Stars of the desert rock scene shine at Mojave Experience

Stop me if you’ve heard this before: There’s a new music festival coming to the desert.

Unlike other festivals that set up shop in a hot, scenic locale to showcase performers from other places around the world, Mojave Experience has a more authentic vibe.

Consider some of the artists who are playing this weekend at Mojave Gold in Yucca Valley on Friday at 7 p.m. and at Joshua Tree Lake & Campground on Sunday starting at 12:30 p.m.: Mario Lalli, Sean Wheeler, John Garcia, and Nick Oliveri.

These legendary musicians helped establish the desert rock scene and put it on the map with bands like Kyuss and Queens of the Stone Age. This festival didn’t come to the desert; it emerged from it.

The Mojave Experience is the brainchild of Patrick Brink, singer and songwriter for the band Volume, who was born and raised in Twentynine Palms. Initially, Brink conceived of the festival as a way to showcase his band, but once he saw the festival had the potential to be something special, he decided not to play.

“I wanted to come out swinging and focus on people really enjoying themselves,” Brink said. “From the attendees and the bands to the vendors and volunteers, I wanted to make sure everything goes smoothly.”

To ensure that happens, Brink enlisted the help of Mario Lalli, the godfather of desert rock, who gave the festival instant credibility.

As a young musician, Lalli played with a lot of bands who were part of SST Records, an independent label that originated in L.A.’s South Bay and featured bands like Black Flag, Minutemen, and Saccharine Trust. Lalli got to know Dave Travis who had a generator and would set up his equipment so his friends could play at the beach, in the mountains, or all the way out in the desert.

Lalli bought his own generator and started throwing shows in his back yard. “We would take that thing out to the desert,” Lalli said. “We liked to get stoned and just go jam and make noise.”

These generator shows attracted the attention of local kids like Sean Wheeler, a fourth-generation native of Palm Springs whose great grandparents were among the town’s founders.

Wheeler caught the bug after going to an all-ages Black Flag show at Rumors in Palm Springs and started playing in bands. “They were arresting me for disturbing the peace,” Wheeler said about the noise complaints he received while playing in his garage. “It just made sense to get out in the desert. You usually wouldn’t get busted out there.”

What started out as private sessions for friends who needed a place where they could blow off steam and express themselves eventually grew in size and scope. “We put some great bands together,” Lalli said, “and made flyers and tried to explain to people how to get into the middle of nowhere. And we got in trouble doing it.”

The last generator show Lalli threw was called Splattering of the Tribes and drew over 1,200 people from all over California, some of whom had never been to the desert before. “It was a beautiful, chaotic night.”

As a result of a post-COVID population boom, there are now more places to play in the desert than ever before. Lalli estimates that along the stretch of highway between Yucca Valley and Twentynine Palms there are at least six venues with stages and sound systems.

That also means more restaurants and more things to do for visiting festivalgoers. In fact, Mojave Experience isn’t the only festival in town this weekend. The Hi Desert Lo-Fi Lit Fest is hosting free panels, workshops, and readings all weekend along. [Full disclosure: I’m a participant.] The literary festival also features a performance by Mike Watt & the Missingmen at Mojave Gold in Yucca Valley on Saturday night.

It’s a far cry from when Kyuss ruled the generator scene with a reputation for unforgettable shows that pulled from the many genres and sub-genres of heavy rock to create something epic. When Kyuss broke up, Queens of the Stone Age rose from the ashes. As they gained prominence across the country and around the world, the legend of Kyuss grew.

Mojave Experience is a chance for those who went to those shows to relive some of the magic and for those who weren’t to hear what they missed. John Garcia, the former vocalist for Kyuss, jumped at the chance to perform with his band. “Once I heard that Mario was involved,” Garcia said, “I knew it was legitimate. Everybody knows that Mario gives the seal of approval.”

Garcia, who lives just 20 minutes from Joshua Tree Lake, is looking forward to sharing the stage with old friends and former bandmates. “I have an all new appreciation for this type of stuff, because I have been lucky in regards to some of the things that I’ve done in the past.”

It hasn’t always gone smoothly. In 2012 Garcia was involved in a legal dispute with former members of Kyuss over use of the band’s name. Now Garcia is focused on his family and making music with his friends. “I’m not looking to change the face of rock and roll,” Garcia said, “but maybe we’ll put a couple stitches in, give it a black eye, so to speak.”

Nick Oliveri, ex-Kyuss and Queens of the Stone Age bassist who is now playing in multiple bands, including the Dwarves and Bl’ast, is perhaps the most surprising addition. Not because of his desert pedigree, but because he’ll be playing acoustic.

“I play loud,” Oliveri said. “I sing hard and I sweat and bleed like I would with my band. I call it death acoustic. There’s death punk, there’s death metal, and there’s death acoustic, and that’s my jam.”

Earthless, who is co-headlining the festival with Dead Meadow, also has deep desert connections. In 2021, the instrumental psychedelic band from San Diego recorded a stunning live album and video called “Live in the Mojave Desert Vol. 1.”

Earthless drummer and former pro skater Mario Rubalcaba skated the infamous Nude Bowl outside Desert Hot Springs while still a teenager and saw Kyuss play. “At the time,” Rubalcaba said, “there weren’t any bands that sounded like that.”

Lori S. of Acid King has played Pappy & Harriett’s in Pioneertown numerous times and also saw Kyuss play in her hometown of San Francisco, but is just as grateful to share the stage with newer bands.

“It’s nice to have a mix of bands like ours that have been around and younger bands that were influenced by that kind of music,” Lori said. “I love that. You gotta pass the torch and keep the music going.”

Jim Ruland is the author of “Corporate Rock Sucks: The Rise & Fall of SST Records” and writes the weekly Substack Message from the Underground. His new novel, “Mightier than the Sword,” will be published by Rare Bird in the fall.