Mammoth Blog

One of the main attractions at the California Mid-State Fair in Paso Robles every summer is its impressive lineup for its concert series.

This year is no exception, but some neighbors are taking exception with the volume of some of the big name acts.

Thursday it was the very popular group Black Eyed Peas pleasing the crowd of more than 7,000. Although, these concerts have had their critics.

The Black Eyed Peas definitely get their fans started when they opened up their show with their popular hit "Let's get is started".

But not everyone in Paso Robles is a fan. The group also got Al Crume's decibel meter started once again, just like Judas Priest and Kiss the nights before.

"The KISS concert with all the explosions, it was driving us crazy and the dogs were freaking out. And last night we couldn't even watch TV," said Crume, who lives about two miles away from the fairgrounds.

"With KISS Tuesday night, they brought pyrotechnics and fireworks. Fireworks are loud, it's part of the big production that people go buy tickets to go see" Tom Kuffuery a representative with the Mid-State Fair said.

KISS is the only show this year with fireworks that Crume's dogs could do without. But Kuffuery says while the fair does its best to be a good neighbor, the individual bands have the final say on the audio levels.

"There's really only a couple a fairs in the entire nation that bring the lineup that we do, so I would hope that would never go away. We have such a unique thing here in Paso Robles, that we've become known for, that I think that would be a shame," Kuffuery said about not inviting the louder groups back.

Crume doesn't want the big names concerts to go away, he just wants the volume turned down a bit. He says when he tried to contact the Paso Robles Police Department they just told him to call the fair.

"Their attitude is, during the fair anything goes. I know if I went in front of the mayor's house and played my radio until 10:30 p.m. or 11:00 p.m. real loud, the police would sure be there." Crume added.

Fair officials say they have only received two or three complaints this year, which is on par from years past. They also point out almost 70,000 people have come to, and enjoyed, the concerts this year. And they do have an 11:00 p.m. curfew for all shows. The Black Eyed Peas were done playing before 10:15 p.m. on Thursday. source>>>