Kevin Bronson on August 23rd, 2011

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By Shannon Cosgrove

People in ripped rock shirts and leather jackets, along with a guy in a KISS outfit, were greeted by reggae music, dreadlocks and puffs of smoke at the entrance of the Sunset Strip Music Festival on Saturday. “Welcome to the birthplace of rock ’n’ roll!” a 98.7 DJ shouted to nonchalant passers-by negotiating Sunset Boulevard.

• Photos from three days of SSMF by Carl Pocket

By SSMF’s end – punctuated by Public Enemy’s “Fight the Power” and a fire-breathing, fake blood-spewing performance by Mötley Crüe, the Sunset Strip felt like the birthplace of something, all right. Featuring music on two outdoor stages and inside several of its legendary clubs, the Sunset Strip Music Festival rocked long and hard, just the way its devotees like it.

Some highlights from some of Saturday afternoon’s festivities:

Although a breeze turned the Coca Cola prize wheel (and men’s heads as it lifted up girls’ skirts), vampires of the Strip still sought shelter from the sun in the dark den of the Roxy. There, Queen Caveat’s war-painted drummer pummeled with warrior energy, opening the floodgates of blond hair from singer Lauren Little (with matching blond Fender from the guitarist). Her sustained notes cut through the darkness as she manifested her lyrics through her body; she jumped up, knelt down and twirled around in a black and blond tornado around the stage, much to the audience’s delight.

As the globe on the Hustler store turned, the open-mouthed model on the poster promoting its products seemed to be the most pleased by the Dirty Heads, who played “Paint It Black” and their hit “Lay Me Down” at 4:20.

People in red-and-green lightning-bolt costumes, a sea creature on stilts and Jesus of the Strip wandered the street, where piggybacking punks got pantsed as onlookers watched from balconies, window sills and curbsides.

Imagine Dragons provoked communal ball throwing and hand clapping at the Roxy, as members shared microphones and lead singer Dan Reynolds pounded a floor tom held by an audience member.

On the outdoor stage, Matt and Kim excited viewers with their usual exuberance, distributing confetti and blue balloons while people captured “no need for cameras, we’ll use our eyes instead” on camera and held up Kim’s legs while she danced over the crowd.

As audiences got more inebriated, floors got stickier – but this didn’t deter packs of girls from dancing wildly to Pigeon John at the Key Club. Moving from smooth melodies and harmonies to crisp rapping about being “So Gangster” and “Buttersoft Seats,” John was backed up with a tight, steady backbeat and dynamic drums. Outside, Bush played an alternative “Come Together,” and Gavin Rossdale let down his hair for “Comedown.”

Back at the Roxy, jungle beats gave way to grungy growls as Sabrosa Purr shook their manes and frontman Will Love jumped off the stage to prowl the audience and drink someone’s beer, charging victims with his pink glitter guitar.

In between shouts of “Flavor Flav” and “Back in Black” mash-ups, Public Enemy called for education reform and more Twitter followers, as “Fight the Power” inspired fist-pumping and tree-shaking.

And finally there was finish: Gigantic flames and satanic pentagrams engulfed Sunset as it welcomed home the festival’s 2011 honorees Mötley Crüe. The crowd went wild when Tommy Lee took a rollercoaster ride with guest Deadmau5 and played his drum kit upside down. Most weren’t so crazy about fake blood showering them, leaving a sticky red residue; but for others, it was just another night on the Strip.

Above, the Limousines