Coachella 2011...

Sadly I was physically a little out of sorts this past weekend for the Coachella. This whole not smoking thing is actually fucking me up hard core. So, I didn’t take notes, and I didn’t take very good pictures since I had no idea how to work mom's camera that I took. Alas, this blog will be a blog of highlights of the 3 day trip to the desert to hear a ridiculous amount of music and check out some weird art.
Coachella 2011:
BANDS:
Friday
Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears - my surprise fave. Fucking awesome funky band with a little jazz, a little rock, a little blues, some brass and even a lil Jimi move at the end.
Ozomatli - Funky and fun!
Cee Lo Green - was 20 minutes late, and the peeps literally turned him off when his time was up. Oops!
Tame Impala - Lovely
Lauryn Hill - surprisingly fantastic! She was rumored to be a train wreck, but honestly did a fantastic job.
Cold War Kids - Great set.
Interpol - Faboo
Sleigh Bells - Adorable.
The Black Keys - fucking awesome - my other favorite of the night.
Kings of Leon - played well, but just boooooring.
Saturday
Joy Formidable - reminded me a lot of Sia. Not my cup of tea music wise, but she was adorable to watch.
Freelance Whales - one of my faves. So lovely, so happy!
Trampled by Turtles - so awesome, would love to try to see them again somewhere.
Gogol Bordello - of course one of my fave bands of all times. Loooooove them! But my calves hate them.
Erykah Badu - I was so sad. She actually didn’t do that great of a set. She was having major sound issues and I just couldn’t get into her :(
Cage the Elephant - another disappointment, but I don’t really blame them - I blame where we were sitting. I think if we were more in the mix it would have been a better set.
Elbow - I thought I was watching Peter Gabriel. An absolutely gorgeous performance. So mellow, so beautiful. Brought T to tears.
Mumford & Sons - My fave of the night! So sweet, so lovely, so happy, huuuuge crowd. They played perfectly!
Animal Collective - not my fave music wise, but they did put on a trippy set.
Arcade Fire - Beautiful. They were happy and on it and brought it. Loved them!
Sunday
Jimmy Eat World - love them. They were so much fun and another very happy set!
Fistful of Mercy - Another surprise. I know Ben Harper, but not this band - loved them. They harmonized wonderfully!
Foster the People - My fave of the day. They put on a great set and didn’t play one of their hits!!
Duran Duran - they rocked it of course, but honestly did you expect any different?
Chromeo - very fun.
The Strokes - played all their hits, but still loved listening to them.
PJ Harvey - very cool, especially her last couple of songs where she pretty much turned into a rockstar.
Kayne West - Sorry..just don’t get it.
ART:
The Creators Project is a global culture and technology community created by Intel and Vice, showcasing artists. They partnered with a few bands to create some gnarly visual experiences. The opening of Animal Collective's set was insane. The sound started as a low rumbling and got louder and louder and louder like a rocket about to take off. It vibrated the entire grounds and the light show literally looked like the main stage was going to explode. I actually considered running for my life briefly. It was pretty intense! For Arcade Fire - a giant container was held above the stage by a crane and during one of their hits opened up and all these giant white balls fell out onto the crowd. They looked like balloons but bigger. The crowd went wild and from our vantage point you didn’t even see the people anymore, just white balls bouncing around like a giant bubble bath. They also lit up and changed colors! So beautiful!
There was something called the Bugaboo Zoo which was giant bugs created out of bamboo and they lit up at night! There was a huge pagoda that was gorgeous and a nice escape from the sun. Something called Candelaphytes which looked like giant fishtales and moved very slinky like in the wind. The Reel Mobile looked like a giant reel to reel player and it lit up at night also. Music blasted from it all day. One of my faves was Wish - a giant sculpture that looked liked dandelions made up of mirrors and glass. These also lit up at nite. The land sharks of course were back. I love those fucking things! As well as the Balloon Chain. There was a crazy electric volted coil thing that turned on every now and again that was pretty trippy. There were many other things but those are what I caught.
PEOPLE:
Lots of Indians, a couple dressed like characters from CATS, a full on bunny suit, people in underwear, Lots of gals in bathing suits, I think all the men worked out this year cuz there was a lot of great bodies out there. Not gonna lie. I was dying. Many of the usual e-tard kids all glow sticked and make up'd out. A dude in a blue body suit. A couple that decided to have sex right in the middle of everything while I was watching The Strokes. My favorite was watching the people walk by glancing at them then realizing what they were actually doing. ALOT of pot. I think I came home with a contact high. The one thing I would like to point out though, is with 90,000 people I've never seen a fight, I heard there were only 20 arrests on Friday and the worst thing that happened was some chick tried to jump off the Ferris Wheel (Yes she was on drugs and someone caught her dumbass by the ankles so she was ok). It’s truly amazing to me to see that many people all just enjoying everything. People are happy, dancing, chill (yes lots of drunks and drugs but still!), it really is just a giant festival of art and music and brings people together to enjoy just that. That is what truly blows my mind every year.
CONS:
I would give my left leg for a fucking chair. My back just cannot handle sitting on the ground or standing for 3 days in the desert. My allergies were complete shit due to the dust/grass. It’s hot as fuck. Not enough water stations. The crowds do get a little much at times. And always remember to get a locker. It kinda blew carrying everything around this year. It will also cost you your ass. Food and booze is quite expensive. Throw in your tix price and the hotel and you just might as well bend over. Another bummer is the bands - not them personally - but them all playing at the same damn time and you more often than not have to only catch part of sets so you can book it somewhere else to catch another. So the cons aint all that bad, but just be prepared for those sorts of things. The parking is waaaaaaaaaaaay better than last year, they do seem to have a handle on how to handle the crowds a bit better so that was pretty awesome. They did the layout slightly different this year that made a big difference. They need to work out some sound issues (sometimes heavy base can be heard while you’re trying to listen to something else) but they are doing their best to get it right and they are defiantly going in the right direction.
QUOTES:
(This section is of course mainly for my 2 beautiful co-horts, but you may find it amusing)
"When she's wheeze laughing, you know it’s funny"
"I can’t see through my tears"
"You got a tent? I got a pony!"
"Jami's the heavy, I'm the mule"
"Where's that metal pole, Jami will trip on it"
"This is why I can’t play golf" (Visual. Patti)
"Jesus" (Visual. T's face)
"Did he pee?"
"Cookie DeFranks"
I'll try to add more as I remember them, or the girls remind me.
CLOSING:
It’s a pretty gnarly weekend. The music is phenomenal. You always find new music. The atmosphere is a trip. It’s a modern day Woodstock. Your just not in the real world for 3 days. You’re in a blurry haze of music, art, people, heat, exhaustion, emotions, food, booze, laughter and tears. There's nothing like it. So goodbye Coachella 2011. Will I see you next year? Who knows. God pass anyone?