The ‘90s were back in Mineola last weekend.
Thousands of people filled the village’s Wilson Field for Long Island’s second Nostalgia Fest, listening to ‘90s cover bands, watching a half pipe competition and live aerosol art, and browsing collections of old toys and retro thrift stores while enjoying classic and contemporary fair foods from tacos and empanadas to lemonade and funnel cakes over the Friday and Saturday festival.
“It’s a beautiful day for nostalgia,” said Dawn Pierce, a festival attendee. “I love everything from the ’90s and before Y2k.”
For those participating in the festival as artists and vendors, the trip back in time was personal.
Josh Goldberg, owner of Mineola-based record store Mr. Cheapo’s, has been working at the family business since he was 10 years old. He said he’s passionate about sharing ‘90s and older music because of its unique quality.
“I think it has a certain feel to it,” Goldberg said. “I think the songwriting and musicianship are really good. People have energy. It’s got something more than computer-created music you hear now.”
“Not all new music is like that, but ‘90s music definitely has a little bit more feeling to it,” he added.
IMEX 314, an aerosol or spray paint mural artist, said he was passionate about the art form because it reminded him of the freedom he felt growing up in the ’90s, something he wanted to share with the younger generation.
“I’m from the ‘90s,” he said. “A lot of things happened where we were able to be free, to wear certain things and start really coming out of ourselves and becoming more creative. The ‘80s were great, too, the ‘70s and ‘60s, but I’m from the ‘90s, so it’s where I saw my freedom.”
“I want to let the culture know they can be free to do whatever art they need to, and they can build on everything here they want to,” IMEX 314 continued.
He painted an image of the character Stitch from “Lilo and Stitch” at the request of a young girl who he let help spray paint on the board as Emotional Fallout, one of nine old-school cover bands, played on stage.
Grace Kelly, the owner of the organization LI PopUPs that ran the event in partnership with Mineola, said people pushed for the bands to keep playing late into the night, resulting in an unexpected encore performance.
“We’ve gotten really positive feedback. The older generation just loves the memory,” Kelly said. “And, so many young people are coming, wearing a Nirvana T-shirt or a lost western T-shirt.”
When they weren’t watching the bands, festival goers cheered on competitors in a skateboarding competition adjacent to the stage, tried out nostalgic cocktails at a Blockbuster-themed pop-up bar from Bethpage’s Nostalgia Bar and shared smiles over seeing old toys and trinkets that brought back memories.
“There’s so many of these retro shops where you can find something you haven’t seen in 30 years,” Kelly continued, saying she thought the festival really captured the ‘90s feel. “People are really thrilled.”
