Sad to say that this is the last photoset that we will be posting for this years Coachella. There’s plenty more to see as we were able to capture performances by Gotye, Florence + The Machine, Wild Flag, Snoop and Dr Dre, The Growlers, Fitz and The Tantrums, Metronomy, First Aid Kit, Beirut, The Hives and many many more.
We hope you enjoyed our coverage of the 2012 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, and if you’re heading out to the desert this weekend, get ready for some amazing times. See you again next year!
Santigold made her comeback to Coachella after four years and she couldn’t have been happier to be there and it showed through her performance. She came on stage with a full band, back up singers/dancers and a major urge to get the crowd dancing.
Santigold ran through all of the old favorites off of her debut album like “Shove It”, “Creator”, “L.E.S.Artistes” and “Say Aha”. She also sprinkled in a couple new songs off her upcoming sophomore album “Master of My Make-Believe”.
I didn’t get to stay for many full sets during the weekend, but this one pulled me in for the full ride.
Final verdict: Guaranteed weekend highlight. Add it to your schedule.
The weekend that we wait all year long for is over. Well it’s over for the people that bought passes for the first weekend at least. If you’re heading out to Indio this weekend expect a weekend with tons of memories. Yesterdays weather was absolutely perfect. 80 degrees and not a cloud in sight.
This might have been my favorite day of the three day music festival which included an early dance party by Santigold; The Growlers heating things up on the Outdoor stage; Fitz and The Tantrums giving festival goers a whole lotta funk and soul; The Hives making their massive return and demanding that we dance; The Weeknd making hearts swoon across the field and Dr. Dre and Snoop Dog ending the night with a massive set that even woke the dead.
This was a jam packed weekend and I still can’t believe that it’s all going to happen a second time. More photos and reviews of individual acts to follow.
Another Coachella and another reunion to add to it’s legacy. Britpop quitent Pulp finally made their way to the states after a 10 year hiatus and they did not let this festival crowd down. As soon as the intro began, hoards of fans rushed the stage and happily left any other acts they were watching at the time.
I do think they were going for the record of the world longest intro, because I personally clocked it in at a whopping 18 minutes before we actually saw anyone walk on stage. Until then is was a bunch of random synths that vaguely sounded like their biggest hit “Common People”, and the display screens kept on asking “Are you ready?”. After being asked 10 times I just felt pestered.
But when the band did take off, it was beautiful. Pulp opened with “Do You Remember the First Time?”; and got into other favorites like “Disco 2000”, “This is Hardcore” and of course ended with “Common People”. Lead singer Jarvis Cocker took full control of the crowd with plenty of banter between songs and ate up the energy fed from the audience. He is one of the best frontmen at this years fest and we’re so glad they’re back.
Final verdict: Worth the wait
Madness is one of those bands that I have been dying to see live on stage for years upon years. Especially since their name was abruptly taken off the 2008 line up. The ska masters pulled in a much older crowd that have been fans since the late 70’s. But the saddest part was when I noticed how small the audience actually was.
The crowd only went past the the sound booth and for a setting the size of the Outdoor Stage that isn’t much. But that in no way phased the band. Madness opened up with “One Step Beyond” for some instant skanking action and then got into other songs like “House of Fun”, “Baggy Trouser” and other favs off of their greatest hits collection. The rest of Coachella started to file in for a sing-a-long of “Our House”.
Final verdict: Maybe not for everyone, but give the band some respect.
Arctic Monkeys made their second visit to Coachella this year, and since then the band have release two more albums (My personal favorite is still Favorite Worst Nightmare) and gotten some more respectable haircuts. Lead Singer Alex turner did mention how much they have been “Tryin to get back” to Coachella.
This years set was one to remember. They opened up with the explosive “Brainstorm” to set the tone of the show which was to play all of the hard hitting favorites. Before getting into the crowd pleasing single “I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor”, Alex stopped to ask “Ladies… are you ready?”
In other words, you second weekend folk better not miss this one.
This is something that we don’t like to see. Two Coachella acts have been removed from the line up and poster. The first to go was La Roux who posted this message on her website:
“I’m gutted that we cannot play at my favourite festival. The show we played there in 2010 was one of the best I’ve ever done. Things are progressing well with the new record but I just don’t have the time to finish it AND prepare a new set for Coachella. If they’ll have us back we’d love to see you there.”
The next that we saw removed from the line up poster was one that we’re really sad to see go, and that’s Cat Power. While so far no statement has been made from the band, they no longer show on Coachella’s “line up” section or on the poster. You can see the new poster reflecting the changes in the line up below. We’re hoping that there will also be some good additions to the line up in the near future or that either of these acts decide to return to the fest.
We’re going to continue featuring some of the lesser known bands listed on the 2012 Coachella line up that we think you ought to know about before you head out to Indio. The Head and The Heart was one of my favorite live acts of 2011, and their performance at last years FYF Fest was what really sealed the deal. The debut self-titled album was re-issued by Sub Pop after a ton of word-of-mouth buzz started to fly around, and thousands of copies were sold when it was just a self-release album by the band. The band went on to open for acts like Vampire Weekend and Dave Matthews, that alone gave The Head and The Heart massive exposure and helped them gain new fans. The album itself goes for a feel-good indie folk sound that is filled with very heartfelt, sincere and nostalgic lyrics. This band carries everything that I love about Mumford and Sons minus that damn banjo. I highly recommend downloading “Chasing A Ghost” and “Down In The Valley” which happen to be my personal favorites off of the album. Catch The Head and The Heart when they perform at this years Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on Saturday, April 14th and 21st.
Check out their live performance on KCRW (HERE) or watch it (HERE).
