In LA we tend not to discriminate too much when it comes to what sort of shows come to town. Some cities might be known more for country like Nashville, or others for Alternative Rock like Seattle, but Los Angeles is too sprawling and magnificent to be cornered into any single genre.
One could argue that this precludes LA from forming a musical identity, but what the accuser would miss is that diversity is, and always has been, the identity of LA. Whether it be food, music or sports, the culture of Los Angeles is tied to the idea of being eclectic. We hate to be pinned down into any one category, and what could be more representative of that than the Home Sick festival?
Home Sick is one of those neat little miniature festivals that arise in Los Angeles from time to time. It’s a few too many bands to be a traditional tour, but it’s not so many that it’s a multi-day, or even an all day event. What makes Home Sick worth highlighting is their unorthodox choice of bands that they’ve assembled. To some degree, yes these bands all have some things in common but where Home Sick nails it is in understanding the center of the Venn diagram of these bands.
Most festivals are either wildly eclectic, and clearly compose their lineups to cover as much stylistic ground as possible, festivals like this include your Coachella’s, your Governor’s Ball’s and your Lollapalooza’s. Other festivals feel like a Spotify generated playlist, sure they run along genre lines but the lineup is typically uninspired, even if it is decent. A good example of this would be HARD Summer, or really any EDM festival as of late.
Home Sick understands that though all the bands involved may sound different, that the type of person who enjoys Joyce Manor, a seminal emo revival band, probably also enjoys Drab Majesty, an excellent Goth-pop revival group. These aren’t bands that have a ton in common but the fans all “get it” and the few that don’t are likely to understand after seeing groups like Ceremony or Full of Hell play, because if we’re being honest, it’s pretty impossible not to fall in love with Full of Hell live.
As far as I’m concerned this is exactly what a festival should be, sure it’s small, but the idea behind it, “put a bunch of bands with overlapping fanbases in the same building” is sound. No more algorithmically driven festivals, or pointless cash grab fests that have the same lineup as every other big festival. The future is this, these pop-up fests that are here today and gone tomorrow, but leave lasting memories in the heads of all who attend. Catch this one at the Glass House in Pomona, and keep an eye out for fests like this in the future.
Location: The Glass House
Address: 200 W 2nd St, Pomona, CA
Tickets available from $40 plus fees
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