David James SwansonIkey Owens on October 11 in Mexico City, performing with Jack White.[Editor’s Note: This is not really a Coachella post. I’m not speaking to you as a music journalist. Or as a fan. Just as a guy remembering a friend.] Had he been alive to see it, last…
We love you, Coachella, but sometimes you bring us down. Here were the biggest bummers of weekend two. The Lack of Enthusiasm at the Entrance Walking into the venue around 2 p.m. on Friday, Coachella staffers were attempting to engage with the strings of attendees filtering through the security gates…
Damn, Coachella. How do you do it? Every time us weekend two folks start to feel discouraged by the barrage of snark and dissatisfaction on social media from the wealthy one-percenters of weekend one, you come along and prove that the second round of the festival really does belong to…
If we examine Hozier from a purely statistical standpoint, for the moment he is what Billboard classifies as a “one-hit wonder.” That distinction is bestowed on artists who place one song in the Billboard Top 40 while the rest of that artist’s single releases fail to trouble the upper regions…
Timothy Norris/OC Weekly “The Coachella Experience” is tough to define, because the behemoth annual festival means different things to different people. For some, it’s all about a sunset ferris wheel ride. For others, it’s about dancing your heart out in the Sahara tent all damn day. For me, it’s about…
By Andy Hermann and Besha Rodell Our Coachella team had a blast rocking out to AC/DC, getting our swerve on in the craft beer garden and stepping over passed-out bros in the Sahara tent. But we would have had an even better time if we had gone into the weekend…
Nate JacksonJason Eppworth giving a high five down low.Jason Eppworth giving a high five down low.Smack!…Smack!….Smack! “Woooo! Coachellaaaaaaaahhh! Gimmie five!” That’s the sound of a loud, burly Kentucky man high-fiving his way through the sunburned Sunday crowd on weekend one of Coachella. Though he appears to be just another dude…
By Adam Lovinus Time for weekend two of Coachella 2015, or amateur hour for doing drugs in the desert. Hopefully by now you’ve got your stash procured already. If not, there’s always Palm Springs Craigslist if you know the right search terms. If you think consuming drugs at Coachella is…
I’ve already extolled Laura Walsh’s virtues already, but I have to reemphasize her talents once more. It’s a shame that she’s still not Phoenix-based, as her vocal range alone could place her in a number of genres. She subscribes to the pop country label, which may deter some hardcore country…
Before indie rock was a thing, like the hip, Urban Outfitters thing we know today, there was Built to Spill, one of the most indie of indie bands to ever indie. Which is kind of confusing, because the band has been on Warner Bros. Records for most of its career,…
The temperature isn’t the only thing that’s sizzling at Coachella. With their tanned bodies, gym rat physiques, and seriously on-point bohemian/ethereal/fairy-style choices, Coachella-goers know to look their best while they’re in the desert. Both the festival itself and the parties that go with it have some of the most desirable…
It’s tough to complain about any Coachella lineup, but people inevitably do. Often bringing together some of the best rock, rap, EDM, and pop artists in the world, Coachella does a pretty good job of collecting many of the best of the best. Since we’re all whiny pessimists anyway, here…
“You can ask me anything. You’ve opened up to me, and now I will open up to you.” Charles Bradley, the 66-year-old soul singer extraordinaire, spoke those words to me a couple hours after his fiery Friday afternoon Coachella set. I had just told him how much his spellbinding performance…
By Aimee Murillo When Coachella coverage bounces around every year, there’s plenty of focus on the headliners, buzz bands, fashion, and the people in attendance, but very little mention is paid to the attractive visual art displays that dot the polo grounds. This year, 14 new installations made their debut…
The first thing I have to say is that Quail Run Park is a pretty cool venue and has the perfect layout for many festivals to come (I hope), as it hosted two festivals this weekend. It’s also conveniently located immediately off the 202. The entire setup was a pretty…
1. The golf cart taxi service is worth its weight in gold For those who weren’t in Crazy Coyote, Roadrunner or Premier, you had a hell of a long walk from your campsite to the concert grounds. Felt like grabbing a water bottle from your trailer? Forgot your American flag-printed…
Contrary to what you might have heard, Coachella is more than just a fashion parade for B-list celebrities and trust fund kids. It also still features music! Here are reviews and recaps of some of the first weekend’s most memorable sets, from Jack White, Run the Jewels, FKA Twigs, Steely…
By: Marc Ballon Hawaiian Sierra Blackford really wanted to go to Coachella. It wasn’t easy. The 23-year-old singer-songwriter juggled three jobs as a waitress, playing gigs at local bars and working in a slipper store to save enough for her concert tickets, heavily discounted airfare (She knows somebody in the…
It was time to break the seal. When used for their intended purpose, port-a-potties are hardly a pleasant experience for either sex. But they can be especially tricky for women. Men only have to squat half the time–women have to for both excretory functions, and it can get a little…
Timothy Norris There’s never just one way to get into Coachella. Cash, of course, is always king. But there are still myriad ways to ensure that your exposed flesh is burning along with the rest of us in the Indio sun. In that case, it’s nice to know that bartering,…
Following in the footsteps of his pastor father, Joel Marquard, of Dear and the Headlights fame, decided to record a gospel album in his late 20s. Marquard’s father was responsible for picking out the hymns and songs for each service at their church and now his own 12-piece traditional gospel…
By Andy Hermann We get it, Coachella. You’ve got over 100 acts and only about 36 hours to cram them all onto your six stages, so there’s bound to be some overlap. And for the most part, you do a good job of putting acts head-to-head that have little chance…
