The sun sets with cloudy skies on Friday, April 18, 2014 at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, Calif. (Vanessa Franko/Staff)
I’m back out at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival for another round of music and sunshine–and at least on Friday, April 18, some dark storm clouds. Here’s my wrap-up of day 1 of weekend 2 of the festival.
Here’s a photo gallery of the opening day of Coachella’s second weekend.
Weather: The weather entering Coachella yesterday was beautiful. It was cooler than weekend one, and while a little humid, pretty darn pleasant. By the late afternoon, dark clouds rolled in and Coachella issued a warning through its app that a storm was brewing, but it just bypassed Indio so we didn’t have a repeat of 2012’s Rainchella.
OutKast: Andre 3000 and Big Boi were so much better than last weekend. The set list was tweaked. “Bombs Over Baghdad” still opened the set, but “Ms. Jackson” and “The Way You Move” were bumped up earlier, getting the attention they deserved rather than being rushed at the end. They still walked around that table, which someone compared to a David Mamet play, but the crowd was definitely more into it. There also seemed to be a lot more color in the lights and production this week. If you have AXS TV, watch the replay from home if you were a weekend one goer.
This blurry image is Billie Joe Armstrong playing with The Replacements on Friday, April 18. (Vanessa Franko/Staff)
The Replacements: I couldn’t stay away from The Replacements again (I mean, how many times are we really going to be able to see this?) and I’m so glad I did. Paul Westerberg injured his back sometime during the week and played a good chunk of the set from a couch on stage, but to help out, the band got a replacement Replacement, in the form of Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong. There were a few changes from last week’s set list, too. We didn’t get “Androgynous,” but we did get “Kiss Me on the Bus.”
From here on, I’ll go chronological through the day.
Gabba Gabba Heys: I started my day of music with a cover band. The Gabba Gabba Heys are the closest I’ll ever get to seeing The Ramones and man, they were spot on. Who doesn’t want to hear “Pet Sematary” at high volume at Coachella? The singer sounded just like Joey. I was curious as to why Goldenvoice booked them, but it was definitely a fun start to the day.
GOAT performs at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on Friday, April 18. (Vanessa Franko/Staff)
GOAT: I am still trying to process that set, but I liked it. The Swedish band had full on masks and costumes and tribal rhythms. Feathers, fringe, finger symbols, a rhythm ribbon, woah.
Title Fight: Title Fight sounded great. I love when Coachella captures the punk spirit. Definitely put the band on my list of albums to pick up post-festival.
Gareth Emery: Emery’s “Drive” is one of the finest electronic albums of 2014 and once again, he had the Sahara Tent going absolutely bonkers on Friday afternoon.
Neko Case: Case was hilarious. She kept talking about the juxtaposition of her nighttime music being played during the day. The best line was when she compared playing her music in the day to doing a striptease at an elementary school to the theme from “Ghostbusters.” Her set was happening as the clouds rolled in.
The Afghan Whigs: I cruised over to see the last few songs of The Afghan Whigs. They sounded even better than last week. Go get the new album, “Do the Beast.” It’s good stuff.
French electro swing group Caravan Palace performs at Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, Calif. on Friday, April 18, 2014. (Vanessa Franko/Staff Photo)
Caravan Palace: Holy moly that was a party. This French group merges swing jazz and electronica. It was like being in a futuristic speakeasy or stuck in some kind of time-traveling phonebooth for a set. I didn’t stay for too long so I could catch more of OutKast, but they were thoroughly enjoyable.
Parking: I have to say, one big improvement I’ve noticed this year is leaving the festival. There are actually people directing traffic inside the lots, not just at the exit. Anyone else notice this or are you still stuck in the same Coachella traffic?