Wikipedia
Zozobra ("Old Man Gloom") is a giant marionette effigy that is built and burned every autumn during Fiestas de Santa Fe in Santa Fe, New Mexico. As his name suggests, he embodies gloom; by burning him, people destroy the worries and troubles of the previous year in the flames. Anyone with an excess of gloom is encouraged to write down the nature of his or her gloom on a slip of paper and leave it in the "gloom box" found in the offices of the Santa Fe Reporter in the weeks leading up to the burn. Many people put legal papers in the gloom box as well. At the festival the papers from the gloom box are placed at Zozobra's feet to be burned alongside him.
Fiestas de Santa Fe has been held since 1712 to celebrate the Spanish retaking of the city in 1692 by Don Diego de Vargas from the Pueblo tribes who had occupied the city since the Pueblo Revolt of 1680. The burning of Zozobra dates from 1924. Santa Fe artist and marionette maker Gustave Baumann came up with the idea of creating the effigy, also called Old Man Gloom, and the ritual burning; and then conspired with his friend William Howard Shuster, Jr. to burn the first Zozobra. "Zozobra" means "anxiety" in Spanish. Baumann's idea might have been influenced by Mexican cartonería ( papier-mâché sculpture), especially the effigies exploded during the burning of Judas that takes place on Holy Saturday or New Year's Eve, as a way of ridding oneself or one's community of evil.
Today in Santa Fe more than 50,000 people go to watch Zozobra, who stands 50 feet tall. His burning marks the start of three days of celebration that includes traditional mass at St. Francis Cathedral; a reenactment of the Entrada, when Don Diego de Vargas returned to the city; a Children's Pet Parade; and the Historical/Hysterical Parade. The Kiwanis Club of Santa Fe builds Zozobra and burns the effigy at Fort Marcy Park. The Zozobra that was burned on September 7, 2007, was certified by Guinness World Records as the largest marionette in the world, measuring 15.21 m (49.11 ft) in height. Zozobra's record was subsequently broken by the 17.82 m (58.46 ft) mascot to Ottawa's Ital-Fest one year later on September 6, 2008.
The Zozobra burning in Fort Marcy Park in Santa Fe, New Mexico has traditionally been held in September, however ticket sales in advance of the event improved when it was moved to the Friday immediately before Labor Day in 2014.
Zozobra is a metal band that was first conceived by Caleb Scofield during 2006. He was joined by Santos Montano for the band's first release, Harmonic Tremors in 2007. Sonically, Zozobra bears a lot in common with the experimental-hardcore of Old Man Gloom (a project in which both of its members are involved) and symbolically shares a synonymous name; at the same time Zozobra is more post-metal than hardcore punk. Zozobra toured the United States with Isis and Jesu in early 2007. Zozobra has allowed Caleb Scofield the chance to write his own songs for the first time ever, unlike Cave In and Old Man Gloom.
Their second album, Bird of Prey, was released on August 5, 2008, and featured Aaron Harris of Isis on drums. Their third full length Savage Masters was released on April 2, 2013. The album was made available for streaming on SoundCloud on March 25, 2013.