Desert Daze founder was in 'disbelief' after being invited to perform at Coachella

Pomona native and JJUUJJUU frontman Phil Pirrone is accustomed to performing at music festivals. He's done it for over two decades, and even founded one such festival, Desert Daze, held at Lake Perris.

However, when he received an offer to perform at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts festival, he was in "disbelief."

Pirrone had spent the day before his daughter's birthday buying balloons and gift bags. While he was taking a break on the sofa and checking his email, he saw a message from Los Angeles promoter Goldenvoice with the subject line "Coachella offer."

"I told the band and they were just like 'Are you for real?' Nobody could believe it, and understandably so," Pirrone said.

JJUUJJUU will perform at the festival on April 14 and 21.

While growing up in Pomona, Pirrone attended shows organized by Goldenvoice at The Glass House, which is owned by Goldenvoice CEO Paul Tollett and his brother Perry. He's also been to Coachella in past years, where he enjoyed performances by bands such as My Morning Jacket and Tool. However, it was Paul McCartney's headlining performance in 2009 that moved him to tears. In 2013, Pirrone's wife Julie Edwards-Pirrone performed at the festival with her band Deap Vally. Additionally, Pirrone has a connection to Rene Contreras, the Sonora stage curator and also a native of Pomona.

As a musician, promoter, festival founder and booking agent hailing from Pomona, Pirrone said getting a thumbs up from the Goldenvoice team and being invited to Coachella is a "dream come true."

"Everybody loves Rene, he's a lovable and wonderful guy. I'm so proud of him and what he's done with the Sonora stage, it's always so tasteful and the lineup in there is always good," Pirrone said. "I went to the Glass House for my first few shows, and when my bands started playing real shows, playing at The Glass House meant the world to us. When we did the first outdoor festival, Moon Block Party, which was a precursor to Desert Daze, I rented my first generator from Perry and then rented a stage from him."

'There's never been an agenda'

JJUUJJUU's distinctive sound combines psychedelic rock, funk, and electronic music, resulting in an innovative and hypnotic listening experience. The band's skilled musicians create catchy rhythms, melodic and explosive guitars, and drony vocals, making for a dynamic, enjoyable fusion of genres.

In 2011, the band was formed when Pirrone borrowed a guitar and a loop pedal from someone and started experimenting with different sounds in his bedroom. He described those impromptu sessions as "meditative." Andrew Clinco, the frontman of Drab Majesty, suggested having a jam session to hear what Pirrone had created and liked what he heard.

"The first 10 years of JJUUJJUU were very casual, and there's never been an agenda or an M.O., it's playing together for the sake of playing together, whoever that may be. Lineups changed a bit over the years, and we've been fortunate enough for a couple labels to release the music over the course of our history. At some point, it became less casual, more formal and a group," Pirrone said.

In 2013, JJUUJJUU released their debut EP, "FRST EP," which received critical acclaim from various publications such as Noisey, LA Weekly and Paste Magazine. The band's first full-length album, "Zionic Mud," was released in 2018. JJUUJJUU also made multiple appearances on "Last Call with Carson Daly" and shared stages with renowned acts such as Primus, Tinariwen and Allah-Las, among others.

The band's unique and independent approach to music reflects the constantly evolving landscape of the industry since the launch of Spotify in 2008. With the advent of the post-streaming era, artists and bands have gained more creative freedom and can now achieve success without the need for management or a record label. Independent producers are now making their mark in the industry, often influencing the mainstream. Pirrone cites Kevin Parker, the founder and frontman of Tame Impala, who produced Dua Lipa's upcoming album "Radical Optimism," as an example of this trend.

"I'll go out on a limb here and say that pop music is better than it's ever been," Pirrone said. "I have an 8-year-old daughter and a 3-year-old daughter, so I've heard plenty of Dua Lipa, and I dig it and I'm down with it versus whatever the heck was going on in the early 2000s with Jessica Simpson. We've come a long way, and it does feel like a really good time for music and creative arts."

But Pirrone admits it's difficult to be a musician and pay the bills. At the same time JJUUJJUU was thriving in the Los Angeles indie music scene, Pirrone founded the Moon Block Party and Desert Daze festivals, and opened Space Agency Booking.

"I feel lucky to be still doing (JJUUJJUU), and it feels like over the past few years, it's turned a corner and is on the way to becoming more sustainable. But if we didn't have Desert Daze and Space Agency Booking keeping the lights on over the past 10 years, building the band would have been different. I would have been working in a 9 to 5 and probably wouldn't have as much energy or creative juice to put into it. I was able to carve out some way for music to continue to be the centerpiece of my life," Pirrone said.

New music is on the way

In 2022, JJUUJJUU released the singles "Crappy New Year" and "Daisy Chain." Additional songs have been released since 2023. Pirrone said a new album is coming, and hopes it will be ready in the fall.

The album was produced by Pirrone himself during the pandemic, and was finalized at Rancho de la Luna, a renowned recording studio in Joshua Tree owned by producer and guitarist David Catching. Various engineers, friends, and special guests were involved in the production process, including the Brazilian rock band Boogarins.

"We had some lousy recording equipment in the house and I put together a rig, started recording, and I got the bug. I was like, 'How did I not do this before now?' I've paid for studio time my whole life, going into the studio, been on a schedule with some engineer to crank it out, and I was never the guy that built a studio in his own home. I got better equipment and stuff started sounding better."

Desert Daze will also return Oct. 10 through 13 at Lake Perris. In 2023, organizers canceled the 2023 edition and said "We'll be taking the extra time to ensure we deliver an experience that surpasses expectations for many years to come" in a post on Instagram.

After booking Coachella, a U.S. tour and festivals in Europe, Pirrone said it's the right time to lean into JJUUJJUU and spend more time working on new songs.

"There's a bunch of material and more than one album that we've sort of recorded, so hopefully we're going to have a pretty consistent output for the next couple of years," he said.

Desert Sun reporter Brian Blueskye covers arts and entertainment. He can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter at @bblueskye.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Desert Daze founder was in 'disbelief' after Coachella invite