Watch CBS News

Asbury Park Gets Ready For Three-Day Bamboozle Music Festival

ASBURY PARK, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Tens of thousands of music fans will descend on Asbury Park this weekend for the Bamboozle Festival, a three-day event described by promoters as the largest beach concert in the United States this year.

Headliners include Bon Jovi, the Foo Fighters and electronic music performer Skrillex, but more than 100 bands are on the bill, spread out over seven stages.

"It looks like a blast, I think it's going to be a lot of fun," one resident said. "It's good, it's going to bring a lot of new people to the town."

Asbury Park was once the diamond at the shore but lost its luster over the years. Now, the shore town is making a comeback.

"It was like a ghost town through the 80s, 90s, up until recently," one local said.

"We had our good years, we had our bad years, now we're having good years," Dimitri Courageous of Criterion Candies said.

1010 WINS' Steve Sandberg reports

Podcast

Organizers are dealing with a slew of logistical challenges.

The most unusual issue arose when a marine animal group sought assurances that Skrillex's shrill, screeching, shrieking sounds would not interfere with passing whales or dolphins. Promoters promised they wouldn't.

Organizers have hired an events company that handles logistics for the Super Bowl and the Olympics to keep things running smoothly.

Parking is expected to be tough in and around Asbury Park. The promoters have secured 9,700 spaces in the lot at Monmouth Park racetrack in Oceanport, about 30 minutes north of Asbury Park, where fans can park and ride $10 shuttle buses to and from the festival.

NJ TRANSIT is adding some trains and expanding the length of others to handle concert traffic.

The boardwalk itself is undergoing $100,000 worth of reinforcements to help support the weight of the crowd, not to mention the main stage, which promoters say will be the largest stage ever built for a beach concert in the United States.

Additional police will be on hand for security and crowd control, and the Berkeley Hotel, within the festival grounds, will have an on-site triage center to handle medical emergencies.

Ticket prices start at $65 for Friday's show, and $75 for Saturday and Sunday. Premium viewing areas cost $95 for Friday and $125 for the other two days. The shows will go on, rain or shine.

Other acts to grace the Bamboozle stage include, "Jersey Shore'' star DJ Pauly D, Andrew Dice Clay, All-American Rejects, Jimmy Eat World, Less Than Jake, The Gaslight Anthem, Dramarama and Brand New.

The music will end by 11 p.m. each night, although indoor after-parties are planned at several venues from 11 p.m. to 1:30 a.m.

Are you going? Let us know below...

(TM and Copyright 2012 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2012 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.