Get ready to hear some good ol’ rock ‘n’ roll from OC and LA bands at the first-ever Pomona Calling this Saturday. Downtown Pomona will be jam packed with music from 10 venues with their own diverse lineup ranging from psychedelic rock and indie pop, to punk, acoustic, and even electronic.
Pomona Calling is an event entirely revolved around music. (It did get its name from none other than The Clash’s “London Calling” after all.) What was planned to be a low-key function inevitably blew up. Of the 10 venues, most will be all-ages and have no cover charge, while others may be 21+ and have a small cover charge of $5-10. That’s a small price to pay for seven hours of captivating music and an afterparty if you ask us.
Pomona Calling will feature approximately 50 acts total, some of which include Lovely Bad Things, Summer Twins, Janelane, Daydream Time Machine, The Violet Mindfield, Moon Ensemble, Brown Sugar Mountain, Caterwall, Lefty Loosey, The Red Leslies, Those Folk, and Storm Coast.
Coordinators Becky Kyles (Acerogami) and Justin Saunders (Pomona Revival) wanted to create “a community through music” and hold an event to showcase emerging artists during a time of high tensions to not only get more people to make their way to Pomona, but also bring the community together in a positive way. They picked the date for Pomona Calling knowing it would be during a period of what people may consider a terrifying change (yes, the inauguration) and wanted to relieve some of that stress for the public by showing everyone to a good time.
Not only will it be rewarding for the audience, but for the performers as well since they are given the opportunity to express themselves and do what they love on a much larger scale.
“It brings people together in the name of music and art,” Chelsea Brown of dreampop band, Summer Twins says. “Local bands, promoters, and venues are all supporting each other and working together to make it happen. It’s important to support smaller scenes. People tend to gravitate toward LA, but there’s so many people outside LA that are hungry for culture and community.”
This year’s lineup is an amalgamation of the local SoCal bands that aren’t necessarily in the same music scene, which undoubtedly makes for a unique show. No need to pay hundreds of dollars for Coachella when you have an exceptional lineup here in Orange County for $10 at most.
“It’s a community event, for the community, by the community,” says Chris Simonian of psych band, Daydream Time Machine. “It gives people the opportunity to come out, meet someone new, share some laughs, strike up some conversations and ultimately, enjoy some music.”
Kyles and Saunders would like to make something of a byproduct of Viva Pomona and really put Pomona on the map for music even more so. They’re motivated to amp things up on their own and make people realize the city’s potential of expanding to the point where you won’t have to wait long for a festival to come to town. With this aspiration in mind, they hope that Pomona Calling will become an annual event. For now, they are anticipating on all their effort and hard work to make Saturday worthwhile.
“I’m excited just to see the people there together excited and enjoying the music. For me, that’s the main thing,” Kyles says. “I feel that way with every show – vibing off the positive energy of people, enjoying the moment, people letting go of their frustrations, their to-do lists, their sadness, and just enjoying and being in the moment.”
To purchase tickets for Pomona Calling, click here.
Yvonne Villasenor is often in a sleep deprived daze daydreaming about ’90s heartthrobs, dogs, upcoming album releases, and what she’s going to eat for dinner. When she snaps back to reality, she writes about OC’s latest music and artists.