The Saturday of a Coachella weekend is a lot like junior year of college. On the one hand, you’ve gotten into the swing of things, know your way around the grounds and have even built up a bit of stamina. On the other, you still feel fresh (at least assuming your friend didn’t talk you into taking too many Malibu shots back at your campsite after Lana’s set) and hungry, not to mention thirsty, for more.
Most importantly, you haven’t yet started to feel the impending sadness about the weekend’s end that inevitably arrives on Sunday.
In other words, it’s something of a festival sweet spot (who doesn’t fondly remember junior year?). But still, even the best of times can have some bumps in the road. Like that time you assumed it would be easy to learn French (it wasn’t) or you and your friends decided it would be fun to try eating ghost peppers (it wasn’t). But still, the good outweighs the bad and that was the case here.
So without further ado, here is a look at our highs and lows from Weekend 1, Day 2.
The dream of the 90s was alive on this Saturday at Coachella as the bulk of the primetime at the main stage was taken up by not one, not two but three anticipated 90s reunions. Sublime started things out and singer Jakob Newell proved himself a more than capable replacement for his late father (if you closed your eyes you might have even thought you were listening to KROCK circa 1997).
Next up was Blur led by Coachella fixture Damon Albarn, who continues to show little sign of slowing down a year after he performed with his other band “Gorillaz” on this same stage. But the best was saved for last as No Doubt turned back the clock with an exuberant performance that showcased both the rebellious rocker girl side of Gwen Stefani that she has mostly seemed to keep under wraps for the past few years and the bands impressive catalog of hits.
I’m not sure I’ve ever seen someone appear more amped to play Coachella than Jack Antonoff, who presided over one of the most energetic sets I’ve ever seen at the festival. But his energy was somehow matched by Bleachers’ saxophone players who joined him on stage for much of the show and seemed to almost be battling for supremacy as they closed out the show with “Don’t take the money.” No wonder Taylor Swift could be seen bopping along in the wings. Taylor, it turns out, has good taste in collaborators/friends.
Vampire Weekend’s set brought a couple of surprises to Coachella this weekend. The first was that they showed up at all, as the set was a surprise add that was announced on Tuesday. But the second came when singer Ezra Koenig quipped that he initially wasn’t sure if the band was being asked to play Stagecoach or Coachella when festival organizers reached out to him, a clever way of introducing a decidedly-un Vampire Weekend sounding medley of country and bluesy songs that closed out the show. But while it may not have been what anyone would’ve expected, it was a pretty darn cool way to end the show. Maybe Goldenvoice should give them a call about Stagecoach after all.
For myself and what appeared to be a whole bunch of other people, the excitement that surrounded the recent addition of a T-Pain set at the Heineken House was quickly extinguished when we wandered toward the stage only to see a massive line stretching all the way back to the area in front of the outdoor stage.
Around a half hour before the set was to begin, word began to circulate through the line that the house had reached capacity and no one else would be let in. Goldenvoice, it appears, had grossly underestimed the interest that remained to hear early 2000s hits like “Up Down” and “Bartender.” Maybe they can bring back T-Pain next weekend (only a Weekend 1 set was initially announced) and put him on a bigger stage where his fans can enjoy “Booty Wurk” without any concerns about capacity issues.
Coachella may have built its reputation on rock but there’s now no doubt that the festival’s offerings in that department have become slimmer and slimmer over the years. So I can’t understand for the life of me why they scheduled three of the biggest rock names not just of Saturday, but the entire festival, to all play within an hour and 45 minutes of each other. While ambitious (and speedy) fans could’ve conceivably made it to see the majority of all three sets, there was simply no way to see the entirety of all three, which was surely a bummer for those still looking to rock ‘n’ roll at the festival.
OK, so it was pretty cool that Us Weekly got something right for once and the world’s most famous couple did in fact add the festival to their globetrotting itinerary (as eagle-eyed fans in the crowd at Bleachers found out for themselves). And yes, even pop stars are entitled to enjoy a day at the festival without having to face the pressure that comes with performing (although we doubt Taylor feels much at this point).
But if we’re being honest, we have to cop to being a little disappointed that Taylor didn’t hop on stage to join either Antonoff or Ice Spice and create what would instantly become the most memorable Coachella moment since at least Beychella. But while it appears the wait for Taylorchella will have to continue, we won’t give up quite that easy: Here’s hoping Taylor liked her time in the desert so much she’ll come back next weekend in a singing mood.
Paul Albani-Burgio covers growth, development and business in the Coachella Valley. Follow him on Twitter at @albaniburgiop and email him at [email protected].
