77 Days 'til Coachella - Phoenix

We've heard a lot of buzz about Phoenix, the first band on the third line of Sunday's announcement. Checking them out tonight, I can tell why. Listening to their latest, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, reminds me of when I finally "got" The Shins. They've got a similar poppiness to The Shins, but also a little more electronic feel, like the early stuff from The Postal Service.

The second song on the album is 1901, which is pretty familiar as it's been in a car commercial for the past six months or so. I think it's actually in a Cadillac commercial, and I have to once again give Cadillac props. They also used a song by Coachella favorites Justice a couple of years back to great effect. Then there's the Ford commercial that used Band of Horses' song The Funeral. I tell ya, car commercials are doing the legwork for Goldenvoice these days, aren't they?

Of course, I'm kidding. While the snippet on the commercial is catchy, it only winks at the complexity and full-on head bopping vibe of the full version on the album.

If their Wikipedia page is to be believed, they're French.

I'm only halfway through the album and I'm really looking forward to checking out more from them. They're on my list for Sunday, so hopefully they'll get a decent time and stage slot.

78 Days 'til Coachella - My Response to No Single Day Passes

I received an email tonight from a good friend, it was forwarded from someone who wrote,

"No single day passes this year? FUCK YOU COACHELLA."

I know, this is pretty subtle. But after reading between the lines, I figured out that this particular person was displeased at the fact that, despite in previous years, when attendees could purchase tickets for each day of Coachella, only three-day passes would be issued for Coachella 2010.

This is my response to that particular email.

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I gotta say, as I understand it's true, but the comment about the "non exciting" lineup is fucking stupid. This is a FAN's Coachella. No stupid Paul McCartney, Red Hot Shitty Peppers, The Killers, or Jack Johnson to me says hell yeah. This is the best initial lineup announcement I've seen since 2005 or 2006. And I really think they've got an ace up their sleeve for Saturday to boost ticket sales a la Prince in 2008. If I had to guess, I'd say they finally got Bowie, but of course, I dream a lot ;)

As far as no one-day tickets, I sympathize, and I think it will ultimately bite them in the ass. But in a good way for me. You get a wristband this year, I'm told, which means you can't even split the ticket. It's one ticket, you present it the first time you go in, and you get a wristband that you keep for the rest of the weekend.

So yeah, that sucks for my friends who really want to go, just to experience it. But I guess I'd say if you haven't done it yet, you've had ten chances. This is your 11th, so man up or shut up. This is just a different excuse not to go, so take it or leave it.

Now the people I *really* feel for are the ones who live relatively close, and who really, really want to see only one or two nights, and not the third. That's gotta suck. But hey, it's Coachella. And if they need to, they'll release single-day tickets just before the event. Think of it as a band that books a show in LA, and then waits for me and Conner to buy tickets and get a hotel and take off work, and THEN books a show here in San Diego on a Saturday (see Butthole Surfers and The Residents, just lately).

Sorry. Coachella is the closest thing I have in this world to a religion. And I think everyone should be able to get in on it but I also think you have to go for the whole thing to *really* experience it. And it's not like any day sucks, IMHO. There's not a bad day in the whole lineup, and that's just as announced. There will be additions that will make it even more appealing, though it may pit two must-see acts against each other.

Ov course, the true rock stars among us (Danelle, Thomas, I'm looking in your general direction) will get in free, VIP, and stress-free ;) I'll be looking for Thomas and Atousa's little red tee-pee that we saw them hanging out in, in the middle of the polo field, back in 2001.

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So there it is. If you're a die-hard or a douchebag, it's likely you'll be there. I'll greet the former with a hearty handshake and a smile, and the latter with a wallet-jacking that will leave you knowing what you've suspected all along.

Viva Coachella, and Viva Coachellans.

87 Days 'til Coachella - Lineup 1.0

2010 will be the 9th (?!) Coachella we've attended, and I have never been more impressed with an initial announcement as I am with this year's. I've always found a way to have an absolute BLAST when I go. Even last year, which had some amazing acts, but the schedule overall I felt was a bit of a stretch for three days.

This year's totally different. It's a total Coachella fan's lineup. Great reunions (PIL, De La Soul, Sly & the Family Stone), artists I haven't seen but am very much looking forward to seeing (MGMT, Devo, Grizzly Bear) acts I never thought I'd get to see (Gorillaz, Gil Scott-Heron, Orbital), and headliners that totally don't suck or scream "Goldenvoice are total whores!! We have no standards!! We just need money!!".

I mean, take any day. There are bands I'm TOTALLY excited to see on each and every day. My girlfriend asked me how I knew "all these bands" I was telling her about, and I realized that I maybe know half of the acts this year.

The crazy thing is, I'm pretty excited to see everyone I know, very curious to see everything I've only heard about, and anxious to check out all the stuff I've never heard of.

We'll see what the lineup looks like as the weeks roll on. My prediction: The Thin White Duke will end up headlining Saturday. I love Muse, and I think they're totally underrated, but that's also the reason I think they'll need to bring in a real heavy-hitter for ticket sales once we get closer to April and Saturday's still not sold out.

Check back often, comment on what a jackass I am, and then see you on the polo field!