Kids are taking over a famed punk bar and music venue in Long Beach and they’ll be taking music fans back in time to the heyday of Gen X music during a free concert that’ll could feel like a kid-chella.
Four San Gabriel Valley-based bands made up of musicians who are mostly 12 to 14 years of age are going to be driven by their parents to The Pike Restaurant and Bar, which is owned by former Social Distortion drummer Chris Reece, for a free show on Sunday, July 13.
“All the bands are inspired by music that was written 30-40 years before they were born,” said Dan O’Kelly, organizer of the show.
O’Kelly is also the father of a member of Fallen Angel, one of the bands performing that day that have been influenced by groups like the Smashing Pumpkins, Green Day and Led Zeppelin.
“The bands play a lot of grunge, they play some punk, some classic rock and roll, a little metal mixed in,” he added.
The other acts include a band called Sister Sister, which is made up of two sets of sisters who draw inspiration from musicians like The Carpenters and 1990s rockers Hole.
“They’re very very polished, they have a lot of charisma and stage presence and they’re middle schoolers,” he said.
Joining the lineup are The Sweet Unknown, which O’Kelly described as a mix of Iggy and the Stooges and The Cure with “full-on chaos.” Rounding out the lineup with slightly older members, which means 14 and up, are The Rose Hooligans, who play loud and fast rock.
“They’re high energy, they’re raw and enthusiastic. They support the younger kids like you wouldn’t believe,” O’Kelly said.
While the musicians are young, according to O’Kelly, they are already well known in a growing teen music scene developing in the San Gabriel Valley and have played several shows together and individually in their fledgling careers.
“They’re really talented. These aren’t kids dancing around singing into a hairbrush for their parents’ entertainment. These kids, some of them are multi-instrumental,” O’Kelly said.
For 12-year-old Colton Kellar, the drummer and a founding member of Fallen Angel, the show is not just a way for his band to reach new audiences, but also a way to bring more attention to young bands coming out of the San Gabriel Valley.
“We can support them and get to know them more and play more with them,” he said, referring to the other bands on the July 13 lineup.
The show is particularly exciting to him because the venue is owned by the formal Social Distortion drummer, which is a band Kellar looks up to.
“We’re thinking about maybe performing some of his songs there at the show,” Kellar said.
Tween rock show
When: 4-7 p.m. Sunday, July 13
Where: Pike Restaurant and Bar, 1836 East 4th St., Long Beach, CA 90802
Admission: Free
Information: pikelongbeach.com
