The 16th edition of Coachella launches this
weekend and simultaneously kicks off America’s major music festival season. Having attended the first one in 1999 - when Beck, Morrissey, Modest Mouse,
Moby, Rage Against the Machine, Tool topped the bill – I’ve been amazed at how
much the event has grown in stature over the intervening years.
Now the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival , held in
Indio, Calif. (just outside of Palm Springs), draws talent and concertgoers
from every corner of the globe. According to Billboard Magazine, it was the
top-grossing festival in 2014 and had an average attendance of just under
100,000 people daily during both three-day weekends.
This year boasts another eclectic lineup with more than 150
acts on multiple stages, plus another 50 electronic-leaning acts on the DoLab
stage. With such a dizzying array of choices, I’ve compiled a list of “can’t
miss” performers beyond headliners AC/DC, Jack White and Drake. Check www.coachella.com for updates, set times and more information.
April 10 and 17
George Ezra
– Inspired by Woody Guthrie, Howlin’ Wolf and Lead Belly, the young British folk
newcomer possesses a deep bass-baritone voice. His spirited ’14 debut album Wanted on Voyage was one of the biggest
sellers in Britain and spawned two top 10 singles there. Earlier this year,
Ezra (pictured above) did a tour opening stint for Sam Smith and appeared on Saturday Night
Live. The whimsical music video for “Blame it on Me” features Sir Ian McKellen
lip synching Ezra’s lyrics.
Interpol
– Marking their fourth Coachella appearance, these NYC gloom merchants thrive
in darkness. One past main stage set in Indio even featured strange backing
screen imagery courtesy director David Lynch. Touring behind the
appropriately-named El Pintor (“the
painter”), the guys polish their newer atmospheric post-punk tunes in broad
strokes alongside members of Secret Machines and Bon Iver.
Kele –
Trick, the solid second solo album
from the Bloc Party front man, delves further into dance club music than
before, with subtle forays into techno, dubstep and more. Add Kele’s urgent falsetto and
confessional lyrics and you have a perfect fit for Coachella’s Gobi or Mojave
tents.
Lykke Li
– This Swedish singer first appeared on many people’s radars after contributing
“Possibility” to the Twilight Saga: New
Moon soundtrack and the European hit “I Follow Rivers” in 2011. Rappers gravitate
toward remixing her tunes. The reverb-laden alt-pop tales of heartache on last
year’s I Never Learn (co-produced by
longtime collaborator Bjorn Yttling of Peter Bjorn & John) are a wonder to
behold. And her backing vocal contribution to U2’s “The Troubles” made it a
highlight of the unjustly maligned Songs
of Innocence.
Ride
– When Oasis offshoot band Beady Eye split last year, guitarist Andy Bell returned
to Ride - the group where his music career first took off while at school in
Oxford, England. Signed to esteemed UK indie label Creation during the 1990s, the
popular “shoegazers” specialized in a dense psychedelic sound on such classics
of the era as “Vapor Trail,” “Leave Them All Behind” and the more
folk/rock-leaning “Twisterella” (all of which received modern rock radio
airplay here). Rhino Records just put out a new career retrospective, OX4: The Best of Ride, as a refresher
course.
Porter Robinson – In just a
few short years, the promising young electronic DJ from North
Carolina has amassed a No. 1 iTunes dance chart single (“Language”), hit Zedd
collaboration (“Clarity”), Lady Gaga remix (“The Edge of Glory”) and ethereal
debut album (Worlds).
Also worth seeking out: Caribou
April 11 and 18
Bad Suns –
Bringing to mind Local Natives, Phoenix and a more effervescent 311,
this Los Angeles indie rock band’s music is characterized by plangent guitar
effects and Christo Bowman’s high crystalline vocals. The Edge-like guitar effects
on earworm single “Cardiac Arrest” (a top 20 U.S. alternative it in 2013), plus
the danceable “Salt” and “Transpose” helped make 2014’s Language & Perspective an enticing first
album.
Belle and Sebastian
– After a five year absence, during which leader Stuart Murdoch released a
memoir, then wrote and scored his feature film debut “God Help the Girl,” the
Scottish chamber pop outfit is finally back. It often downplays past twee
tendencies for more danceable pop fare on frothily delightful album, Girls in Peacetime Want to Dance.
Hozier
– This lanky Irishman’s performance of top 5 pop hit “Take Me to Church”
alongside Annie Lennox was a highlight of February’s Grammy Awards. The
tantalizing blend of blues, gospel and rock on his self-titled effort made it one
of last the year’s best albums and should go down a storm during his Coachella
debut.
Kasabian
– One of the more successful dance rock acts to emerge from England in the
mid-2000s, these guys are always full of attitude in concert. That was evident
by their vigorous Coachella set three years ago in a packed Mojave tent
where singer Tom Meighan easily worked the crowd into a frenzy. For latest
release 48:13 (named after the
running time), synthesizers tend to take precedence,
especially on EDM-approved single “Eez-eh.”
Also worth seeking out: The
Weeknd, St. Paul + Broken Bones
April 12 and 19
Ryan Adams
– More than a dozen full-length studio efforts into his career, Adams’ lean and
mean eponymous album is proof positive that you don’t always need a producer to
realize your vision. There’s a subtle Tom Petty/Bruce Springsteen rock vibe to
these songs, which feature contributions from Heartbreaker Benmont Tench and
Johnny Depp (on guitar). Landing at No. 1 on my top 10 album of ’14, Empire
Polo Field should be the perfect setting to hear this enrapturing material and
more.
Florence + the
Machine – When Florence Welsh and company held
court on the Outdoor Theatre set at Coachella ’12 (also a Sunday), the magnificent
set was a festival standout. Like a modern day Stevie Nicks, the flame-haired singer’s
dramatic art rock often transports the listener to another world. She’s amassed
two platinum albums and the top 20 singles “Spectrum (Say My Name),” “Rabbit
Heart (Raise it Up) and “You’ve Got the Love” in her native Britain. Coachella
listeners will likely get an early taste of much anticipated new album How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful, due
out June 1.
Jenny Lewis
– This Las Vegas native got her start in acting as a child on several high
profile TV shows and films before transitioning to music in the late ‘90s with
the critically acclaimed Rilo Kiley.
Now solo, Lewis (seen at left) has done studio work with The
Postal Service, Elvis Costello, Brandon Flowers, Bright Eyes, M. Ward, plus
dual albums with The Watson Twins and her partner Johnathan Rice. Produced by Ryan Adams, The Voyager finds Lewis in excellent, luxurious confessional mode
with frank lyrics and dollops of classic country.
Night Terrors of 1927
– The Los Angeles alt-rock group, led by singer Jarrod Gorbel (ex-The
Honorary Title) and former Rilo Kiley guitarist Blake Sennett, recently put out
Everything’s Coming up Roses. Bearing
shades of AFI and The Killers, it’s one of the strongest debut albums of the
year so far. Their percolating duet with Tegan and Sara is pure bliss, while
the dramatic “Shine” and goth-tinged “Always Take You Back” finely showcase Gorbel’s
rich baritone.
St. Lucia – Raised in South Africa, where he sang classical
and opera with a travelling boys choir, Jean-Philip Grobler studied music in
Liverpool before landing in Brooklyn. St.
Lucia’s entrancing synth-pop and alt-dance tunes on 2013’s When the Night
share a stylistic kinship with M83. Grobler has also remixed tunes for Foster
the People, Passion Pit and Charli XXC and produced Haerts.
Also worth seeking out: Vance
Joy, The Cribs, Saint Motel
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