Coachella 2012: Saturday

We decided to take it a bit slower for the second day of Coachella 2012, not hitting the polo fields until around 4 p.m. – which proved to be perfect, as we had a long night ahead of us. There was soooo much to see on Saturday that we finally had to deal with some conflicts… Miike Snow versus Bon Iver being the main one. We picked Miike Snow as we assumed the concert was going to be more lively. So. Much. Fun. For the record: I heard Bon was amazing. And I’m pretty sure Radiohead changed my life. Check out who we saw yesterday behind the cut:

AWOLNATION
Having recently caught an AWOLNATION show in Seattle I was absolutely stoked to check out this California electro-rock act for the second time. They’re lively and loud and lead singer Aaron Bruno’s primal scream is something to die for. I was a bit bummed they skipped my all time favorite, “Jump On My Shoulders,” (which I sang and danced to all morning in preparation), but the epic versions of hit single “Sail,” (featuring a surprise guest spot from Macy Gray!) and “Burn It Down” were enough to keep me grooving. Shout outs to the crazy girls who crowd surfed from one side of the main stage to the other. And good luck to that girl that got straight up dropped by her friends. Ouch.

Kaiser Chiefs
Although I haven’t listened to Kaiser Chiefs much since Yours Truly, Angry Mob, is was a pleasure to check out part of their set from the comfort of the main beer garden. While they started with a slew of new tracks – apologizing to the fans who didn’t yet know the lyrics – they also pulled part of their set list from earlier cuts. Did you see the ginger dancing toward the Mojave stage singing “Ruby” at the top of her lungs? Yep, that was me.

Manchester Orchestra
This Atlanta, Ga – based rock band has been on my radar for nearly a year now but their Coachella set was the first time I’ve had the opportunity to check them out. It was, more or less, a pretty mellow show, but super fans were clutch – bobbing and swaying at just the right moments. Highlights for me included their debut album’s title track, “Simple Math.” And while I was a bit disappointed they skipped “Pensacola,” they definitely had me wanting to come back for more.

The Shins
If you know me at all you will know this: I love the Shins. I’ve loved them since high school, I’ve seen them in concert AT LEAST twice and I pretty much think James Mercer can do no wrong. Having said this, I wasn’t planning on checking out their set – I mean, Coachella is all about discovering new music, right? Wrong. In a complicated turn of events, Saturday afternoon had me dancing my way through a crowd of excitable drunk people to catch the opening lines of “New Slang.” Thank God. Fact: “Imma let you speak, but the soundtrack to Garden State is the BEST SOUNDTRACK EVER MADE.” And a lot of that has to do with the contributions made by Mr. Mercer. Thank you Coachella, for reminding me of this.

Miike Snow
I’ve been kind of obsessed with Swedish indie-pop trio, Miike Snow since my buddy introduced me to them two years ago – and while their recently released sophomore album, Happy To You, has taken a bit of warming up to, I’m falling for it almost as hard as 2009′s Miike Snow. The music was fun, the crowd was hyped and the trio delivered the good like champs. Shout outs to: Andrew Wyatt’s trippy vocals and sweet dance moves and the surprise appearance by indie darling Lykke Li (who took the stage for a stirring rendition of “Black Tin Box.”) And, of course, “Animal.” You can’t go wrong with that one.

Radiohead
I don’t think I can put in to words how excited I was to check out Thom Yorke and Co. at Saturday’s closing performance, and in true Radiohead fashion, they delivered all the magic and more. In addition to playing a bunch of new stuff (think In Rainbows and The King Of Limbs) they also dug into their extensive discography. I actually thought my heart was going to jump out of my chest when they dove into “Karma Police,” (off 1997′s OK, Computer) – and I’m pretty sure the sentiment was shared. Hearing thousands of fans singing your song back to you must be the coolest feeling ever.

In addition to playing a nearly two hour set, the Brits returned to the stage for not one, but TWO encore sets. Well played, Thom. As for my trifecta of “Epic Rock Bands of the British Persuasion,” (think: Muse, Coldplay, Radiohead)? Mission accomplished. You can find the entire set list below:

Set list:
1) Bloom
2) 15 Step
3) Weird Fishes/Arpeggi
4) Morning Mr. Magpie
5) Staircase
6) The Gloaming
7) Pyramid Song
8) The Daily Mail
9) Myxomatosis
10) Karma Police
11) Identikit
12) Lotus Flower
13) There There
14) Bodysnatchers
15 Idioteque

First Encore:
16) Lucky
17) Reckoner
18) After The Gold Rush (Neil Young cover snippet) into Everything in Its Right Place

Second Encore:
19) Give Up the Ghost
20) Paranoid Android

**It’s also worth noting that I caught some awesome bits and pieces of a bunch of other acts yesterday! Of note? Feist and Laura Marling. Those ladies rock!**

About these ads