The Dustbowl Revival at the Eclectic in South Pasadena (Photo – Garrett Rowlan)
As I walked northbound to the South Pasadena Eclectic Music festival, I heard the first strands of music wafting around Orange Grove and Mission.
By Garrett Rowlan
The voices and instruments seemed carried on the ether, a high-pitched trill (a teenage girl, as I found out) that brought to mind thoughts atavistic, even mythological: had the Sirens beguiled Ulysses with amplified music? How else did their voices carry across the breaking waves and beyond the sharp rocks?
The band, as it turned out, consisted of teenage girls and boys, representing the South Pasadena Music Center and Conservatory, the first of four bands and a folk singer I saw, each connected to each by sonic threads, sounds rising or falling as I walked.
The Dustbowl Revival (Photo – Garrett Rowlan)
In between, there were booths with food and handcrafted items and an area for the kids with someone forming a tiny tot drum circle. The bands were all good but too numerous to mention except for The Dustbowl Revival, that took the main stage around six pm. An eight-piece group, “that will be opening for the Gin Blossoms,” as the guitarist told the crowd, their hour-long set was soaked in blues, bluegrass, and rock, and had the crowd swaying. I loved it!
Hungry, I eschewed the no doubt excellent vendor offerings and headed back home instead. As I did, I heard in the distance music in diminishing waves, as if coming across waves and rocks as I walked.
One of the South Pasadena Music Center and Conservatory (Photo – Garrett Rowlan).
Kids making music at The Eclectic (Photo – Garrett Rowlan)
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