With Coachella pretty much exploding in the main stream media the past couple years you'd think that it might lose some of its artistic integrity or even go a bit commercial on you, but they honestly didn't. Not for a moment. I'm one of those kind of guys that is really into music but never really thought about going to a bunch of concerts or shows or anything. I mean, I have been to my share of shows, as any teenager has, but I wouldn't consider myself a concert kinda guy. Let's just say I am now. This years festival was absolutely unreal. I have never been to anything like this in my entire life, to the point where it is almost tough to explain. But let me try anyway - you know that feeling when you're on youtube and you stumble upon a song that somehow just clicks in your head and you're then hooked on the song or band or whatever? Well imagine that but in the desert, drunk, with thousands of people around you feeling the exact same kind of elation. Yea that's pretty awesome, but somehow that elation lasts for 3 days straight.
I am a total noob when it came to the whole Coachella scene (and lets be honest its totally a trendy scene) and walked in with a healthy anticipation for adventure. There are things that you are just oblivious to on that first day and I had no idea what to expect at all. Friday started off a bit slow but kicked up a little later we really got going with Bloc Party's Kele Okereke with his new band Kele, Skrillix, and then got absolutely shell shocked in the Sahara techno tent by A-trak and Afrojack who had a surprise guest appearance of Paul McCartney and Usher. We walked over to the much anticipated set of The Black Keys and to be honest they were probably the biggest bust of the entire weekend. We walked in thinking that they were going to be one of the big hits of the festival but with very average dull light show and not enough volume to get the crowd into the music, we had left 3 songs into the set because there was no energy whatsoever. Looking for a bit more excitement we fell back into the techno tent only to be blown away by not only one of the sickest experiences I have ever had, but I have never seen a light show that blew people's minds like set that Magnetic Man had put on. It completely took me over and showed me a new way to experience music.
Saturday and Sunday were just as good if not better. The shock value wore off but I became in awe of what I was experiencing with my good friends. Bands like Foster The People, City and Colour, Two Door Cinema Club, Bright Eyes, Mumford and Sons, and Paul Van Dyk showed up huge and gave performances that will have people talking about them for a while. There were a few major busts though that I have to admit I was pretty disappointed with. Bands like Duck Sauce, Sleigh Bells, The Morning Benders, and again The Black Keys. Bands that I maybe just had too high of expectations for but they were just rather bland and unenergetic to me. I feel that energy is half of the battle. The bands that interacted and fed off of the crowd made a connection with the fans and that helped their performance. Mumford and Sons seemed to be something out of a story book. You simply wanted to like them and sing along because of their charisma, appreciation, and overall happiness of performing. You knew that performing in front of 70,000 strong was something they had not really expected and you could tell in their faces. It was a special moment for both fans and I'm sure the band.
Overall, it was an insanely successful festival and an absolute brilliant weekend and I wouldn't have changed a thing. Every time I got disappointed by one band another would surprise me or draw me to their performance as I was passing by. Every step was something new. You never know what tent you're going to end up in. There were elements of the festival that aren't advertised that really made it for me. It wasn't the music, it wasn't the art, or the girls in little clothing, or any of that junk. It was the atmosphere. It was the idea that you could walk into a tent and fight your way through the crowd and dance your ass off and know that no one is judging you because they are in the exact same spot as you. Everyone is there to have a good time. Everyone wants the festival to be amazing. Its the people that make the festival what it really is and I think that says a lot about what Coachella has put together.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
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