Coachella 2012 Diary April 21, 2012

Since the writing delay has been entirely too long we will jump right into thoughts about Coachella Day 2.

Destroyer: With temperatures reaching 106 degrees, Destroyer breezed through a set of songs mostly from their excellent 2011 album, Kaputt. The lounge-y saxophones and soft rock harmonies were a perfect accompaniment to the oppressive heat, but it seemed strange that Dan Bejar, one of the elder statesmen of literate indie rock, was relegated to a side stage in one of the day's first time slots.




Azealia Banks: Azealia Banks, a highly blog-hyped cross between Lil Kim and M.I.A., was a huge letdown. Only playing slightly over half of her allotted 40 minute stage time, she didn't seem ready or polished enough for a big league Coachella performance. She did bring the energy and got the crowd going with her performance of "212" but as recent post-Coachella single "Jumanji"proves, Banks has a lot more to offer.

Coachella 2012 Diary April 20, 2012

With the post-Coachella fun hangover finally starting to subside, its time to write some thoughts about the festival. Some of these ideas might be expanded into their own posts later but for now heres a short running dairy:

Kendrick Lamar: Though it would have been nice to see Mea open the festival or Abe Vigoda early in the day, but getting prepared for the long haul and a slight wristband malfunction prevented this from happening. Despite slow start, Kendrick Lamar proved to be an ideal Coachella kick-off. Obviously unintimidated by the main stage, Kendrick ripped through his set with amazing technical skill and stage presence. In this interview Kendrick talks about the energy of weekend two being much better (probably due to weather) and playing a few more songs. After coming out for one of the only impromptu encores I saw the entire weekend, Kendrick blew the top off with "Cartoon and Cereal." Overall, one of the best hip-hop shows from one of the most talented and promising rappers in the game.




Gary Clark Jr: Not knowing much about Gary Clark Jr, he was a plesant virtuosic surprise. On record he comes across as a solid blues-rock frontman, but in concert he shines, shredding his guitar relentlessly for minutes at a time before bringing it back with his roughly beautiful blues voice. Definitely a can't-miss live performer.