Untold thousands of music fans have seen shows at the Del Mar Fairgrounds and Thoroughbred Club -- nevermind Kaboo --over the years, but there's a news twist these pandemic days.
The fairground folk are hosting a series of weekend drive-in shows in the parking lot where, just like the ones this summer at Petco Park with the locals from Switchfoot and B-Side Players, music fans will take in the concert from the comfort of their whip, customized or not.
Del Mar broke the drive-in-show ice in July with 2020 San Diego Music Award Artist of the Year Rebecca Jade, then the series hit the ground running in September with Dirty Heads and has since featuring DJ Snoopadelic -- aka Snoop Dogg -- among others.
San Diego's hometown reggae-rock heroes Slightly Stoopid will be taking the stage Saturday for what will be their first show in eight months. Frontman Miles Doughty told NBC 7 that he's been keeping it quiet since then but the break has not been entirely unwelcome.
"I kind of just spent a lot of family time," Doughty said on Friday. "The longest we've been around our families in 21 years -- first summer home in 21 years, which is kind of bonkers."
Doughty said this past week is the first time he's gotten together "to play music again with all the boys." And if you haven't been to a live drive-in event yet -- shout out to the Santee Drive-in Movie Theatre and Westfield North County for their events -- you're not alone.
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"I haven't been to any drive-in events, but we're just really excited because of the energy we're gonna get from the fans, getting to see all the fans again and be onstage, getting to rock out and absorb all that energy in this particular moment," Doughty said.
This show will be streamed for those who can't make it -- go to SlightlyStoopid.com for details -- but you're gonna want to be there in person.
"We're gonna have an insane light show with screens for all the viewers and if everyone turns their stereos to 11, the music will [be] louder than loud," Doughty said. "It will fill up your brain."
Fans can expect some special guests, of course -- no big surprise at a Stoopid show.
"We have the legendary Angelo Moore from Fishbone, we hve Chali 2na from Jurassic 5 and we have Marlon Asher, the 'Ganja Farmer,' " Dought said, adding, "the other special guests are all the people of San Diego."
Sad to say but the Stoopid set is sold out, but drive-in shows are queued up for tonight with country singer Chris Janson and during the next three weekends, with Third Eye Blind, Sublime With Rome, the Beach Boys and others headed where the surf meets the turf. Prices start at $99 per car and accelerate from their all the way up to $329 per vehicle. Oh, and you can see drive-in movies during the week if that bangs your drum instead.
Social distancing will be enforced by leaving parking spots between cars -- and there will be hundreds and hundreds of them.
While Stoopid's Doughty didn't say the show was a once-in-a-lifetime event, he did say these times were.
"We're never really gonna get this time back again -- it's kind of a midlife break," Doughty said, laughing.
