Who: Johnny Marr in the Mojave Tent In 3 or Fewer Words: Johnny F*cking Marr. Memorable Because: Johnny Marr does a damn good Morrissey impression. About a quarter of Marr’s set consisted of Smiths hits and those played best to an enthusiastic Mojave Tent. Otherwise playing off his new solo release “The Messenger,” Marr sometimes […]
Who: Jake Bugg in the Mojave Tent In Three or Fewer Words: Not Bob Dylan. Memorable Because: In the long history of “New Dylans,” Brit newcomer falls somewhere in the category of, well, Jakob Dylan, writing punchy, likable songs that in retrospect seem a bit empty. This was one of those Coachella sets where you […]
Who: Stars at the main stage. In 3 or Fewer Words:Â Soundless Stars. Memorable Because:Â Stars’ enthusiasm was there, but the sound guy for the main stage seemed to have his head somewhere else. The contrast between the stage and the sound board was so remarkable it was heartbreaking – but it wasn’t much of a surprise […]
Who:Â Dam-Funk on the main stage In 3 or Fewer Words:Â Funky happy people. Memorable Because:Â It takes some gnarly keyboard manipulation into fooling you there is a guitar on stage when there’s not, but funk maestro Dam-Funk had a groove that was twice as heavy as his light crowd. Although, paired with positive messages in songs like […]
Who: The Shouting Matches in the Gobi Tent ”¨In 3 or Fewer Words: Waiting, waiting waiting … Memorable Because: Things to do during the glacial delay before the set from the new trio featuring Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon – check Facebook, check Twitter, call home, drink water and see if you can capture a photograph […]
Who: The Neighbourhood at the Outdoor Theatre In 3 or Fewer Words: Ain’t sweater weather. Memorable Because: The young Newbury Park quintet took the stage to a Drake song: “Started from the bottom / and now I’m here …” Yes, the Neighbourhood is here, with plenty of swagger for a young quintet from Newbury Park. […]
Who: IO Echo in the Gobi tent. In 3 or Fewer Words: Gobi of love. Memorable Because: After rushing through security checkpoints to make the early sets, the BBLA staff hit the Gobi Tent just as one of our favorite local bands took the stage. And Ioanna Gika’s sparkling, white kimono-inspired wardrobe alone was worth all the […]
Who: Lord Huron in the Mojave Tent In 3 or Fewer Words: Most cinematic matinee. Memorable Because: Ben Schneider is a good guy, and he has the white hat to prove it. Fronting his not-very-outlaw seven-piece band, though, he a storyteller possessed keen knack for conjuring up the wide-open spaces of the Old West. The […]
The Coachella Valley Music & Art Festival might be sold out, but attendees voted with their feet Friday night when it came to headliners Blur and the Stone Roses. The Britpop greats played to vast expanses of open lawn, fans opting for sets on the far side of the Empire Polo Grounds or hitting the […]
The Buzz Bands LA Show comes to you today from the desert, where our army of journalists (well, three of us) is stationed to cover today’s first day of Coachella. Tune into Moheak Radio at 11 a.m. for two hours of local music, kicking off with selections from over a dozen of the SoCal bands […]