No Values took over Pomona Fairplex for a whole day of music featuring iconic bands like The Misfits, Social Distortion, Iggy Pop, Bad Religion, Sublime, and so many more on June 8, 2024 in Pomona, Ca.

Since the announcement of the No Values Festival in February, there has been much anticipation leading up to the event. With the original Misfits headlining the event along with many other renowned acts, this event was sure to attract multiple generations of punk fans. Along with the many punk bands performing such as Iggy Pop, Black Flag, and The Damned, there was also a lineup of Hardcore and Ska bands performing as well, such as Sublime and Power Trip.

With this festival being held at the Pomona Fairplex, there was plenty of room for thousands of fans wanting to attend this event. As Gary Tover stated in the No Values Fanzine, “As the scene started getting bigger, I came to the conclusion the venues were too small which meant that after I sold out a show, there were people outside that did not want to leave. They had this hope they could try and sneak in! When the cops drove by, they stuck out like a sore thumb.”

The punk and hardcore scene has surely come a long way thanks to people like Gary Tovar who would purposely bring bands from England that not many had heard of at the time, as he stated in the No Values Fanzine, “Los Angeles and Orange County embraced the British punk bands right away.” Putting on shows with new bands was important to keep the scene fresh and not oversaturated with the same performances. Sometimes Tovar was too ahead of the game and the performances were not received like he had hoped.

Goldenvoice has a long standing history with many of these bands and as they have all grown into what they are today, with numerous fans across the world, so has Goldenvoice as it is one of the most influential promoters during the 1980s and today is the host of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.

The No Values Festival has been 40 years in the making and it aims to celebrate the history of punk music by bringing some of the most iconic and influential bands together to be seen in one place for fans of all kinds, from all backgrounds to enjoy and express themselves through music. This event was an all ages event, for quite literally EVERYBODY to enjoy.

From spiky mohawks and worn out Doc Marten boots to long dreads and beat up Vans, as you near the event you see many different types of fans alike eagerly walking towards the sound of distant drums and aggressive vocals, as well as the echoes of groovy ska saxophones. With so many bands performing, of course it is not at all possible to see all of them.

People attending the festival had to decide who they wanted to witness live. It’s a tough decision choosing between Sublime and the Suicidal Tendancies. That's when you just have to gauge how you are feeling in the moment and decide if you want to thrash around in a chaotic moshpit or vibe along with Sublime as Jakob Nowell steps in on vocals for his late father Bradley Nowell.

Fans endured the heat in the middle of the day in order to enjoy some of their favorite bands, while Black Flag performed you could feel the sun beaming down on you. That did not stop Mike Vallely injecting energy into the crowd as he sang songs like “Nervous Breakdown” and “Six Pack.” As their set progressed the mosh pits started getting bigger, with more and more fans needing to release the energy brought in by Greg Ginn playing guitar. Ginn is one of the only original members of the band since being formed in 1976.

One of the most energetic performances was from The Dillinger Escape Plan, with this appearance being the 25th anniversary of the band. With Dimitri Minakakis on vocals, his menacing voice brought the raw aggression that fans crave. At the end of their set Minakakis started breathing fire and set a guitar on fire, then left it in front of an amplifier ending the set with sounds of eerie crackles of fire.

As day turned to night, it neared closer to the headliner performance by Misfits and of course many attendees were surely looking forward to it. There were many other great bands performing in the evening, Power Trip being one of them. Their loyal fans knew the weight that this performance held, with it being their first time performing since the tragic passing of their frontman Riley Gale. Heavy guitar riffs and violent drum beats sent fans into a frenzy and multiple mosh pits broke out, the only way to truly express the aggression being injected into the crowd. When people were knocked down they were helped back up, with everyone being united by the music.

Punk rock, Ska, and Hardcore was what this day was all about and I would say that there was no better way to celebrate these scenes by bringing all of these talented acts together in one place for thousands to enjoy. This was the place to be if you find solace in this music.