Hunka hunka Bernie Love

“It’s been percolating for a while. I’ve been wanting to do something to help the campaign,” says local musician/promoter Jakob McWhinney about his upcoming Bernie Sanders rally, appropriately called #BerningMan.

The day-long concert is scheduled for April 30 at the “Tree House” in Golden Hill, featuring ten bands and one DJ.

“The address is on Facebook,” says McWhinney. “It’s basically a house party, but I don’t know if the guy wants the address in the Reader.”

The “fund-rager” goes from 4 until midnight and will include performances by Beach Goons, Splavender, Some Kind of Lizard, Fake Tides, Los Shadows, and Mystery Cave, among others.

Although the DIY event was organized on the fly, McWhinney said it is now officially sponsored by the Bernie 2016 campaign.

“We will now only be taking electronic donations via Act Blue [a grassroots super PAC],” he says. “Attendees can log in on their phone and donate to the campaign in seconds.”

Volunteers for the Sanders campaign will be on hand to turn supporters into registered voters.

As a musician still working his way up the local food chain, McWhinney admits he thought twice before deciding to organize the rocking rally.

“I didn’t know how much I want to politicize, but there is a crazy outreach for Sanders,” he says.

McWhinney says he was aware of the support Sanders has among young adults but was surprised at how enthusiastic other bands were about taking part.

Some Kind Of Lizard, a slacker punk band, was one of the first groups to sign up for #BerningMan, according to guitarist/singer Josemar Gonzalez.

“I support [Sanders], but doing this is symbolic,” Gonzalez says. “The money won’t do anything, but this raises awareness about his campaign and of different ways of doing things. It’s very important. The things he speaks about seem strange — free college and healthcare — but other countries do it. And the amount of people in our jails is stupid.”

McWhinney is hoping #BerningMan galvanizes San Diego’s youth vote, but he isn’t opposed to older Sanders supporters coming.

“We want an inclusive environment, but at its roots, this is a punk house-show,” McWhinney says. “I hope older voters will feel welcome.”