One Regret

The only thing for which I'd truly kick myself over skipping Coachella:



Otherwise, Monday begins the most masochistically fun part of the festival for me: bootlegs!!!

So Fucking Hot

How badass is Friday? So much so that Leonard "I'm Your Man" Cohen is given fourth billing. However, the top-heavy lopsided billing begs the question, "Do they all have other plans for the rest of the weekend?" At least it'll be way cheaper to just buy the one day than to splurge on a whole weekend pass.

Take this opportunity if you can. You will probably never have another chance to see Paul McCartney and Morrissey for 100 bucks. After the show, we can go cougar hunting in Palm Springs again and be home in time for Saturday morning cartoons. Doesn't that sound like fun?

Celebrating Ten Years of Varying Degrees of Awesomeness

It's good to know Photoshop.

Oh, But What a 2/3 It'll Be

Zully just keeps on lucking out with this fucking lineup. Check out Sunday:

Or, if you don't want to go blind and want to check out the other dates while you're at it, go here.

The set times show "Sean Penn" performing two very short sets, one of which is right before My Morning Jacket on the main stage. It is quite possible "Sean Penn" is just a "Penn-name" for Eddie Vedder, who did a whole set with My Morning Jacket at Lollapalooza last year and actually played with Sean Penn, the actor, earlier this year in LA. You see what I did there with that play on words? I know, it's not funny if I have to explain it.

Sidenote: 2.5 hours for Roger Waters??? Luckily, judging from past setlists, he's gonna play a best-of set before and after the album. So, if your anything like me, you can stick around for 80% of "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" and "Wish You Were Here" and still have enough time for the last couple of sets in the Sahara Tent or, the heavens permitting, in your car and out the desert by 10.

Fuck.

You win again, old man.

And It Begins Again

While I'm letting the good and the bad settle in, the only thing I can think of now is if Roger Waters is playing Dark Side of the Moon in its entirety, I'm expecting the same sea of black that appeared in 2004 when The Cure headlined. I know they have completely different audiences, but a freak by any other name... right?

Better Late Than Never: Interpol at Coachella

Now that I finally have my file hosting shiz sorted out, I can share some sets from this year's Coachella festival with y'all. First up is my personal favorite from the weekend: Interpol, who played Friday night right before Bjork.

But before we get to the good stuff, here are some pictures to waste your time:



By the way, have you met the new Carlos D? He's gone from "Bela Lugosi's Dead" to Pablo Escobar on Zoloft:

Without further ado, here's Interpol's full set. I highly, highly recommend "Mammoth."

Oh yeah, I've also uploaded the set by Ziggy Marley & Jr. Gong. If you grab it, can you do me a favor and hook it up with track names? Thanks, you're a peach.

Coachella Bootlegs Galore!

Hot off the heels of the three-day festival comes the only useful thread: Bootlegs!

Click here for the shows available. They're updated pretty regularly, so check back periodically. Or obsessively. Whatever floats your boat.

Three More for Last Year

I swear, this happens every year. The top ten lists for 2006 are good and done, and all of a sudden, I realize that I missed out on some pretty decent music that would've made one list or another if I had only been paying attention the first time around.

Well, no use whining over missed opportunities. Instead, I'm just gonna share some really bitchin' tunes. And, just so credit's given where it's due...

1. When two coworkers, on completely separate occasions, tell me about the same band, it's probably something worth checking out. The biggest obstacle was getting over the fact that these guys are all technically fetuses.

Kooks - See the World (from Inside In/Inside Out)

2. Fellow fat kid Joyce asked me to send her some Regina Spektor after seeing her open for Keane. After I saw her open for the Strokes four or five years ago, I thought she sounded like a cat being tortured. However, I'll admit the new album is pretty incredible, and this particular song became a favorite for both us.

Regina Spektor - Fidelity (from Begin to Hope)

3. Apple iPod commercial. Thank you, Steve Jobs.

The Fratellis - Flathead (from Costello Music)

Like what you hear? Then check 'em out live. All three artists will be playing at Coachella this year! To quote the great Morpheus: "Something something three bands. I do not see coincidence. I see providence. I see purpose. I believe it is our fate to be here. It is our destiny." By the way, destiny's gonna run you $287.50 after taxes and Ticketmaster's cut. But hey, at least you get your own totally useless Coachella page.

Okay, I Believe Now

I'll Believe It When I See It

The LA Times has reported that some pretty big bands will be playing Coachella this year.

For those of you without a log-in and don't feel like signing up, here's the article in its entirety:

Rage Against the Machine, the seminal L.A. band that made heavy music into political manifesto, will reunite after a seven-year lull for one show as the headliners at the 2007 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.

Sources say Rage, which played the main stage at the first Coachella in 1999, will be joined by other familiar faces for the eighth edition of the festival, which covers three days this year and begins April 27: Red Hot Chili Peppers, which headlined in 2003, are back, as is Björk, who topped the bill in 2002.

Organizers were mum this weekend and it was not clear which day Rage or the other acts were slotted to play; that announcement is expected in the next few days. Other acts expected in the eclectic lineup: Arcade Fire, Interpol, Willie Nelson, the Roots, Manu Chao, the Decemberists, Arctic Monkeys, Sonic Youth, Crowded House, Air, Tiësto and Kings of Leon.

Tickets go on sale Saturday, via Ticketmaster. Three-day passes will cost about $250 and there will be a limited number of single-day passes available.

The headliners are not novel, but they are potent. The Peppers are up for their first best album Grammy right now, and Björk remains a mesmerizing figure to fans of avant pop. But in Southern California rock circles, there is very little that could compete with the excitement of a Rage Against the Machine reunion. The quartet's hybrid of funk, rap, metal and leftist ideology was as subtle as a Molotov cocktail; in the 1990s, its aggro-anthems made it the only band that mattered to a fan base that included East L.A. protest kids as well as those in Hollywood punk circles, college dorms and mainstream rock festival mosh pits, where politics were secondary to the group's feral energy.

The band is vocalist Zack de la Rocha, guitarist Tom Morello, bassist Tim Commerford and drummer Brad Wilk. Their split came amid rumors of bad blood between De la Rocha and his mates, who went on to work with Chris Cornell in Audioslave. However, Morello and De la Rocha appeared together at a 2005 rally for the urban farmers of a South Los Angeles community garden.

Who's in for a motel room?

Update:
Stereogum's got a full lineup, and it's confirmed by Billboard.

Hickchella

With the announcement of the 2007 Coachella lineup looming only a few weeks away, people like me begin to grasp at straws for any kind of leak, be it rumored artists, some kind of behind-the-scenes drama, or if they finally loosened up on the outside food rule. Seriously, even though this only happens once a year, I'm getting pretty tired of hiding candy in my shoes and crotch.

As such, besides letting you know that in addition to the previously confirmed artists, !!!, Lupe Fiasco, and Blonde Redhead have all been confirmed through various sources. Remember the other festival I mentioned, Coachella's bastard country cousin? Stagecoach, as it is been dubbed, is up and running:

Although the Palomino Stage does generate some crossover appeal, I think we can kinda guess who're gonna show up for this one.

Your First Official Coachella 2007 Update

It's a doozy, too. Next year's festival will up the ante by becoming a THREE (3, III, 三)-day event, running from Friday, April 27th through Sunday, April 29th. The first artists to confirm are Rodrigo y Gabriela, LCD Soundsystem, Cornelius, Hot Chip, Oh No Oh My and Digitalism.

Depending on who you're asking, the bigger story concerns the weekend following Coachella. On May 5-6, the Empire Polo Grounds will host a country music festival, also promoted by Paul Follet and Goldenvoice. Some of the artists already lined up include Willie Nelson, Lucinda Williams, and Emmylou Harris.

Early details of both events can be found via Billboard. Jesus, I just hope those country people don't show up on the wrong weekend.

And let the jacking of hotel prices begin... now.