June 23-29, 2005

musicpicks

The 35th Annual Clark Park Summer Festival

Rock/Pop/Festival

The other day, bopping through the Italian Market, I spied artsy little posters that read "Take Back the Park." Without hesitation or further perusal — and without thinking they meant my local baseball diamond, the grassy knoll on Sixth and Wharton or even the nearby Starr Gardens — I knew they were talking about Clark Park. (Or, as it's been known to latter-day hardcore heads and perf-art freaks, Punk Rock Park.) The hilly West Philly patch of green has been home to more than its share of post-Age-of-Aquarius showdowns in the last 35 years. Currently organized by Stinking Lizaveta drumstress Cheshire Agusta, the Clark Park Music and Arts Community is once again getting festive with food, face-painting and music from area bands like Beretta 76, Dr. Ketchup, Slumlord and the usual Clark Park suspects, the Low Budgets (pictured). Take the park back from whom, exactly?

Sat., June 25, 11 a.m.-7 p.m. free, Clark Park, 43rd St. and Chester Ave., www.clarkpark.org. Volunteers and vendors can contact Cheshire Agusta at 215-730-0607.

—A.D. Amorosi