
, post-punk
Post-punk
Post-punk is a rock music movement with its roots in the late 1970s, following on the heels of the initial punk rock explosion of the mid-1970s. The genre retains its roots in the punk movement but is more introverted, complex and experimental...
, synthpunk
Synthpunk
Synthpunk is a music genre combining elements of electronic music and punk rock. The term was coined by Damian Ramsey in 1999 as an attempt to retroactively identify a small sub-genre of punk music from 1977 to 1984 that involved musicians playing synthesizers in place of electric...
, and experimental multiple-day festival, annually held in New York, NY and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
with additional smaller events having formerly been held in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, Philadelphia, Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, and New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
. The festival is also notable for its elaborate stage designs, bazaar of vendors of scene paraphernalia, movie screenings, and a dance floor featuring underground DJs from around the world.
History - Drop Dead Festival USA 2003- 2005
The first Drop Dead Festival was held in August 2003, after the success of a series of smaller events put on by NY Decay Productions at the Pyramid in New YorkNew York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. The festival was originally held at the famous CBGB
CBGB
CBGB was a music club at 315 Bowery at Bleecker Street in the borough of Manhattan in New York City.Founded by Hilly Kristal in 1973, it was originally intended to feature its namesake musical styles, but became a forum for American punk and New Wave bands like Ramones, Misfits, Television, the...
s punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
club, but subsequent Drop Dead Festivals moving to the much larger Knitting Factory
Knitting Factory
The Knitting Factory is a music venue and concert house with locations in Brooklyn, Boise, Reno, and Spokane. The club originally specialized in jazz and experimental music and has expanded to showcasing all genres of music, performing arts and comedy....
, also in lower Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
. Although the main event moved to larger locations CBGB's traditionally held pre-parties and after-parties for the festival until it closed. In 2005, the Drop Dead Festival grew to four days, during Halloween
Halloween
Hallowe'en , also known as Halloween or All Hallows' Eve, is a yearly holiday observed around the world on October 31, the night before All Saints' Day...
week. Over 5,000 people attended this event, featuring headliner Nina Hagen
Nina Hagen
Nina Hagen is a German singer and actress.-Early years:Hagen was born as Catharina Hagen in the former East Berlin, East Germany, the daughter of Hans Hagen , a scriptwriter, and Eva-Maria Hagen, an actress and singer...
.
In 2006 the Drop Dead Festival was held at the Knitting Factory, on Labor Day
Labor Day
Labor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September that celebrates the economic and social contributions of workers.-History:...
weekend, September 1–3. This was a last regular Drop Dead Festival in the US.