Every second Saturday of every month, Downtown Pomona hosts their own Art Walk. It is a fantastic event that consists of diverse food vendors, talented artists and an incredible amount of live music. The community comes together to simply appreciate the creativity Pomona has to offer and honestly there is so much to do and take in that it cannot possibly be all consumed in one Saturday; so one definitely has something to look forward to next month!
A big part of the Art Walk is the gigs. Almost every venue/bar/gallery will have some sort of live music present to entertain guests while they eat or look in on exhibits. Artist in the Alley is just one of these places. Nate, head honcho of the gallery and fan of Guinness beer, kindly grants artists a place to share their talent; paintings, photography and collages are all welcome in the vintage decorated gallery space.
Just outside in an actual yet tasteful alley, guests are able to watch and listen to the live musicians that Nick has picked to perform. His musical guests range from soulful solo artists to hard rock hitters and no matter the audience, everyone always seems to be enjoying themselves.
This night I stayed to see the Baldwin Park band Blue School. These guys are a fun and grunge alternative rock band whose sound is a combination of groovy bass lines, creative drumming, emo vocals topped off with catchy and plucky lead guitar. The band opened with a cover of Remo Drive’s “Art School” which automatically drew me into dancing and sing along. Blue School really expresses a sort of youthful alternative rock with their performance, carrying a lot of driving tones modern bands are adopting but still uniquely adding a heavier rock attitude. One thing that stuck out to me was how well dynamics were carried out by their drummer and how the bassist cleverly added some funky bass rhythms. These young men are full of talent and I cannot wait to hear more.
One thing to always prepare for when attending the Art Walk or any gig, is dress for the weather! As simple as it is, it can get really annoying when you want to mosh but need someone to carry your fifty pound patch-full enamel pin-armored denim jacket; or when you need to borrow someone’s outerwear because you are violently shivering to a mellow jazz band. But more importantly, always be safe and travel with friends you trust. If you’re drinking please do not drive and be respectful to others.
All photos taken by me.
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