After what was a whirlwind of a weekend, Coachella finally came to a close last Sunday night. It’s difficult to describe the magnitude of the festival and each of the memorable moments that occurred, but we’ve managed to compile a list of the top 11 moments that the festival brought us. After sorting through the mounds of moments, this is what we came up with:
Roger Waters – The Flying Pig
It’s definitely an experience to witness a Roger Waters performance. The man truly brings the music to life and creates a mind-fuck of a journey for the audience. Not only is the man a musical genius, but also the production that he puts on is the real key. Picture this: you’re in a daze of music provided by the mastermind behind Pink Floyd, and out of nowhere a giant flying pig comes into the picture. That’s right, a pig in the sky, no joke. The real kicker? Underneath the flying chunk of bacon read ‘OBAMA.’
Prince – “I’m here”
This was the performance that everyone was waiting for. The man, the myth, the legend, Prince, finally took the stage at a fashionably late hour. Once the pint-sized singer took the stage the audience erupted and waited for the first track to start. But Prince, being the self-absorbed diva he is, slowly walked to the front of the main stage and belted out, “Coachella…. I’m here!” Yes, he was there indeed. But why the hell didn’t he play ‘Raspberry Beret?' He definitely dropped the ball on that one.
Anthem Pool Party – A Classic Time
Although this didn’t take place at the actual festival, it was one of the best festival parties in the area. Hosting their La Fiesta de Fiestas (The Party of Parties for the non-bilinguals), Anthem Magazine had the drinks flowing, the pool crowded and music provided by the likes of Boys Noize, MANDY and Heidi, not to mention gift bags by Le Sport Sac. The combination of each definitely made this the party of parties. Did I mention there was an open bar? There was an open bar.
The VIP Area – Bathroom Haven
Let’s face it. One of the grimiest things that everyone fears about music festivals are the bathrooms or lack there of. However, when you’re at Coachella it’s not much of a problem, especially if you man-up and decide to go the VIP route, which is definitely worth it. The bathrooms in this area could have easily been confused with the one’s at a restaurant. Clean, private, and with AC! Doesn’t get better than that when you need to take care of business and you just can’t hack the port-a-potty in the 100-plus degree weather.
Hot Chip – An Early Set Doesn’t Mean a Boring Set
There’s a pre-conceived notion that as the day goes on, the bands get better. Not necessarily. You do have some top tier talent getting early billing. A surprise to the masses was Hot Chip’s 6PM billing. These guys were definitely capable of swiping away the headliner spot from Jack Johnson, but regardless the situation, their performance packed out the ridiculously hot Sahara tent.
The Verve – Richard Ashcroft is a God
The extremely surprising move made by festival producers was not having The Verve play last on day one. The British quartet took the stage by storm and delivered every song with perfection. The entire performance was capped off by Richard Ashcroft’s vocals. The singer hit every note with power and emotion that gave goose bumps to the audience that had been waiting for the band's reunion since 1999. This performance definitely elevated Ashcroft to rock God status as he ended things off with Bitter Sweet Symphony, the track that had the waterworks flowing in the crowd.
Kraftwerk - A Taste of the Old School
To set up for a performance, especially one for a festival of this magnitude, it takes a lot of time. Guitars need to be tuned, drum kits assembled, and all kinds of wires need to be hooked, plugged in, or wrapped up. This wasn’t the case for Kraftwerk. Armed with their laptops, the German quartet took all fans of electronic music back to where and when it all started performing their classic songs like 'Autobahn,' 'Radio-Activity 'and 'The Robots.' Their style was very simple, but very effective.
Jack Johnson – Bore Fest
How can you get together a list of Coachella’s top moments without including some negative aspects? Jack Johnson headlined day one…after The Verve…he was boring. Period.
Vampire Weekend – Continue Increasing the Hype
The heat was blaring on day one, but some bands managed to keep it cool on stage. With a performance that gained them more fans and will continue to add more hype to their sound, Vampire Weekend impressed the masses with songs from their self-titled debut. Not only that, the audience was also treated to new songs that the band is planning to include on their future sophomore effort. The Columbia grads are sure to continue their success and ride the wave of hype that’s managed to take them to Coachella.
The Sahara Tent – Winter Music Conference, in a Tent
Although there were a variety of performers on each stage of the festival, the Sahara Tent seemed to provide all of the electronic music. The massive tent played host to performances by Fatboy Slim, Diplo, James Zabiela and Deadmau5. The tent was almost like a mini-WMC as one of the only acts that played and didn’t have CDJs was Hot Chip. There were extremely memorable performances in the tent that packed it out and made it seem like it gave the main stage a run for their money.
The Raconteurs – Best Opening
As the sun started coming down on day one of the festival, giving everyone a break for once, The Raconteurs took the main stage and delivered what was probably one of the best openings of the festival. The boys kicked things off with Consoler of the Lonely, a heavy riff and drum inspired tune off of their recently released Consolers of the Lonely. Jack White and company definitely brought their A game to the stage for an audience that needed a bit of a jolt after a performance by Tegan and Sara. The opening song provided just that and let the audience know what they were in for.
