If not for Burger Records, there may not be as vibrant of a local festival scene that’s come to exist in the past few years. The cassette-driven label has put on several original killer concerts in the area, most notably its flagship event Burgerama. Despite it being the first major festival to bring the burst-at-the-seams drama to the underfire Observatory grounds, the show was easily one of the more unique events to take place across the country. Add to that the willingness of bands local, national and international to play a couple of more shows surrounding SXSW shows, you had the formula for a successful event.
Then what the hell happened?
A few years ago, Burger started hyping up Burgerama V on Facebook and even polled its devoted audience on who they wanted to see at the event. I even asked the Burger dudes when the event was going down, since they had mentioned when they first launched the terrific all-female Burger A Go Go that they had big plans for the fifth anniversary. Questions even arose on Reddit about the anticipated event.
Alas, it wasn’t meant to be.
The year came and went, with nary a Burgerama in sight. Other Burger events have soared, in particular the Burger Boogaloo in Oakland. This year’s lineup with Iggy Pop, Buzzcocks, X and host John Waters could be their best yet.
So why no Burgerama?
On a whim, I emailed Burger the other day curious about whether or not the event would be delayed for another year. Then today, on Instagram, this appeared:
I was even more curious on the simmering feud between Burger and its longtime partner and collaborator so I emailed again. This time, I got an answer. Sean Bohrman, one half of Burger’s dynamic duo stated what he did in the Instagram post: the Observatory won’t get back to them, and he said, it’s been now two years running. Granted, Burger could have moved the event, which at this point with consumer confidence in the Observatory at an all-time low, would be understandable. But, this is the place where all the magic happened to begin with. Burger is baffled by the lack of response by the venue.
We reached out to the venue for comment, and have yet to receive a reply.
For now, if Burger devotees want to go a major event, they’re either going to either have to make the trek up north to Oakland or hope that there can be a resolution to what could be nothing more than a major miscommunication.
Daniel Kohn is a writer based in Southern California. With bylines in an assortment of outlets, Kohn primarily specializes in music with other interests ranging from sports to food. As a transplant, Kohn loves the beautiful weather and is glad he no longer has to deal with brutal winters. If you see him, say hi and of course, he’s always willing to down a beer or two…if you’re paying.