I had the opportunity to cover & photograph The Glasshouse Pomona date of the Poison The Well comeback tour July 8th. The band had not done a full US tour since their hiatus after they were tragically robbed on tour in 2009. The intensity at this show was incredible. I also had the pleasure of photographing the sets of opening acts Strife & La Bella. Photos/Reviews below!

LA BELLA

Opening act La Bella had a really great set, being their first concert venue show. They are an Experimental Punk band who are directly involved in the La Puente based venue called Bridgetown DIY. They were definitely the standout band on the lineup, and were a fresh interesting sound to start off the show with. I thoroughly enjoyed their performance.

STRIFE

Strife are one of the godfathers of modern hardcore. It was absolutely incredible watching & photographing their set. They maintained the same energy that they had way back in the 90s. They definitely brought energy and intensity to the show that was much needed. When they closed with their classic track “Blistered” which released way back in 1997, the whole pit opened up and an explosion of energy erupted throughout the whole venue. Goosebumps would be an understatement!

POISON THE WELL

I’ve waited a very long time to see Poison The Well perform again, and it was well worth the wait. The band sounded just as great as they did back in 2008. Their set was an absolutely perfect mix of their older heavier tracks such as “Botchla” & “Not Within Arms Length” as well as their new more melodic Deftones-ey tracks such as “Apathy Is A Cold Body” & “Ghostchant”. It was such a well rounded set that fans of all types could enjoy. From the people in the front singing along to the mosh warriors in the back opening up the pit every chance they had, there was non-stop energy their whole set. Poison The Well’s performance definitely brought me back to that golden-era time of Hardcore/Metal, as the whole atmosphere of their set was so energetic & fun overall. I had an incredible time and they played a flawless set with 2 encore tracks!

I also wanted to give a quick shout out to To Die For clothing who were printing limited edition Poison The Well tees LIVE in front of The Glasshouse Pomona venue. Really great guys who do a lot for the music scene! Definitely check them out and pick up some of their threads.