Summer Meltdown Festival: Santa Clarita, 4/26/14

[Lori Hatmaker]

I was so happy and honored to be able to attend the 11th Annual “Yes I Can” Summer Meltdown Autism Awareness Music and Arts Festival this past weekend at the Santa Clarita Skatepark.

The “Yes I Can” program is put together by students at the William S. Hart Union High School. These students are living with autism and Asperger syndrome. I was incredibly impressed to learn that these students handled the entire event, including booking/scouting the talent! I spoke to a few of the students and they were so incredibly excited and proud of their hard work this past year to put this together. The students did an amazing job, so THANK YOU for your hard work! Best of all, one hundred percent of the proceeds go to benefitting the “Yes I Can” program.

With over 4,000 people in attendance, this was the program’s biggest turnout yet. The weather was perfect and the vibes were amazing.

The event started at approximately 12:00 p.m. with a killer lineup of the following artists: The Roosters, Longevity, Jet West, Top Shelf, Forrest Day, Breaking Tempo, Reeform, Stranger Band, Chris Young, Ease Up, Rick Thorn, Mystic Roots, Papafish, Natural Incense, Arise Roots, Wheeland Brothers, HIRIE, Katastro, Krooked Treez, Seedless, Cisco Adler, Thrive, Stick Figure, Dirty Heads, and Matisyahu. There were also many artists painting throughout the day.
There were 3 stages (2 main stages and 1 small stage), so there were multiple performances going on at once.

The first band I caught was Jet West. I had seen them prior to this and have been a big fan. Jet West is out of San Diego and I always enjoy watching the local bands play. They played a lot of upbeat, fun reggae jams and were a pleasure to watch, as always. You can catch them at plenty of shows this summer!

 

 

Piracy Conspiracy, another San Diego band, was next on the smaller stage. This was my first time seeing them perform and I always love seeing more female singers in the reggae music scene. They played several songs and I loved their more edgy, roots-reggae feel. I will definitely be checking them out for future San Diego shows.

 

I headed back to the main stage to check out HIRIE. Andrew McKee, the trombone player for HIRIE, started the show playing the didgeridoo. The crowd always gets a kick out of this massive instrument and it really sets the tone for the rest of the show. The band opened with “Wiseman”, which is one of my favorite songs off their self-titled HIRIE album. HIRIE performed several more songs that kept the crowd moving the entire time. I love HIRIE’s mix of rock/reggae with a touch of pop. It’s always nice to have such a talented female voice in the local reggae scene. HIRIE has many upcoming shows this summer as well, including some dates with The Green.

Reeform was next to watch on the line-up. I have become a huge fan in the recent months and always enjoy seeing them perform. They have amazing stage presence and their music just captures the audience. They are one of the most entertaining bands I have seen and their vocals are amazing! They formed the band back in 2011 and have quickly made a name for themselves in San Diego, as well as the rest of SoCal. Of course, they played my favorites, “Run and Hide” and “Bring Me Down”. I am looking forward to more Reeform shows this summer. Katastro was next on the main stage. I am always excited to see Katastro. They are truly one of my favorite artists and I have to take advantage of when they are in SoCal, since they are from AZ and primarily play there. They played several tracks off of their album, Gentle Predator, and even mixed in an Adele cover. I loved every minute of their set.

I waited to watch Thrive’s performance on the other main stage. I was hoping that they would play their new single “Broken” featuring HIRIE, and they did! It was so awesome to see it live. I love Thrive and the messages they portray in their songs. As I mentioned before, I also love the fact that their drummer is an amazing singer as well. I like that they switch back and forth between singers. It gives a different feel to each song.

Krooked Treez came onto the main stage to an explosion of cheers. The crowd was so pumped to see them. I have been a big fan and always look forward to their performances. One of my favorite things about Krooked Treez is their humility and dedication to their fans. They truly perform from their hearts and work hard to give their fans an amazing show. They have such an amazing energy on stage and kept it up throughout their entire set. They rocked their set. I always enjoy hearing “Higher Place” and “So In Love With California” from their album, Higher Place. I would expect nothing less from The Pier’s “Breakout Artist of the Year”. OBrown, the band’s founding member, is so awesome every time I go to a show (and he also is a huge supporter of Surf Roots). So, thank you, Krooked Treez , for your support! I see nothing but big things ahead for the band in the future.

 

Stick Figure played an awesome set. It is so adorable when their beloved dog, Cocoa makes an appearance on stage with them. My mind is blown when I think about how Scott Woodruff (lead singer) writes, produces, and plays multiple instruments for their songs/albums. He is such a creative genius and that is what makes Stick Figure so unique. The set included many songs from their 5th album, Burial Ground. “Weight of Sound” and “Just Another Dream” are just a couple of my favorites. I am so stoked that they will be on the Count Me In Tour this summer, along with Rebelution, Iration, and The Green. Talk about an epic lineup! Check their website for dates of the shows near you.

Dirty Heads was next with their special acoustic performance. I was so impressed with their vocals and energy. The crowd was massive! They began their acoustic session with crowd favorite, “Cabin By The Sea”. The entire crowd was singing along for the whole set. The atmosphere and vibes were so fun to be a part of. My favorite part was the fans blowing bubbles into the air and onto the stage. It brought a lighthearted, playfulness to the crowd. Dirty Heads went on to play “Stand Tall”, “Lay Me Down”, and several other acoustic versions of my favorites.

 

Unfortunately, I did not get to stay for the entirety of Matisyahu’s set. The crowd was insane and security was making a lot of the media move over to the side stage, which made it difficult to see. I have seen Matisyahu several times and he is such an amazing performer. Matisyahu is multi-talented and likes to throw in little surprises to his shows, like beat-boxing. I have been a fan since 2007 and I appreciate the positivity and creativity he provides through his music. He’s such an inspiration to so many.

 

Overall, this has been one of my favorite events that I have attended this past year. So many amazing acts, for a great cause.

[SurfRoots]

Awesome article as always!