2019 Coachella Valley Music Award Winner ‘Best Live Music Event’
Virtually every Coachella Valley, High Desert and Mountain Community artist is performing this weekend at the 2nd Annual Idyllwild Strong Benefit Festival August 16th through the 18th. The event is FREE and open to ALL AGES! It’s a who’s who of desert artists. Bands like John Garcia & The Band Of Gold, Caxton, Empty Seat, Dali’s Llama, 5th Town, House of Broken Promises, Courtney Chambers, Jesika Von Rabbit as well as national touring artists like Jonah Matranga and Fate DeStroyed. Over 100 bands will be performing during the weekend. The event is spearheaded by these artists who are donating their performances and have the desire to give back and express empathy towards the residents of Idyllwild for what they have endured in the last year. In addition, there are dozens of local shops, restaurants and galleries to visit; plus, vendors, festival merchandise and donated auction items for you to check out.
Donations are tax-deductible and can be made during the festival at any official Idyllwild Strong tent distributed around town.
Last year’s event raised over $41,000 for victims of the Cranston and Ribbon Fires. A grant application system was established by local 501(c)(3) nonprofit, Young Idyllwild Inc. Over 20 applications were received and voted on anonymously by the YII board and members of the Idyllwild Strong team. This year, they are partnering with both YII and another local nonprofit, The Idyllwild Help Center. The Idyllwild Help Center offers food, medical assistance, a children’s fund, assistance with utilities, split firewood, homeless shelters, and also a Women’s Cabinet sponsored by Soroptimist International of Idyllwild.
Idyllwild relies heavily on regular tourism to survive, which has been severely impacted by catastrophic damage caused by the Cranston Fire in July 2018 and massive flooding in February 2019. The community of Idyllwild is in desperate need of help.
Coachella Valley Weekly spoke with festival organizer and facilitator, Brian Parnell, vocalist and guitarist for revered Idyllwild band THROW THE GOAT, as he trudged through the extensive grind of arranging year two.
On His Thoughts and Feelings On the 2nd Annual Idyllwild Strong Benefit Festival
“I’ve literally let out multiple exacerbated screams today from pure anxiety! This is not an easy event to organize and I can’t thank the team enough for everything they’ve been doing to help make this thing happen. We knew that people were still struggling from the Cranston Fire aftermath, so back in January we decided to do another year of Idyllwild Strong to try and help out more. Nobody knew what was in store for us on Valentine’s Day 2019. After that, it was painfully obvious that we definitely needed to do another benefit festival.”
On the Level of Difficulty the Second Time Around
“It is monumentally more difficult this year. Even with fewer stages. With the Cranston Fire, everyone outside of Idyllwild was grieving for us. They smelled the smoke, saw the ash, offered up their homes to the evacuees. But six months later, after the storm washed away two of our only roads, we seemed to just fall off the map. We had to suffer in near silence until Riverside County decided to lend a hand and try to tell people that Idyllwild still exists and needs tourism. The strange thing is that the town is suffering so much more than it was after the fire, yet we’re being forced into costs this year that we didn’t have to pay last year. It’s made it even more important to get sponsors involved, but that’s been a hard row to plow. We’ve learned a lot the last two years. I think once people see what we can really do, it’ll be easier to get support in the future. The goal is to turn Idyllwild Strong into a sort of FEMA for the town in the future.”
On the Most Fulfilling Aspect of the First Event
“When I was a teenager and started getting involved with bands, I used to daydream about organizing music festivals. So, really, this benefit gave me the privilege of combining my love for music with my love for the town. I’ve lived all over the place and Idyllwild is the only town that I ever really miss when I’m away. I don’t have any relatives in town, but it feels like the entire community of Idyllwild is my extended family. Being able to directly make an impact in the lives of disaster victims and help local businesses is a very rewarding feeling. It’s super-stressful, but worth it. And I know the whole team would agree.”
On the Overwhelming Response from Artists
“It’s been super-fuckin cool! Booking the bands is actually the easiest part of this whole thing. Anyone who’s in a band knows that you’re always looking for new places to play. And almost every band is looking to play festivals. It’s a no-brainer.”
On Winning the CVMA for ‘Best Live Music Event’ for the 1st Idyllwild Strong Benefit.
“Winning that award was one of the most surprising moments of my life. We are all so honored and thankful to CV Weekly and the whole desert scene! It definitely helped us stay motivated.”
For more information, please visit the Idyllwild Strong website below. If you are unable to attend, you can click the DONATE NOW button on the website. See you this weekend!
Main Stage
Friday Aug 16, 2019
2:30-3:00 – IdyllEDM
3:30-4:00 – Bicycle Day Matinee
4:30-5:00 – Bitterpants
5:30-6:30 – Taylor Briggs
7:00-8:00 – Jesika Von Rabbit
Saturday Aug 17, 2019
12:15-12:45 – Sleazy Cortez
1:15-1:45 – Dali’s Llama
2:15-2:45 – WAXY
3:15-3:45 – Garage Sale Monsters
4:15-4:45 — Mega Sun
5:15-6:00 – The Sleeping Sea King
6:30-7:15 – Every Other Year
7:45-8:30 – House of Broken Promises
9:00-10:00 – John Garcia & the Band of Gold
Sunday Aug 18, 2019
12:00-12:30 – St. Christopher’s Bazooka
1:00-1:30 – Johnny & the Competition
2:00-2:30 – 5th Town
3:00-3:30 – Blasting Echo
4:00-4:30 – Child of War
5:00-5:45 – Death in Pretty Wrapping
6:15-7:15 – TBA
7:45-9:00 – TBA
Brewpub Stage
Friday Aug 16, 2019
4:00-4:30 – The Lift
4:50-5:35 – Empty Seat
6:05-6:50 – Dustin Blank
7:20-8:05 – Black Water Gospel
8:35-9:35 – Caxton
10:00-11:00 – Jonah Matranga
Saturday Aug 17, 2019
2:15-3:00 – The Companies
3:30-4:15 – The Asteroid Shop
4:45-5:30 – Vox Humana
5:45-6:45 – Ultra Gun
7:15-8:00 – Telemeres
8:30-9:30 – The Spaceman Trilogy
10:00-11:00 – The Flusters
Sunday Aug 18, 2019
4:00-4:30 – Sammy Listoe
4:50-5:35 – Before Tomorrow
6:05-6:50 – Sunset Rumble
7:20-8:05 – Daytime Moon
8:35-9:15 – Mettle
9:45-11:00 – Prometheus & Mama Fancy ft The Boot Band
FERRO Stage
Friday Aug 16, 2019
4:20-4:50 – Kill The Radio
5:10-5:40 – Mistaken Identity
6:00-6:30 – Jexzi
6:50-7:35 – Big Mess
7:55-8:55 – The Barstow Prophets
Saturday Aug 17, 2019
1:15-1:45 – Unity Frenzy
2:05-2:35 – TBA
2:55-3:25 – Cakes & the Assholes
3:45-4:15 – Higher Heights
4:35-5:05 – SolPhyre
5:25-6:10 – Urban Grass
6:30-7:15 – Bum Roots Project
7:35-8:35 – Inhale
Sunday Aug 18, 2019
1:15-1:45 – Christian Chalifour
2:05-2:35 – Arugula Association
2:55-3:25 – Reborn by The Sunshine
3:45-4:15 – William Russell Wallace
4:35-5:20 – Lisa And the Gents
5:40-6:40 – Clint Westwood
7:00-8:00 – Spindrift
Park Lane Stage
Friday Aug 16, 2019
2:00-2:45 – Ernesto Ale
3:00-3:45 – Kung Fusion
4:00-4:45 – Finn & Gil
5:00-5:45 – John Underwood & His Horny Friends
6:00-7:00 – Wendy Rolfe Evered
7:15-8:15 – David The Page
Saturday Aug 17, 2019
12:00-12:45 – Ol’ Man Proffitt
1:00-1:45 – Mikele & Tawny
2:00-2:45 – Matthew Claborn
3:00-3:45 – Keenwild
4:00-4:45 – Desert Chavez
5:00-5:45 – James Velasquez
6:00-6:45 – Brian Sohn
7:00-7:45 – Francesca Brown
8:00-9:00 – TBA
Sunday Aug 18, 2019
12:00-12:45 – Stephen Maddox
1:00-1:45 – Elizabeth Hannah-Diaz
2:00-2:45 – Honey the Witch
3:00-3:45 – Rob Lawrence
4:00-4:45 – Buz Blvd
5:00-5:45 – Jen Hajj
6:00-7:00 – Jules et Juliet
Merkaba Stage
Friday Aug 16, 2019
2:45-3:15 – Sunday Funeral
3:30-4:00 – Far Out West
4:15-4:45 – Two-Bit Pistols
5:00-5:30 – MAL
5:45-6:15 – FrankEatsTheFloor
6:30-7:15 – Captain Ghost
7:30-8:15 – Trains Hitting Cars
8:30-9:30 – Sunshine SuperMen
Saturday Aug 17, 2019
2:00-2:30 – Hooch Hound
2:45-3:15 – Hurt & the Heartbeat
3:30-4:45 – Cole Withers
5:00-5:30 – Grady James Band
5:45-6:15 – Idyllwinder
6:30-7:15 – Electric Ash
7:30-8:15 – Toler Gibson
8:30-9:30 – Change Required
Sunday Aug 18, 2019
2:00-2:30 – Sam Kesler
2:45-3:15 – TBA
3:30-4:00 – Terry Jo & Jeff
4:15-4:45 – Carlos Reynosa
5:00-5:30 – The Mudbugs
5:45-6:30 – Courtney Chambers
6:45-7:45 – Pentagrams & Daisies
Tattoo Stage
Friday Aug 16, 2019
2:15-2:45 – Sinsation
3:00-3:30 – REVEL
3:45-4:15 – Farm Trout
4:30-5:00 – The CMFs
5:15-5:45 – Robotic Humans
6:00-6:45 – Nine Tail Wolf
7:00-7:45 – Throw The Goat
8:00-9:00 – Mike Black & the Heart Attacks
Saturday Aug 17, 2019
1:30-2:00 – The Coil
2:15-2:45 – Shubees
3:00-3:30 – UU
3:45-4:15 – Mute Point
4:30-5:00 – VFMS
5:15-5:45 – Instigator
6:00-6:45 – The After Lashes
7:00-7:45 – The Whining Pussys
8:00-9:00 – Off The Wall
Sunday Aug 18, 2019
1:00-1:30 – Jetta King
1:45-2:15 – Ormus
2:30-3:00 – The Paradoks
3:15-3:45 – Vanessa Silberman
4:00-4:30 – Dirty Cakes
4:45-5:15 – Fever Dream
5:30-6:15 – Turbulent Hearts
6:30-7:30 – Fate Destroyed
Idyllwild Poets performing at Higher Grounds (54245 N. Circle Dr.) from 2pm-4pm on Saturday 8/17 and Sunday 8/18
CV Weekly will be interviewing bands at the Gazebo by Higher Grounds
