Tattoo Palooza Is In The History Books

By CJ of OklahomaInk.com

Sunday, April 1, 2007, provided a much welcome relief from the downpour of rain that Oklahoma has been experiencing. It also provided a gathering of tattoo enthusiasts, tattoo professionals, local bands and even passersby.

Joe Wilbanks, of Inkside Out Tattoos, organized the gathering over the last few months and with the help of his staff and friends managed to pull together 8 local bands, Jasmine formerly of Power 103.5 and Bladerunner former of the Katt. Tattoo Bob made an appearance and worked the crowd. There were two jewelry vendors DSK Jewels of OKC and MudPuppy Designs of Edmond both set up selling their beautiful creations and Leo's BBQ was on hand selling some of the best BBQ in OKC.

The party got started a little slow with the first band taking the stage at about 1:20 but after that the music started playing, the beer started flowing and we even got to witness DJ Brian Zero doing a little dance to Morris Day and the Time and Jasmine formerly of Power 103.5 lending her sexy voice talents to the MC efforts.

Navajo Mud Toy was the first band up followed by Navajo Mud Toy, Siva, 31 Stab Wounds and Trademark Twitch. By this point everyone in the crowd was really cooked and I had to make the executive decision to pack up my gear and head home to the cooling relief of Aloe cream. But, according to other attendees, Souljur, the next band on the lineup had decided to leave without telling anyone. The crowd wasn't displeased though because Chronicles of Mayhem and Six Years Dead really brought the house down and closed out the evening with a bang.

Tattoo Bob rolled onto the scene around 3 p.m. and the buzz created was instant. Fans and other professionals alike flocked to him to schedule appointments and catch up on the happenings in the tattoo industry. Bladerunner made his appearance around 4 p.m. and relieved Jasmine of her MC duties. Bladerunner was the epitome of class as he posed for pictures and spoke to everyone that approached him. We were even privileged enough to have him hamming it up for the camera every time we pointed it anywhere in his vicinity.

Although I couldn't endure the entire 9 hours due to a very bad sunburn the OklahomaInk.com crew had a fantastic time and we look forward to next year. The first year of any event is a learning curve and Joe Wilbanks did a great job with the event and we hear rumors that he may make this an annual event.