Coachella Day 2, 16th April 2011

Coachella 2011 Day 2

In some respects Coachella resembles an out-sized garden party, and (the ticket fiasco excepted) it seemed much better organised, and cleaner than I expected. People were good-natured, and united by the pursuit of fun and music. One aspect which was a surprise though was the sheer brutality of the heat: there had been a frost overnight in England a couple of days before, so to be faced with temperatures in the high 90's Fahrenheit was quite a shock. It was all far more civilised than I expected: drinking was restricted to the beer gardens, and there wasn't much evidence of loutish behaviour. I won't speculate whether this is related to the relative popularity of pot and beer in Southern California and the UK!

Gogol Bordello

Gogol Bordello showed great vigour, and is an immense showman, inspiring crowd surfing and jumping off the stage himself. The quality of the Coachella main stage's soundsystem paid dividends here with the powerful bass, and everyone had a great deal of fun. I have to say though that for all the theatricality, I find the music itself rather bombastic. Much of the material was from the Transcontinental Hustle album but this gypsy punk didn't really move me.

Two Door Cinema Club

The crowd really appreciated this indie band, and I've loved their Tourist History album, even naming it as one of my discoveries of 2010. There was more inspiring material here though: it's a little brutal playing in the same festival as the likes of Arcade Fire and The National, and Two Door Cinema Club paled by comparison.

Broken Social Scene

I only caught Broken Social Scene from the GA bar area, but they clearly put on a passionate performance and I wished I'd been able to give them full attention.

Bright Eyes

Bright Eyes played an extremely strong set, Conor Oberst being unexpectedly energetic in galvanising the crowd. Coachella is magical around sunset, and there was a great light show as the sun disappeared. This was a perfect alignment of musical talent, atmosphere, and natural beauty, and one of my highlights of Coachella on a quite extraordinary day, one of the best of my life.

Electric Touch

Electric Touch, a local band from LA, sadly had a small audience, but this didn't stop them putting on an energetic performance in the Gobi, and they clearly enjoyed themselves. A perfect example of the talent that it's so easy to miss amongst such an embarrassment of riches.

Mumford and Sons

Mumford's set, whilst fairly predictable in content (since they've only recorded one album) did contain a handful of recent songs, and against the evening backdrop of the desert, was one of my top three or four experiences at the festival. They have a timeless, classic appeal, and whilst some are a little snooty about their broad appeal to non-specialists, all I can say is that emotionally they transported me to a very happy place indeed. It's clear that they've hit the big time in America as well as the UK.

For comparison, here is a video of the same song I recorded on 22nd July in San Pedro on the Railroad Revival Tour where Mumford were joined by Edward Sharpe and Old Crow Medicine Show. The set list for this show was very similar to that at Coachella, but suffered a little from Marcus' hoarse voice, the inferior sound system, and the lack of video screens. Despite this the crowd loved it, and had I not seen the Coachella Show, I'd doubtless be praising it.

Arcade Fire

I've avoided reviewing Animal Collective, who played between Mumford and Arcade Fire on the main stage, as I simply didn't get into their show, despite the psychedelic visuals, with giant hanging cubes and animations on screen. It seemed perversely odd to me.
There is little doubt in my mind that musically, Arcade Fire was the highlight of the weekend, and I echo many others in saying that they are in a different league to all but the absolute top rank of performers. The set was comprised of The Suburbs album, which is a coherent work of art which I would rank alongside established classical masterpieces in its greatness, and I believe will itself become a classic. The crowd was the largest I'd seen so far, and certainly enthusiastic, especially during the three encores, after the release of the balloons. This was an ambitious show, not just a set, and I've already secured a ticket for their next performance in the UK.

The lighting and set was incredibly accomplished, and the release of coloured balloons a real coup de theatre. There was crowd surfing, everyone was dancing, and by this stage had forgotten all their concerns about the real world. We had been transported by great art.