Pleasing visuals of Marshall and Lodi canyon take shape in the distance as we approached the Fairplex in Pomona, California for HARD Summer 2015.

Pictures and words by Liam Simmons

This highly anticipated 2 day festival only comes around once a year. I had attended HARD Summer 2014 – so I knew I was in for a hell of a weekend. With a killer selection of electronic music artists headlining, such as: The Chemical Brothers, Jack U, The Weeknd & more; the guys at HARD fest had set the bar high for local competitors. The sun bares down heavy on the eager HARD goers, who had stripped down to bare basics to cope with the unforgiving heat. Day one, and Inside the Fairplex was a hive of activity; seeing over 65,000 people pass through. The layout was much easier to navigate this year, with set pathways, and the Pink, Purple + 7UP stages housed inside buildings w/ air conditioning to prevent heat exhaustion. The Purple stage hosted an incredible lineup over the weekend, with acts such as: Lido, Rae Sremmurd, Anna Lunoe, Mr. Carmack, Fetty Wap, and guest appearances backstage from Jenn Im (of Clothes encounters) & more. Day 2 saw a handful of hopeful gatecrashers hopping the fence and stomaching the 12ft drop into the festival. Only to be tackled moments later by the highly vigilant security. The main stage productions were second to none. The South African Zef poster children Die Antwoord left the HARDER stage in awe following their performance on the second day, with guest appearances backstage from Jack Black, Katy Perry, Tony Hawk and more. I left the festival on a high note, with big expectations for HARD Day of the Dead.