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The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival (also commonly referred to as simply Coachella) is a two-day annual music festival held at the Empire Polo Fields in Indio, California. The event resembles more of that of European festivals and specializes in many genres of music including Alternative Rock, Hip Hop, and Electronica. The event has five stages/tents set-up throughout the grounds, each playing live music continuously. The areas are as follows: Coachella Stage, Outdoor Theatre, Gobi Tent, Mojave Tent, and the Sahara Tent (2006 also saw the addition of a smaller Oasis Dome).
The Coachella Music Festival is noted for its desert setting (the Mojave Desert is approximately 50 miles north of Indio). Consequently, daytime temperatures frequently rise to over 100°F (38°C) with little cloud cover or shade. The temperature drops drastically after sunset.
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History
The first Coachella festival was held on October 10th and 11th in 1999, just a mere three months after the disatrous Woodstock 99 festival. Due to the fires and riots of Woodstock, Coachella promoters weren't allowed to offer onsite camping to its visitors, a ban that would continue until the 2002 festival. In a protest to the widely-criticized Woodstock festival, which was notorious for its $4 bottles of water, Coachella promoters handed out a free bottle of water to all attendees.
About 25,000 people attended the ignaugural event throughout the two days, which saw headlining acts such as Beck, The Chemical Brothers, Tool, and Rage Against the Machine. Other acts included Jurassic 5, DJ Shadow, and Underworld. Originally, promoters had hoped to make the event three days (Friday-Sunday) and even considered the UK band Massive Attack to be the third day headliner - but those plans never came to fruition. The event went smoothly, with the biggest complaints being the blistering heat. It is reported, however, that the event failed to generate any profit, which nearly put an end to the festival.
No festival took place in 2000, likely due to the financial troubles of the inaugural festival. In 2001, however, festival organizers decided to give it another try. They decided to move the event to April (to avoid the intense heat of the late summer), and it was only scheduled for one day, most likely due to a tighter budget. However, the 2001 organizers once again ran into some trouble organizing the festival. Just months before the event was to occur, promoters still did not have a big headliner, and the festival was once again at risk of turning a net loss. In a surprise move, promoters turned to friend Perry Farrell, and were able to bring a reunited Jane's Addiction to the main stage as the event's headlining act.
In 2002, the event once again returned to the two-day format, and saw a reunited Siouxsie & the Banshees, as well as headlining acts Björk and Oasis. That year's event also had perhaps the strongest roster of supporting acts to date, with Foo Fighters, Queens of the Stone Age, The Strokes, and Paul Oakenfold being large draws and helping prove to the community of Indio, California that the event was capable of bringing in money and ending without conflict.
Following the 2002 festival, Coachella began to generate large-scale interest, and the 2003 festival featuring Red Hot Chili Peppers and The Beastie Boys (as well as a reunited Iggy Pop and The Stooges) drew the largest crowd yet. Around this time, the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival began to develop worldwide interest.
The 2004 event, featuring a reunion of the Pixies, as well as Radiohead, The Cure, Kraftwerk and a number of other major bands, was the event's first sellout, with 50,000 tickets sold for each Saturday and Sunday. Since then, the festival has continued to generate large draws due to strong lineups from top to bottom, including such bands as Nine Inch Nails, Coldplay, Depeche Mode, Tool, Daft Punk, and Madonna.
Each year, the festival also features interesting installation art and sculptures. Many of the pieces are interactive, and provide entertainment and eye candy for attendees walking throughout the Polo grounds.
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Lineup of musical performers by year
Headline acts are denoted in bold.
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April 29
Animal Collective,
Atmosphere,
Audio Bullys,
Devendra Banhart,
Joey Beltram,
Derrick Carter,
Cat Power,
Celebration,
Chris Liberator,
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah,
Colette,
Matt Costa,
Carl Cox,
Common,
Daft Punk,
Damian Marley,
Deerhoof,
Depeche Mode,
The Duke Spirit,
Eagles of Death Metal,
Franz Ferdinand,
Head Automatica,
Hybrid featuring Perry Farrell,
Imogen Heap,
Infusion,
The Juan Maclean,
Kanye West,
Lady Sovereign,
Ladytron,
The Like,
Living Things,
Lyrics Born,
My Morning Jacket,
The New Amsterdams,
Nine Black Alps,
Platinum Pied Pipers,
Rob Dickinson,
The Section Quartet,
She Wants Revenge,
Shy FX & T Power,
Sigur Rós,
stellastarr*,
Tosca,
TV on the Radio,
The Walkmen,
White Rose Movement,
Wolfmother,
Youth Group,
The Zutons
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April 30
Amadou & Mariam,
Art Brut,
Be Your Own Pet,
Bloc Party,
Coheed and Cambria,
Coldcut,
The Dears,
Digable Planets,
Dungen,
Editors,
Gabriel & Dresden,
Giant Drag,
The Go! Team,
Gnarls Barkley,
Infadels,
James Blunt,
Jamie Lidell,
Jazzanova,
Kaskade,
Los Amigos Invisibles,
Madonna,
The Magic Numbers,
Massive Attack,
Mates of State,
Matisyahu,
Michael Mayer,
Metric,
Minus the Bear,
Mogwai,
MURS featuring 9th Wonder,
Mylo (DJ set),
Paul Oakenfold,
OneRepublic,
The Octopus Project,
Gilles Peterson,
Phoenix,
Scissor Sisters,
Seu Jorge,
Kristina Sky,
Sleater-Kinney,
Tool,
Ted Leo and the Pharmacists,
Louie Vega,
Wolf Parade,
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
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April 30
Ambulance LTD,
Amp Fiddler,
Bauhaus,
Bloc Party,
Boom Bip,
Buck 65,
Café Tacuba,
Hernan Cattaneo,
The Chemical Brothers,
Coldplay,
Jamie Cullum,
DJ Marky,
DJ Peretz (Perry Farrell),
Eisley,
Fantômas,
Four Tet,
Jean Grae,
Gratitude,
Immortal Technique,
Katie Melua,
Keane,
Rilo Kiley,
The Kills,
k-os,
M83,
Mercury Rev,
MF Doom,
Nic Armstrong and the Thieves,
Razorlight,
The Raveonettes,
Sage Francis,
The Secret Machines,
The Sexy Magazines,
Snow Patrol,
Spoon,
Swayzak,
Tiga,
UNKLE,
Weezer,
Wilco,
Josh Wink,
Zap Mama
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May 1
Aesop Rock,
The Arcade Fire,
Armin Van Buuren,
Autolux,
Beans,
Ben Watt,
Black Star,
The Blood Brothers,
The Bravery,
Bright Eyes,
British Sea Power,
Diplo,
DJ Krush,
Donavon Frankenreiter,
The Dresden Dolls,
The Faint,
The Fiery Furnaces,
The Futureheads,
Gang of Four,
Gram Rabbit,
Jem,
Junkie XL,
Kasabian,
The Locust,
M.I.A.,
Matmos,
Matthew Dear,
Midlake,
Miss Kittin,
New Order,
Nine Inch Nails,
The Perceptionists,
Pinback,
The Prodigy,
Radio 4,
Roni Size,
Roots Manuva,
Shout Out Louds,
Sixtoo,
Sloan,
Snow Patrol,
Stereophonics,
Subtle,
Tegan and Sara,
Thrice,
Wolf Eyes,
Zion I
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May 1
...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead,
Beck,
The Black Keys,
Boozoo Bajou,
Da Lata,
Danny Howells,
Death Cab for Cutie,
The Desert Sessions,
dios,
DJ Icon
DJ Peretz (Perry Farrell),
Electric Six,
Erase Errata,
The Evens,
Eyedea & DJ Abilities,
Mark Farina,
Laurent Garnier,
Hieroglyphics,
Howie Day,
The (International) Noise Conspiracy,
Junior Senior,
Kinky,
Kraftwerk,
LCD Soundsystem,
Living Legends,
Mindless Self Indulgence,
Juana Molina,
Moving Units,
Phantom Planet,
Pixies,
Q and Not U,
Radiohead,
The Rapture,
Sahara Hotnights,
Sander Kleinenberg,
Savath & Savalas,
Seb Fontaine,
The Section Quartet,
The Sounds,
Sparta,
stellastarr*,
Stereolab,
The Stills
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May 2
!!!,
2manydjs,
Adam Freeland,
Air,
Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra,
Ash,
Atmosphere,
Basement Jaxx,
Beck,
Belle & Sebastian,
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club,
Bright Eyes,
Broken Social Scene,
The Cooper Temple Clause,
The Crystal Method,
The Cure,
Cursive,
Dizzee Rascal,
DJ Danger Mouse,
Donald Glaude,
Elefant,
Ferry Corsten,
The Flaming Lips,
Home Town Hero,
Le Tigre,
The Killers,
MF Doom,
Mogwai,
Muse,
Paul Van Dyk,
Prefuse 73,
Pretty Girls Make Graves,
Sage Francis,
Saul Williams,
The Section Quartet,
Sidestepper,
The Sleepy Jackson,
Supernatural,
Thelonious Monster,
The Thrills,
Thursday,
T. Raumschmiere,
Whitestarr
Wilco also pulled out of the scheduled appearance due to personal problems.
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April 22
Amon Tobin,
Badly Drawn Boy,
The Beastie Boys,
Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals,
Ben Kweller,
Blue Man Group,
Blur,
Christopher Lawrence,
Darren Emerson,
D:Fuse,
Dillinja and Lemon D,
Division of Laura Lee,
The Donnas,
Felix Da Housecat,
Gomez,
Groove Armada,
Hernan Cattaneo,
Hot Hot Heat,
Idlewild,
Jaylib,
Joseph Arthur,
Kinky,
Ladytron,
The Libertines,
Little Louie Vega and Kenny 'Dope' Gonzales,
The Mooney Suzuki,
The Music,
N.E.R.D,
Nightmares on Wax,
Particle,
Peanut Butter Wolf,
Queens of the Stone Age,
The Rapture,
Roger Sanchez,
South,
Spymob,
Stereo Total,
Talib Kweli
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April 23
22-20s,
Aesop Rock,
Ben Folds,
Black Eyed Peas,
Blue Man Group,
Café Tacuba,
DB,
Deep Dish,
Dirty Vegas,
DJ Irene,
Eisley,
El-P,
Fischerspooner,
G. Love & Special Sauce,
Iggy Pop and the Stooges,
Interpol,
Jack Johnson,
Johnny Marr and the Healers,
The Kinison,
MARS,
The Mars Volta,
Mouse on Mars,
Mr. Lif,
MURS,
Perry Farrell - DJ Set,
The Polyphonic Spree,
Primal Scream,
Red Hot Chili Peppers,
Richie Hawtin,
RJD2,
Rooney,
Sonic Youth,
The Soundtrack of Our Lives,
Thievery Corporation,
Timo Maas,
Tortoise,
Underworld,
Whirlwind Heat,
The White Stripes
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April 27
The Beta Band,
Björk,
Lee Burridge,
Cake,
Charlatans UK,
The Chemical Brothers,
Citizen Cope,
Cornershop,
DJ Z-Trip
Folk Implosion,
Forest for the Trees,
G. Love & Special Sauce,
Groove Armada,
Jack Johnson,
Jimmy Van M.,
Jurassic 5,
Kosheen,
KRS-One,
The (International) Noise Conspiracy,
The Pharcyde,
Princess Superstar,
Queens of the Stone Age,
Sasha & John Digweed,
Saul Williams,
Siouxsie & the Banshees,
The Vines,
Pete Yorn
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April 28
Belle & Sebastian,
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club,
Blonde Redhead,
BT,
Christopher Lawrence,
Dilated Peoples,
DJ Dan,
DJ Peretz (Perry Farrell),
DJ Tiesto,
Elbow,
Fairview,
Foo Fighters,
Galactic,
The Mars Volta,
Medusa and Cut Chemist,
Mos Def,
Oasis,
Ozomatli,
Pete Tong,
Ping Pong Bitches,
The Prodigy,
Rock Steady Crew,
Sandra Collins,
Saves the Day,
Sound Tribe Sector 9,
The Strokes,
Triple Threat,
Zero 7
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April 28
Aceyalone,
Adam Freeland,
AK1200,
Andrea Parker,
Bad Company,
Jason Bentley,
Jason Blakemore,
Blonde Redhead,
The Chemical Brothers,
Nikka Costa,
The Dandy Warhols,
Del Tha Funky Homosapien,
Detroit Grand Pubahs,
Dieselboy,
DJ Rinse & Flux,
DJ Z-Trip,
Doc Martin,
Fatboy Slim,
Gangstarr,
Ian Pooley,
Iggy Pop,
Jane's Addiction,
DJ Dara,
Kruder & Dorfmeister,
Christopher Lawrence,
Medusa,
Mos Def,
The New Deal,
The Nortec Collective,
The Orb,
Ozomatli,
Paul Oakenfold,
Pedro the Lion,
Photek,
Plaid,
Raymond Roker,
The Roots,
Saint Germain,
Sigur Rós,
Roni Size and Reprazent,
Smith & Mighty,
Souls of Mischief,
Squarepusher,
Supernatural,
Tricky,
Überzone,
Weezer
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October 9
A Perfect Circle,
Amon Tobin,
Art of Noise,
At The Drive-In,
Bassbin Twins,
Beck,
The Bicycle Thief,
Bis,
Breakbeat Era,
The Chemical Brothers,
Christopher Lawrence,
Cornelius,
Derrick May,
DJ Food,
DJ Rap,
Die,
Dynamite MC,
IQU,
Juan Atkins,
Jurassic 5,
Kevin Saunderson,
Kid Koala,
Los Amigos Invisibles,
Medeski Martin & Wood,
Ming + FS,
Modest Mouse,
Morrissey,
Mr. Scruff,
µ-Ziq,
Nightmares On Wax,
Perry Farrell,
Plastikman,
Richie Hawtin,
Roni Size,
Sandra Collins,
Simply Jeff,
Spiritualized,
Super Furry Animals,
Tomas,
Underworld,
The Wiseguys
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October 10
4 Hero,
A-Trak,
Andy Maddocks,
The Angel aka 60 Channels,
Autechre,
Banco de Gaia,
Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals,
BT,
Carl Craig Innerzone Orchestra,
Cibo Matto,
DJ Cam,
DJ Shadow,
Esthero,
Fantastic Plastic Machine,
Gil Scott-Heron,
GusGus,
Jun,
Kool Keith,
Lamb,
LTJ Bukem and Blame,
Luke Vibert,
MC Conrad,
MC Question Mark,
Mira Calix,
Mixmaster Mike,
Moby,
Money Mark,
Neotropic,
Pavement,
Push Button Objects,
Rage Against the Machine,
Q-Bert,
Rahzel,
Raymond Roker,
Rob Hall,
Scratch Perverts UK,
Slipmaster J,
Spearhead,
Thievery Corporation,
Tool,
Ugly Duckling
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Artists Reunited at Coachella
In 2001, the festival organizers were having trouble attracting a major headlining band. Running out of time, they went to friend Perry Farrell, who reunited Jane's Addiction in order to headline that year's event. Since then, it has become somewhat of a Coachella tradition to reunite at least one band for each festival. Although the line between a hiatus and an actual breakup is somewhat blurry, a number of artists are considered to have been reunited at Coachella, or have played Coachella as one of their first major shows after a reunion. The following is a list of performers who reunited or made a big return at a Coachella festival.
Daft Punk - This was Daft Punk's first U.S. performance since 1997.
Tool - although not a reunion, Coachella was the band's first show in four years
Nine Inch Nails - not a reunion, but the band's first major show in five years
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Performers Who Have Played More Than Twice
In order to keep each festival unique and fresh, the organizers of Coachella tend to book performers who have not appeared at the festival previously. To date, there have been only eight individuals or artists who have played at Coachella more than twice.
Mos Def - 2001, 2002, 2005 (as part of Black Star)
DJ Peretz - 2002, 2004, 2005 (three of Perry Farrell's six appearances)
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Trivia
In 2006, a Coachella film was released in theatres (and later on a double disc dvd). It featured performances and interviews through the festivals first 6 events.
Morrissey told journalists that The Smiths were offered a sum of $5 million to reunite and play at the 2006 event.
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