More than 500 musicians stormed the 27 stages and braved the heat at the fourth annual Make Music festival in Old Town Pasadena on Saturday.
The free festival, presented by radio station 89.9 KCRW and partnered with the LA Metro, featured other popular performers including Best Coast, The Morning Benders, Ra Ra Riot and La Sera.
Indie rock, world music, afrobeat, reggae and jazz were among the performed genres.
The heat transcended over the crowds, but everyone soon warmed up to the live music and artwork that took over half the day.
Saint Motel was the second set of performers on the indie rock stage, and the pop-rock locals paved the way for the feel-good summer sounds with tunes like “Puzzle Pieces.”
With any free event and more than thousands of musicgoers, however, come technical difficulties.
The fire hazard-sized crowd had to be moved away from Colorado Boulevard, so The Morning Benders’ set delay affected the rest of the indie rock stage performances presented by half an hour.
The Morning Benders, however, musically fought against the authorities with songs like “Waiting For a War.” The Baroque pop group’s set soon flatlined with the exception of frontman Chris Chu’s vocals. The quartet was forgettable with little hit-makers and performance art. Chu brought out a maraca for the final song, “Excuses,” which did not supplement for the lack of the song’s orchestra. When the vocalist told the audience, “I need your guys’ help here,” sing-a-longs were not well-received by the unenthusiastic crowd.
Best Coast carried on with their band’s picnic weather music. Lazy vocalist Bethany Consentino mixed up her set with old and new pitchfork.com chart toppers like “Boyfriend” and other songs about booze, bud and boys. Her “Summer Mood” lyrics, “There’s something about the summer, something about the summer that makes me moody” complemented the chill wave vibes and jam-packed street. “Crazy For You” inspired crowd surfing. She left with “When I’m With You,” and topped off her act when she took off and flung her white bra toward her fans.
New Yorkers Ra Ra Riot, who recently performed on The Late Show with David Letterman, could not have been anymore solid. They played hits like “Do You Remember,” “Too Too Fast” and “Can You Tell.”
Long Beach’s own, the Tijuana Panthers, remained true to their surf-pop roots with good vibrations. Formed in 2006, the trio composed of Chad Wachtel (guitar/vocals), Daniel Michicoff (bass/vocals) and Phil Shaheen (drums/vocals) performed at the Shops on Lake Avenue Courtyard stage as part of their many West Coast tour stops. The trio tore up the small stage with familiar tunes like “Redheaded Girl” and “Summer Fun.” “Creature” mixed up harmonizing vocals, and sounds influenced by The Beach Boys and The Black Lips. Their friendly beach music, as heard with fun tunes like the retro “Crew Cut,” changed the environment to a coastal affair.
Michicoff said that free live music is the best.
“I love that people are making these shows happen,” Michicoff, a Cal State Long Beach alumnus, said.
“It’s super important for the enrichment of our culture,” he said. “It gives people something different to do with their time, which allows them to connect with other like-minded people.”
For more information about the Make Music festival, visit makemusicpasadena.org.
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