Photo by Shruti Patel/ Daily Titan Photo Editor

By Brittny Ulate
Daily Titan Detour Editor

Loud music and massive crowds came to Hollywood last Saturday for the Sunset Strip Music Festival, which featured the likes of Korn, Pepper, Shiny Toy Guns, The Donnas and the all-mighty Ozzy Osbourne.

The second-annual music festival featured more than 40 music acts and included an unprecedented closure of Sunset Boulevard.

The three-day music festival kicked things off with a tribute to The Prince of Darkness at the House of Blues on the strip, with master of ceremonies and Camp Freddy member, Billy Morrison, orchestrating the night. Fans and friends all came together to celebrate the life and work of one of the forefathers of heavy metal with speeches and performances that left the crowd eager for more.

Comedians, actors and musicians came together and offered their own memories of Osbourne and made the tribute feel more like a party than a show.

Jim Norton started the night with his fond memories and slideshow of him and Osbourne throughout the years. That was just the beginning of the very strange, yet entertaining night.

Henry Rollins took the stage next, and gave a very fond and captivating speech in dedication of the man of the night, which got the crowd riled up.

“When I’m around Ozzy fans, I know I’m in a good place,” Rollins said. “I know because I am one too.”

Throughout the night, fans, both grand in stature to ordinary citizens, offered praise to the man that was at the front of a music revolution and one who inspired many.

“Without him, we’d be a whole lot less,” Rollins said, before exiting the stage.

Tommy Lee came out next in all his wife-beater glory and did what Tommy Lee does best, create a scene. He rambled through a nonsensical story that probably only two other people in the world would understand, and ended his time on stage by throwing his water onto the crowd and saluting Osbourne, who watched from the safety of his balcony seating.

Slash, along with his trademark black top hat, Billy Bob Thornton and legendary producer and director Lou Adler also made appearances and gave short speeches during the tribute.

The highlight of the night and the big bang that was the official starting point of the music festival was the performance by Camp Freddy, the revolving-door rock band that has as its main members: Dave Navarro, Billy Morrison, Scott Weiland, Donovan Leitch, and Chris Chaney. Making a special appearances on lead vocals were Franky Perez, sounding like Robert Plant circa 1977 performing “Whole Lotta Love;” Sugar Ray’s Mark McGrath; and Corey Taylor, sans his Slipknot mask.

The night was a success since it brought attention back to where it rightfully belonged, the Sunset Strip and Ozzy Osbourne, the man that started it all and without whom we’d all have a whole lot less.

Friday continued the music festival with shows at various venues along the strip including Talib Kweli at the Key Club, Augustana at the Roxy and Doors cover band Wild Child at the Whiskey A Go-Go.

Saturday was the be-all and end-all of festival days as a section of Sunset Boulevard actually closed down for the majority of the day to host the last day of the festival. Clubs and restaurants were open for the public to wander through while live performances were going on at outside stages.

Some of the highlights of the day included the Kottonmouth Kings smoking a giant blunt on stage, Shiny Toy Guns front woman Sisely Treasure giving a killer performance in her killer ensemble, and Korn performing in LA after a two-year absence. Of course, the man who started it all closed out the festival as well; Ozzy Osbourne triumphantly rocked the shit out of the strip.