In light of the recent announcement of the 2012 Coachella line-up, consisting of The Black Keys, Radiohead, Dr. Dre & Snoop Dogg, we thought we would have a more in-depth look at the festival line-up and the festival itself, which may prove useful if you’re lucky enough to attend the dual weekend of what can be related to paradise.
The Festival
Held in the lush polo fields in Indio, California, the festival now spans over two weekends (13th – 15th April and 20th – 23rd April). Information about when each band will play and what weekend they will play are yet to be released. The festival consists of 4 Stages: Coachella Stage; Gobi Tent; Mojave Tent; and the Sahara Tent, and the Outdoor Theatre. Camping onsite is available and is what all festival attendees do. The festival itself is unlike any other, with astounding art works on display both day and night. Music and film are not the only things to see at the festival, with Coachella being one of the only festivals that genuinely emphasises the art in a Music & Art’s Festival
The Line-up
It is standard at Coachella for something to always be on, and this in itself comes with the issues of constant clashes, such as last year’s decision between Kanye West, The Presets and Axwell or the clash between Animal Collective and Empire of the Sun. However, clashes aside, this year’s line-up is the biggest line-up any festival has ever seen, incorporating every single genre possible with all the best possible acts; it’s not even a question if Coachella will sell out or not.
Friday
Opening the Friday’s we have artists like Frank Ocean, Wolf Gang, SebastiAn, Neon Indian and Madeon, who are all highly respectable acts in their own element. Near the top order of the Friday line-up we have a handful of bands who all could have headlined the night. Arctic Monkeys and Swedish House Mafia both could pull it off, however they are relegated to sub-headliners. Reformed punk rockers Refused announced that they would be playing on the 9th January 2012. Surprisingly on the bill are UK outfit Pulp. It was strongly believed that Pulp had played their final show at Ireland’s Electric Picnic Festival in September last year; however, recently they broke their silence and posted on their Twitter account “You think this is over?”
Saturday
Staying with their indie roots, Coachella have whipped out the big guns for the Saturday night, producing what can only be described as a gift from the gods; consisting of Radiohead, Bon Iver, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, The Shins, St. Vincent, Kaiser Chiefs and We Are Augustines all this line-up needs is the reformed Bloc Party and there would be celebrations world wide. However, what’s most surprising about the Saturday line-up is Kasabian’s position on the bill. On the same level as acts such as WU LYF, Yuck and Manchester Orchestra, something seems to be a bit off. Kasabian are due on our shores for the Big Day Out Festival this year, playing 4th on the bill, however they cannot manage to get above acts like The Horrors and Frank Ocean. Leading the electronic charge on the Saturday is a triple entente of absolute awesomeness: David Guetta, Kaskade and Sebastian Ingrosso are manning the DJ decks all night long to ensure that the party does not stop when the clock strikes twelve. Getting their alternative on, Coachella have enlisted the assistance of SBTRKT, Andre Bird and Fiest.
Sunday
The booking agents at Coachella surely know how to close a festival. The last day of the festival is no half-arsed effort, consisting of a dual headlining position between Dr. Dre & Snoop Dogg, reformed legendary rockers At The Drive-In and Florence + The Machine. Australian musician of the year Gotye claimed a spot on the legendary line-up. Electro-saints, Justice lead the way for other house/electronic artists such as Nero, Avicii, DJ Shadow, Calvin Harris and Flux Pavilion. European rockers The Hives are also making an appearance alongside La Roux, Girl Talk and The Weeknd, who are making their American debut after bailing out on their last American tour.
Coachella VS. Australian Festivals
Reading news articles about the next massive line-up that is about to grace a country that you do not live in, and have absolutely no chance of attending, is often somewhat demeaning and leads to some feeling as if they’ve been ripped off. Australian audiences are progressively starting to expect line-ups that are worthy of Glastonbury or 02 Festival in festivals such as Big Day Out, Future and Good Vibrations. Granted, we do get some absolutely killer line-ups, however the average Australian-festival-goer is slowly becoming spoilt for choice. Over this New Year there were around 5-6 festivals that one could have gone to, including; Falls, Peats Ridge, Pyramid Rock and Shore Thing to name a few. And this is regular; we are beginning to demand the absolute impossible from promoters – perfect case is Big Day Out 2012, with punters being unbelievably upset at this year’s line-up, when Kanye West, one of the biggest entertainers on the world today was booked, and Soundgarden‘s first international show since 1997 was booked. It seems that every year they want a line-up that consists of The Beatles, Daft Punk and a surprise set from Rage Against The Machine.
If you are lucky enough to be attending the 2012 Coachella Festival, then we wish you all the best, but for the remainder who are weeping over their keyboard right now due to their lack of ability to attend the festival, your turn will come.
