King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard

DIIV give us hope at The Wiltern that there’s a future for indie rock

July 5, 2024 by Josh Herwitt 2 Comments

DIIV with Lightning Bolt, untitled (halo) //
The Wiltern – Los Angeles
June 29th, 2024 //

For nearly 15 years it’s no secret the music industry has moved farther away from the guitar-driven rock that prevailed through much of the 90’s and early 2000’s. Some have even gone as far to now say “rock is dead,” and while we can point out some of our own experiences from recent memory — including one here — to counter that claim, there have only been a handful of new bands since 2010 that accurately fit the description and have hooked me enough to catch them live.

Australian sextet King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard are one of those acts, and their three-hour marathon at the iconic Hollywood Bowl last summer (read our show review here) was one of our favorite shows in 2023 (see our picks here).

English bass-and-drums duo Royal Blood are another, and their bone-rattling concert at The Wiltern in November (read our show review here) was also a highlight for us last year.

Of course we can’t forget about Houston psych-funk-rock trio Khruangbin, which have continued their ascent with sold-out gigs at some of America’s biggest music venues and events. In fact, we still think about their 2022 appearance on Day 2 of Primavera Sound LA (read our festival review here).

And then there’s “American indie-groove band” Goose, who gave us a chance to finally watch them in the flesh several months ago when they made their Santa Barbara Bowl debut and a compelling case why they have been one of the hottest (jam) bands lately (read our show review here).

Obviously there are supergroups and/or side projects like The Smile, boygenius and The New Basement Tapes as well, while others might argue that bands such as Greta Van Fleet, Hockey Dad, Turnstile, Wet Leg and Viagra Boys have carried the torch forward for the genre (note: IDLES were not mentioned here because they formed back in 2009 along with Alabama Shakes, Atoms for Peace, Broken Bells, Dawes, The Dead Weather, How to Destroy Angels, Rival Sons, Them Crooked Vultures and Wild Nothing).

But standing among some of the best to arrive on the scene in roughly the last decade and a half are DIIV, which began as a solo endeavor for Zachary Cole Smith (lead vocals, guitar) after previous stints as a guitarist in the psych-rock outfit Soft Black and drummer/guitarist for indie rockers Beach Fossils while he was living in Brooklyn.

Smith has relocated to LA since DIIV’s formation, but the group’s sound has remained fairly consistent — dreamy, hazy vocals float on top of gritty, fuzzed-out guitars as they collide with punchy rhythms that immediately evoke comparisons to Modest Mouse, Silversun Pickups, Slowdive and even Explosions in the Sky when we listen. That’s not to say DIIV’s shoegaze-laden soundscapes don’t have their own feel and vibe, though. They very much have their own identity, as Smith’s catchy riffs often pull you in at the start and build up to moments of pure sonic bliss like on “Taker” or “Acheron” that stands as the longest track in the DIIV catalog at more than seven minutes.

Four albums in following the May release of Frog in Boiling Water on Fantasy Records, and the quartet that was a five-piece in the early 2010’s and currently includes Smith’s childhood friend Andrew Bailey (guitar), Colin Caulfield (bass, keyboards, guitar, vocals) and Ben Newman (drums) are no doubt a well-established unit at this point. The 10-track LP anchored by lead single “Brown Paper Bag” has already garnered critical acclaim from quite a few media outlets and fits in nicely with the rest of DIIV’s material, showcasing Smith’s continued growth and evolution as a singer-songwriter. And although we can’t say his overall range behind the microphone has transformed dramatically dating back to 2012’s full-length debut Oshin, Smith does come across more forceful in his delivery on DIIV’s latest studio effort.

Wrapping up the first leg of a 33-date North American tour last Saturday at The Wiltern with Rhode Island noise-rock duo Lightning Bolt and LA’s untitled (halo) providing support, Smith and company delivered plenty of highs from “Doused” to “Blankenship” and yet left us yearning to hear others like “Dopamine” off 2016’s Is the Is Are and “Skin Game” from 2019’s Deceiver. The fact that neither of those are being played was somewhat surprising — even if they aren’t among their Top 5 songs on Spotify — and yet encouraging considering how well we thought their 90-minute performance in LA flowed from one song to the next. DIIV haven’t been mixing up their setlists each night they take the stage, instead sticking to a very similar script so far for their 2024 dates across Europe and the U.S. While that’s something we eventually hope to see from them after another album cycle, the next six months will mark an important stretch for DIIV with their tour schedule extending all the way through December and taking them back to the UK where a couple of sold-out gigs with Irish post-punk band Fontaines D.C. — another one of the rare major post-2010 rock acts to emerge — in London await.

The impending doom and gloom that Smith’s lyrics have been known to address since DIIV’s inception in 2011 don’t exactly anoint them as champions of hope and optimism at a time of great uncertainty and political tension here at home. Frog confronts the “overwhelmingly banal collapse of society under end-stage capitalism,” and with another U.S. presidential election looming that stars a former president and convicted felon, there’s a real cause for concern with the stakes higher than ever. The video interludes — one to advertise DIIV merch, another to introduce their sophomore single on Frog entitled “”Soul-net” and finally a satirical promo for ExxonMobil at the beginning of the encore — sprinkled in throughout the show reminded us of that dark reality, but as Bailey told Zane Lowe during a recent interview for Apple Music: “The message isn’t ‘the world is screwed and there’s nothing we can do.’ It’s more pointing out the fact that the world is screwed and heading toward demise … how do we accept that reality and still turn it into something positive?”

Smith, for one, has faced his own demons and past struggles with substance abuse that we don’t need to get into but has courageously come out on the other side all while continuing to push the boundaries sonically with every DIIV release. Frog, after all, was the first time the band worked democratically with writing credits going to all four members, challenging them individually and testing the strength of their collective bond in ultimately representing “a mesmeric testament to enduring.” For us fans, it’s just one sign of another great band in the making.

Setlist:
In Amber
Like Before You Were Born
Brown Paper Bag
Under the Sun
(Druun Pt. II)
Doused
Reflected
Somber the Drums
Take Your Time
Taker
Raining on Your Pillow
Soul-net
Frog in Boiling Water
Between Tides
Blankenship
Acheron

Encore:
Everyone Out
Horsehead

Filed Under: Editor's Picks, Featured, Live Music Reviews Tagged With: Alabama Shakes, Beach Fossils, Broken Bells, Dawes, DIIV, Fontaines D.C., Greta Van Fleet, Hockey Dad, Hollywood Bowl, How to Destroy Angels, IDLES, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, Lightning Bolt, Rival Sons, Royal Blood, Santa Barbara Bowl, Soft Black, The Dead Weather, The New Basement Tapes, The Smile, The Wiltern, Them Crooked Vultures, Turnstile, untitled (halo), Viagra Boys, Wet Leg, Wild Nothing

The Bam Team’s 5 Favorite Shows, Albums & Songs of 2023

December 30, 2023 by The Bam Team 3 Comments

It’s hard to believe that 2023 marked the first time since Earth was rocked by a global pandemic three years ago that COVID-19 was no longer a public health emergency. After everything we have endured since 2020, we could finally breathe (no pun intended) a sigh of relief. And over the last 12 months, the live music industry continued its recovery, with fans packing stadiums, arenas, amphitheaters, theaters, bars and clubs all around the world to experience one of life’s great pleasures.

Seeing people come together to celebrate music — no matter where it is — is always a beautiful thing to witness, and we feel fortunate to have been there for some stellar moments in live music this year while also sharing many in this space. There was a three-hour marathon by King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, the long-awaited return of Mr. Bungle and Les Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog Brigade to the road (and stage), Goose winning over new fans and Run the Jewels commemorating their 10th anniversary with a star-studded residency tour to name only a few of them.

But with coronavirus in the rearview mirror and 2024 arriving soon, it’s time for us to uncork our annual “Best of” lists as we have done since this blog first started (see our 2022 picks here). As we always say, we will be the first to admit we didn’t attend every show or hear all of the albums released in 2023, but recapping the year that was can be still a fun and yet challenging exercise, too.

So, without further ado, Showbams presents The Bam Team’s five favorite shows, albums and songs from 2023.

Listen to The Bam Team’s favorite songs of 2023:

My Morning Jacket - Red Rocks Amphitheatre

My Morning Jacket with M. Ward at Red Rocks Amphitheatre // Photo by Josh Herwitt

Josh Herwitt // Los Angeles

Top 5 Shows of 2023
1. My Morning Jacket at Red Rocks Amphitheatre – Morrison, CO – August 25th-26th
Picking the same band at the same music venue around the same time on the calendar for the second straight year might not seem all that interesting to those who happen to be reading this. But having the opportunity to photograph one of my favorite bands at one of the world’s best places to catch a concert was too special not to highlight here. From Jim James showing up early to play with M. Ward during his opening sets to the latter sitting in with the Louisville-bred outfit both nights, MMJ shows at Red Rocks just hit a little bit different and 2023 was no exception. Friday’s performance marked the first of several dates to honor the 20th anniversary of It Still Moves, while Saturday’s was particularly memorable this year with a cover of Traffic’s “Feelin’ Alright?” featuring a guest appearance by Nathaniel Rateliff and a four-part “Cobra” sandwich during the encore that reminded us how magical taking in a concert can be at “the birth canal of the universe” as James calls it.

2. Queens of the Stone Age at The Forum – Inglewood, CA – December 16th
3. King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard at Hollywood Bowl – Los Angeles, CA – June 21st
4. Jack White at The Belasco – Los Angeles, CA – January 13th
5. Les Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog Brigade at The Wiltern – Los Angeles, CA – July 14th

Top 5 Albums of 2023
1. Queens of the Stone Age – In Times New Roman…
The last few years have been filled with a tidal wave of emotional pain for Josh Homme. From his public divorce and custody battle to the deaths of friends and colleagues, it’s not surprising that the lead single on Queens of the Stone Age’s eighth studio album was entitled “Emotion Sickness”. But the fact that the 10-track LP didn’t make the cut for any year-end consideration by most of the major music media outlets is almost unconscionable to me. Regardless of what they think, In Times New Roman… to us is another masterpiece with Homme showcasing more vulnerability than we have ever seen from him before. Plus, after 25 years we can’t imagine finding a better cast of sidekicks in modern rock than what Queens have with Troy Van Leeuwen (guitar, keyboards, backing vocals), Michael Shuman (bass, keyboards, backing vocals), Dean Fertita (keyboards, guitar, backing vocals) and Jon Theodore (drums, percussion). There are only a few great rock bands out there that are still innovating and pushing boundaries, and In Times New Roman… proved QOTSA are once again unquestionably one of them.

2. Gorillaz – Cracker Island
3. Royal Blood – Back to the Water Below
4. Say She She – Silver
5. Slowdive – everything is alive

Top 5 Songs of 2023
1. Queens of the Stone Age – “Paper Machete”
As much as I liked the first two singles that were released off In Times New Roman…, it was the third hit that became an instant earworm for me this past summer. “Paper Machete” is the album’s shortest track at slightly more than three minutes, but it has that old-school QOTSA sound from Homme’s early days in the stoner-rock group Kyuss and a killer guitar solo by Van Leeuwen we would be remiss not to mention. And though some might consider it to be a diss track if there ever was one in rock ‘n’ roll, we will say that the lyrics beautifully paint a picture of “pain and misery” — as Homme sings toward the song’s finish line — in a metaphorical sense. Who said you need a lot of time to make a statement? Not Homme (or us).

2. Gorillaz – “Cracker Island” feat. Thundercat
3. Royal Blood – “Tell Me When It’s Too Late”
4. The Chemical Brothers – “No Reason”
5. Explosions in the Sky – “Moving On”

Andrew Pohl // San Francisco

Top 5 Shows of 2023
1. Botch at The Regency Ballroom – San Francisco, CA – December 12th
Holy hell, this show left me with zero face…. like, my face was not present afterwards. Both opener Kowloon Walled City and Botch dished out massive sets of music that thankfully sounded crisp, even given the Regency’s typical boomy nature. This was Botch’s last show of their reunion tour, and they showed zero signs of wear, delivering an incredible performance. Fun point of the night was Botch bassist Brian Cook calling out members of the crowd who claim to have attended their shows at Gilman Street and The Stork Club back in the day, saying “you’re lying because NO ONE was there.” Can you imagine that?

2. Sunny Day Real Estate at The Regency Ballroom – San Francisco, CA – April 8th
3. Hammered Hulls at The Ivy Room – Albany, CA – May 5th
4. The Postal Service & Death Cab for Cutie at The Greek Theatre – Berkeley, CA – October 10th
5. High Vis at Neck of the Woods – San Francisco, CA – July 30th

Top 5 Albums of 2023
1. Samiam – Stowaway
I knew that Samiam were going to be releasing new music this year, and I was already really hyped to hear it. Stowaway sees the band picking up right where they left off, with catchy, singalong choruses and a masterclass in post-hardcore musicality. It’s a tremendous effort from a band that already has proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that it knows how to create incredible LPs.

2. Paint It Black – Famine
3. Flying Raccoon Suit – Moonflower
4. Snooper – Super Snõõper
5. Black Pumas – Chronicles of a Diamond

Top 5 Songs of 2023
1. Militarie Gun – “Very High”
2023 was a huge year for Militarie Gun. Their new album is a monster and made my Top 10, but this track may have been the one that stuck with me the most over the last 12 months. It’s got a killer hook and has that always welcome “all killer, no filler” quality to it. The chorus captures a bit of a Stone Roses essence without sounding like they are aping that sound at all. Overall, my feel good hit of the summer — and entire year.

2. Samiam – “Crystalized”
3. Fat Heaven – “Quarter Life Crisis”
4. The Blackburns – “Chill City Population You”
5. Cory Hanson – “Wings”

Tierra Whack at The Broad // Photo by Joseph Gray

Rochelle Shipman // Los Angeles

Top 5 Shows of 2023
1. Ron Gallo at Gold-Diggers – Los Angeles, CA – September 21st
I caught about 60 seconds of Gallo’s set at South by Southwest in a rush to a different stage, and those few seconds played on a loop in my mind for weeks. Six months later, I finally got a chance to see the Philadelphia garage-rock star up close, and he blew what little was left of my mind with some relatable hard truths and a blazing performance. It was somehow both perfectly measured and chaotic; he even shredded using a barstool as his guitar pick at one point.

2. Little Simz at The Novo – Los Angeles, CA – October 3rd
3. Kari Faux at The Echo – Los Angeles, CA – November 7th
4. Tierra Whack at The Broad – Los Angeles, CA – August 26th
5. The Cure at North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre – Chula Vista, CA – May 20th

Top 5 Albums of 2023
1. Little Simz – NO THANK YOU
Technically a mid-December surprise release in 2022, this album got cheated out of inclusion on any year-end list so I’m making it right. It’s an absolute fireball follow-up to 2022’s Sometimes I Might Be Introvert, and if it wasn’t crystal clear before, Little Simz is here to stay. Fingers crossed that she will have mercy on us and keep rolling out some of the other bangers in the vault she has been hoarding.

2. Ron Gallo – FOREGROUND MUSIC
3. Islands – And That’s Why Dolphins Lost Their Legs
4. Avey Tare – 7s
5. Noname – Sundial

Top 5 Songs of 2023
1. Tele Novella – “Hard-Hearted Way”
There’s something about the magic in Natalie Ribbons’ voice that makes you feel like the main character in the newest Wes Anderson movie. It’s whimsical and romantic, bringing a sweetness to a song that’s named after being anything but. Not a single track is worth a skip on the Texas duo’s newest LP Poet’s Tooth, but this one remains a strong and emotional standout.

2. Little Simz – “Gorilla”
3. Ron Gallo – “AT LEAST I’M DANCING”
4. Lando Chill – “Believe Me Lonely”
5. slowthai – “Never Again”

Filed Under: Best of, Best of 2023, Editor's Picks, Featured Tagged With: Avey Tare, Black Pumas, Botch, Death Cab For Cutie, Flying Raccoon Suit, Gold-Diggers, Greek Theatre Berkeley, Hammered Hulls, High Vis, Hollywood Bowl, Islands, Jack White, Kari Faux, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, Kyuss, Lando Chill, Les Claypool, Les Claypool's Fearless Flying Frog Brigade, Little Simz, My Morning Jacket, Neck of the Woods, Noname, North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre, Paint It Black, Queens of the Stone Age, Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Ron Gallo, Royal Blood, Run The Jewels, Samiam, Say She She, Slowdive, slowthai, Snooper, South by Southwest, Sunny Day Real Estate, Tele Novella, The Belasco, The Broad, The Broad Museum, The Cure, The Echo, The Forum, The Ivy Room, The Novo, The Postal Service, The Regency Ballroom, The Stone Roses, The Wiltern, Tierra Whack

King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard close out their U.S. residency tour with an epic, three-hour marathon at LA’s iconic Hollywood Bowl

June 26, 2023 by Josh Herwitt 2 Comments

By Josh Herwitt //

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard //
Hollywood Bowl – Los Angeles
June 21st, 2023 //

Call me dramatic, but I think it’s fair to say that King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard are music journalism’s worst nightmare.

As those devoted to The Gizz know well by now, pinning them down to one genre, one sound or one anything is damn near impossible. Psych rock, psych pop, prog rock, krautrock, boogie rock, heavy metal, hip-hop, synth-pop, jazz fusion, blues and everything else in between has been on the table for the Australian sextet since it formed more than a decade ago, and that’s exactly what makes them so intriguing to see in the flesh at a time when not many bands are commanding the same kind of listens, album sales or attendance numbers that many did three decades earlier.

Nevertheless, if there’s a cliché that can be attributed to these mates out of Melbourne, it’s that they are truly in a league of their own with no other outfit even remotely resembling what KGLW do. But arguably what is just as impressive as their affinity for experimenting with multiple genres is the fact that their fan base continues to grow at what feels like an exponential rate.

Their epic, three-hour marathon last Wednesday at the Hollywood Bowl to close out their U.S. residency tour marked my third time catching them live, and with each show, the band has noticeably graduated to bigger venues beginning with the Hollywood Palladium in 2018, the Greek Theatre in 2019 and now the world-famous, 17,500-person amphitheatre tucked into the Hollywood Hills off the Highland Blvd. exit on the 101 Freeway (note: they also headlined Desert Daze in 2022 with Tame Impala and Beach House).

Since their last proper LA performance (read our show review here), Stu Mackenzie (vocals, guitars, keyboards, flute, bass guitar, percussion, sitar, piano, organ, violin, clarinet, saxophone, zurna, drums), Ambrose Kenny-Smith (vocals, harmonicas, keyboards, percussion, piano, saxophone, guitar, organ), Joey Walker (guitars, vocals, bass, keyboards, piano, setar, percussion), Cook Craig (guitars, bass, piano, keyboards, percussion, vocals), Lucas Harwood (bass, piano, keyboards, percussion, vocals) and Michael Cavanagh (drums, percussion, vocals) have unloaded nine more albums in less than four years to reach a staggering total of 24 in their catalog. Of course some will remember the five LPs they dropped in 2017 along with 2022, and while it would be a surprise for them to top that output this year with merely one out so far and six months to go, you never really know what tricks KGLW have up their sleeves coming off a 15-date run across the states this month that featured four gigs at The Caverns in Tennessee and three at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado (including two on a weekday no less), The Salt Shed in Chicago and Remlinger Farms in Washington before taking a giant step forward under the Bowl’s iconic bandshell on the first day of summer for their final U.S. stop.

Given those circumstances and the fact that most of the seats throughout the venue were filled all the way to the top, this one felt like there was something a little extra special to it. The setlist matched the moment at least, with Mackenzie and company opening with the first three tracks on 2013’s Eyes Like the Sky — marking the first time they had been performed since 2018 — as well as “Evil Man” off the 10-song LP, which has only been played five times with the last coming more than seven years ago at the NME Awards.

But the release of PetroDragonic Apocalypse the week prior had provided KGLW fans all of five days to reacquaint themselves with the group’s brand of thrash metal it had debuted via 2019’s Infest the Rats’ Nest, and although we didn’t hear a lot of new material from these Aussies, they made sure to sprinkle in some that included “Gila Monster” (with a “Gaia” reprise to up the ante), followed by “Supercell” and “Witchcraft” toward the show’s midway point.

By then, I was being offered bourbon and methamphetamines by a middle-aged man in a Grateful Dead T-shirt who supposedly had traveled all the way from Tucson, Ariz., and had happened to find a home in the same Terrace Box — his seat was somewhere else from what he told me — that I agreed to occupy after finding another photographer sitting in my assigned seat. Not that I was interested in fighting over seat assignments or accepting any contraband from strangers, but the unexpected exchange certainly added to the overall weirdness and peculiarity of the evening.

Fortunately, there were still plenty of twists and turns for KGLW to unveil down the homestretch. From a snippet of the Beastie Boys’ “Intergalactic” at the end of “The Grim Reaper” to the thunderous drum solo following “Astroturf” that Cavanagh entranced us with, the night was not short on highlights thanks to the jams we were subsequently gifted around “Shanghai” and “Ambergris”, too.

What left the biggest impression on this particular bystander though had to be the face-melting trifecta of “Hypertension”, “Magma” and “The Dripping Tap” that would ensue over the final 45 minutes and draw a standing ovation by the time KGLW waved goodbye shortly after 10:30 p.m. And as I turned around with the packed crowd’s applause echoing throughout the venue, a sincere sense of gratitude quietly washed over me. I might not be able to name every album or song that these prolific, eccentric weirdos have put out like some diehards can, but if there was one show in 2023 I’m glad I didn’t skip, it very well could be this one.

Setlist:
Eyes Like the Sky (first time since 2018)
Year of Our Lord (first time since 2018)
The Raid (first time since 2018)
Evil Man (first time since 2016)
Rattlesnake
Pleura
Gaia (>)
Gila Monster (with “Gaia” reprise)
Supercell
Witchcraft
Organ Farmer
Crumbling Castle (>)
The Fourth Colour
The Grim Reaper (with “Intergalactic” by Beastie Boys at the end)
Magenta Mountain
Down the Sink
Astroturf (with drum solo after)
Shanghai (“I wanna grow wings and fly” jam)
The Garden Goblin
Ambergris (preceded by “sex” jam)
Iron Lung (>)
Hypertension
Magma
The Dripping Tap (with “Cellophane” tease)

*Editors’ Note: You can watch the full performance here.

Filed Under: Editor's Picks, Featured, Live Music Reviews Tagged With: Beach House, Beastie Boys, Hollywood Bowl, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, NME Awards, Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Remlinger Farms, Tame Impala, The Grateful Dead, The Salt Shed

Desert Daze enlists Tame Impala, Iggy Pop and King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard as 2022 headliners to celebrate 10th anniversary

June 13, 2022 by Josh Herwitt 2 Comments

Desert Daze //
Moreno Beach – Lake Perris, CA‎
September 30th-October 2nd, 2022 //

Itching to hit up a music festival this year?

Now that the live music industry has returned to its pre-pandemic ways, there have recently been a slew of festival lineup announcements in California and the latest just happens to be Desert Daze.

After all, on the same day that Ohana Encore announced a return to Doheny State Beach in Dana Point, the always-psychedelic Desert Daze has also revealed plans to celebrate its 10th anniversary at another beach in Southern California not anywhere near the ocean.

10 years of Desert Daze. 10 years of Lonerism. One you. Passes on sale 6/16 at 10am PT. Payment plans available at checkout. https://t.co/utQQk4SkH4 pic.twitter.com/JKGb5m4oUG

— Desert Daze (@desertdaze) June 13, 2022

The three-day boutique music festival, which has found a home at Moreno Beach inside the 1,800-acre Lake Perris State Recreation Area since 2018, has put together a roster that falls right in line with past lineups as Tame Impala get set to perform their 2012 semifinal LP Lonerism in its entirety. Joining them as headliners will be Iggy Pop and King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, both of which are Daze alumni.

Desert Daze’s undercard in 2022, meanwhile, will be rounded out by Chicano Batman, The Marías, Sky Ferreira, BADBADNOTGOOD, JPEGMAFIA, Mild High Club, Men I Trust, Cortex, Fuzz, Pond, Perfume Genius, Aldous Harding, Sleaford Mods, DakhaBrakha, Boy Pablo, Cymande and more. See the poster above for the rest of the scheduled acts.

Three-day GA and VIP passes to Desert Daze are available to purchase here starting at $299 and $649, respectively, during the fest’s presale before the general public on-sale begins this Thursday, June 16th at 10 a.m. PT. Don’t sleep on picking up tickets for what’s sure to be an exciting weekend in the desert!

UPDATE (August 2nd): Desert Daze has unleashed daily lineups for its 10th anniversary with King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard rocking Friday, Tame Impala performing Lonerism on Saturday and the legendary Iggy Pop closing things down Sunday to mark his only North American performance of the year. Single-day tickets are also available now, so grab those here for $139-179 (GA), $299-399 (VIP) and $666-777 (VIP Plus) while you can!

UPDATE (September 22nd): With Desert Daze’s 10th anniversary only a week away, the festival has dished out this year’s set times and quite a few lineup changes, beginning with Beach House replacing Iggy Pop as Sunday’s headliner. The legendary singer-songwriter unfortunately won’t be able to perform in 2022 due to unprecedented visa delays involving his French band, but he’s not the only who won’t be making it out to Lake Perris as Boy Pablo and Los Retros have also pulled out. In their place, along with Beach House, will be English post-punk band Shame and an undisclosed secret set that organizers say “may cause havoc.” Don’t forget to take a peek at the entire schedule and map above, and if you haven’t already snagged yours, single-day and weekend tickets are still available here!

Filed Under: Featured, Festivals Tagged With: Al Lover, Aldous Harding, Automatic, Babe Rainbow, BADBADNOTGOOD, Black Country New Road, Bolis Pupul, boy pablo, Brainstory, Buck Meek, Charlotte Adigéry, Charlotte Adigéry & Bolis Pupul, Chicano Batman, Chulita Vinyl Club, clipping., Cortex, Cristopher Cichocki, Cymande, DakhaBrakha, Daniel Rossen, Desert Daze, Desert Daze 2022, Divide & Dissolve, Divide and Dissolve, Duster, Elkka, FUZZ, Grizzly Bear, Gum, Heads Are Heavy, Iggy Pop, Imarhan, Inner Wave, JJUUJJUU, John Carroll Kirby, JPEGMAFIA, Kid 606, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, L'éclair, L.A. Witch, Lady Wray, Lake Perris, Los Retros, Mariachi Reyna De Los Angeles, Men I Trust, Midlife, Mild High Club, Molly Lewis, Nation of Language, Nilüfer Yanya, Nosaj Thing, Noura Mint Seymali, Panther Modern, Perfume Genius, Pond, Psychedelic Porn Crumpets, Reggie Watts, Seun Kuti, Seun Kuti & Egypt 80, Shame, Shannon and the Clams, Show Me the Body, Silent Servant, Sky Ferreira, Sleaford Mods, Slift, Sloppy Jane, Small Black, Snapped Ankles, Soul Glo, Surfbort, Surprise Chef, Tame Impala, Telefon Tel Aviv, The Armed, The Marías, The Paranoyds, The Sanctuary, The Space Lady, Vanishing Tw, Viagra Boys, Working Men's Club, Zo!

Surprise! Coachella offers a big twist while revealing 2022 set times as Arcade Fire joins the party unexpectedly

April 14, 2022 by Josh Herwitt 4 Comments

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival //
Empire Polo Club – Indio, CA
April 15th-17th & April 22nd-24th, 2022 //

Well, Coachellans … if you thought last week’s news that saw Swedish House Mafia and The Weeknd replace Ye (fka Kanye West) as Sunday’s headlining acts was the only change before you head out to the desert, think again.

The three-day, two-weekend music and arts festival has surprised us all in revealing set times for its 21st edition just a little more than 24 hours before it begins — the latest they have ever been released — and casually including Arcade Fire, which was not listed on the official lineup poster, at the Mojave Tent on Friday. If you’re hoping to catch what should be an epic performance from Win Butler, Régine Chassagne and company during “magic hour” and likely hear some new tunes off their upcoming sixth studio album WE that arrives in May, we would recommend getting there early before 6:45 p.m.

Decided to spend my birthday somewhere warm and dry 🌴 @coachella pic.twitter.com/D1cnHWnW0I

— Arcade Fire (@arcadefire) April 14, 2022

And while there are always hard decisions to make at Coachella, it only gets tougher with the Grammy-winning band added into the mix.

Don’t be shy, though … what’s your biggest conflict this year and who are you most excited for?

WEEKEND 1 SET TIMES

Full moon tonight 🌕 pic.twitter.com/wkyicUWeCt

— Coachella (@coachella) April 16, 2022

UPDATE (April 16th): We’re only one day into Weekend 1, and there are already some shake-ups to the schedule starting with Madlib being unable to join Freddie Gibbs at the Gobi Stage due to personal reasons. Gibbs, nevertheless, will still perform solo at his scheduled start time of 9:35 p.m. Meanwhile over at the Sahara Tent a couple hours earlier, Tchami will now begin at 7:03 p.m. instead of 7:15 p.m. You can peep the latest set times for Saturday in the tweet above.

WEEKEND 2 SET TIMES

Arcade Fire are most notably missing from the Weekend 2 set times, but that’s not the only change that stands out if you’re comparing them to Weekend 1. Besides some changes to the early-afternoon slots as well as slowthai moving up and The Marías moving back to compete with Grupo Firme for some odd reason, another notable adjustment is Run the Jewels moving to Friday at 8:10 p.m. in the Mojave Tent after taking the Coachella Stage on Sunday at 4:35 p.m. during Weekend 1.

And as we saw last weekend with Shaina Twain, Justin Bieber, Damon Albarn, Snoop Dogg, Post Malone, Diplo, Khalid, Tyga, Saweetie, Metro Boomin and more all making cameos, Coachella has become a breeding ground for live collaborations and special guests so we’ll see if Weekend 2 has more surprises in store for fans after a star-studded return to the polo fields.

MAP

Less than four hours before the gates officially open at the Empire Polo Club, Coachella has finally shared this year’s map and it looks a lot like what we saw in 2019. But one change to the map that sticks out is the relocation of the Yuma Tent, which has moved farther away from the main entrance (though only slightly) and closer to the 12 Peaks VIP section adjacent to the Coachella Stage. Also, there’s only one way to access the Sonora, Gobi and Mojave Tents now as compared to prior years when guests could walk directly from the Sahara Tent to any of them, and while that might create for less foot traffic in the area near The Do LaB Stage, it will be a longer walk than before.

Coachella has long been considered to be one of the world’s best-run music festivals (and rightfully so), yet with Goldenvoice running behind schedule this week on the release of set times and other pertinent information, we’ll see how smoothly things go after a three-year hiatus for the concert promoter.

So whether you’ll be in Indio or watching the YouTube livestream on your couch, let’s hope there aren’t any other artists or bands canceling at the last minute.

Happy Coachella!

Filed Under: Featured, Festivals Tagged With: (Sandy) Alex G, 100 gecs, 21 Savage, 88rising's Double Happiness, 88rising's HEAD IN THE CLOUDS FOREVER, Adam Port, Alaina Castillo, Alec Benjamin, Ali Gatie, Altın Gün, AMÉMÉ, Amber Mark, Amyl and the Sniffers, Anitta, ANNA, Anna Calvi, Arcade Fire, Ari Lennox, Ariana Grande, Arlo Parks, Arooj Aftab, ARTBAT, Astroworld, Astroworld 2021, Astroworld Festival, Astroworld Festival 2021, Aya Nakamura, Baby Keem, Bad Bunny, BADBADNOTGOOD, Banda MS, beabadoobee, Beach Bunny, Beach Goons, Bedouin, Belly, Big Sean, Big Wild, BIGBANG, Billie Eilish, Bishop Briggs, Black Coffee, BLACK MIDI, Black Pumas, BLACKPINK, Brockhampton, Calvin Harris, Cariño, Caribou, Carly Rae Jepsen, Caroline Polachek, Cashmere Cat, Channel Tres, Charli XCX, Chelsea Cutler, Chicano Batman, Childish Gambino, Chris Liebing, City Girls, Coachella, Coachella 2020, Coachella 2021, Coachella Music and Arts Festival, Coachella Music and Arts Festival 2020, Coachella Music and Arts Festival 2021, Coachella Music and Arts Festival 2022, Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival, Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival 2022, Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2022, Code Orange, Cole Knight, Conan Gray, Cordae, Coronavirus, Coronavirus Pandemic, Covid 19, COVID-19 Pandemic, Crumb, Cuco, Current Joys, DaBaby, Damian Lazarus, Damon Albarn, Daniel Caesar, Danny Elfman, Daphni, Dave, Dear Humans, Denzel Curry, Detlef, Diplo, Disastroworld, Disclosure, Dixon, DJ Holographic, DJ Koze, DJ Lord, Doja Cat, Dom Dolla, Duck Sauce, Duke Dumont, Ленинград (Leningrad), Ed Maverick, ela minus, Ellen Allien, Emo Nite, Emotional Oranges, Epik High, Erick Morillo, EYEDRESS, Ezra Collective, Fatboy Slim, Finneas, FKA twigs, Floating Points, Flume, Fontaines D.C., Frank Ocean, Fred again.., Freddie Gibbs & Madlib, Friendly Fires, GG Magree, girl in red, Giselle Woo & The Night Owls, Giveon, Griselda, GRIZ, Grupo Firme, Guy Laliberté, Harry Styles, Hatsune Miku, Hayden James, Holly Humberstone, Hot Chip, IDLES, Inner Wave, Isaiah Rashad, J.I.D., Jai Wolf, Jamie xx, Japanese Breakfast, Jayda G, Jean Dawson, Jessie Reyez, John Summit, Joji, Justin Bieber, Kanye West, Karol G, Khalid, Kim Petras, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, Koffee, Kruder & Dorfmeister, Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, Kyle Watson, Kynda Black, L'Impératrice, Lana Del Rey, Lane 8, Lauren Daigle, Lawrence, Layla Benitez, Lewis Capaldi, Lil Baby, Lil Nas X, Lil Uzi Vert, Logic1000, Lost Kings, Louis the Child, Luttrell, Madeon, Maggie Rogers, Malaa, Mannequin Pussy, Mariah the Scientist, Marina, Masego, Matoma, Maxo Kream, Måneskin, Megan Thee Stallion, Melé, Metro Boomin, MEUTE, Miane, Michael Bibi, MIKA, Molchat Doma, Monolink, Mura Masa, Natanael Cano, Nathy Peluso, Nicki Nicole, NIKI, Nilüfer Yanya, Noname, Olivia O’Brien, Omar Apollo, Orville Peck, Pabllo Vittar, Paco Osuna, Peggy Gou, Phoebe Bridgers, Pink Sweat$, Post Malone, Princess Nokia, Pup, Purple Disco Machine, Rage Against the Machine, Raveena, Rich Brian, Richie Hawtin, Rina Sawayama, Role Model, Run The Jewels, Sama' Abdulhadi, Sampa the Great, Satori, Saweetie, Shaina Twain, Skegss, SLANDER, slowthai, Snoh Aalegra, Snoop Dogg, SOHMI, Solomun, Spiritualized, Steve Lacy, Still Woozy, Stromae, Sunday Service, Surf Curse, Swedish House Mafia, Tame Impala, Tchami, The Avalanches, The Blessed Madonna + Honey Dijon, The Chats, The HU, The Marías, The Martinez Brothers, The Regrettes, Tokimonsta, Travis Scott, Turnstile, Tyga, Viagra Boys, Vince Staples, VNSSA, Wallows, Whipped Cream, Win Butler, Yard Act, Ye, Yola

Goldenvoice brings back Coachella sideshows for 2022

February 14, 2022 by Josh Herwitt Leave a Comment

It’s Valentine’s Day once again, and Goldenvoice is honoring its long-running tradition now of unveiling Coachella’s sideshows in and around the greater Los Angeles area.

With the three-day, two-weekend music festival returning to the desert this April for the first time after a three-year layoff due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the concert promoter has lined up a slew of gigs over a stretch of more than two weeks. And although most of the venues hosting will be the same as before outside of the newly added Sound Nightclub, two in Pomona — the Fox Theater and The Glass House — will be the home for a good chunk of them starting April 12th with King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard.

The festivities, meanwhile, will officially kick off a few days earlier on April 9th when Rina Sawayama performs at The Fonda Theatre. In addition to the Japanese-born singer-songwriter, the following acts will also take the stage inside and outside of LA County:

Epik High, Chicano Batman, Denzel Curry, Pabllo Vittar, Role Model, 100 gecs, Molchat Doma, Honey Dijon, Arooj Aftab, BADBADNOTGOOD (with Freddie Gibbs and Madlib aka MadGibbs), Beach Bunny, Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, Masego, MEUTE, Wallows (with The Regrettes), Amber Mark, beabadoobee, Chelsea Cutler, L’Impératrice (with Inner Wave), Purple Disco Machine, Still Woozy, Code Orange, Crumb, Damian Lazarus, Måneskin, Mika, Spiritualized, Viagra Boys, Ed Maverick, girl in red (with Holly Humberstone), Hot Chip (with Ela Minus), Koffee (with Mariah the Scientist), Michael Bibi, Nathy Peluso, Nilüfer Yanya and Altın Gün, PUP (with Skegss), The Marías, Dixon, Yard Act, Fred again.. and Omar Apollo. See the full list of sideshows in the poster above.

From the polo fields to you 👉 Goldenvoice Presents April 2022 🌴 visit https://t.co/qI1JxhDc04 to learn more & be entered to win a pair of Coachella passes + Golden tickets that grant you access to every show ✨ Tickets on sale starting Friday 2.18 pic.twitter.com/ZvSiH72CN7

— goldenvoice (@goldenvoice) February 14, 2022

Unlike in previous years, no TBA dates are listed this time or a special showcase like there was back in 2017 at the Palm Springs Air Museum the night before Coachella’s first weekend.

Since 2012, Goldenvoice CEO Paul Tollett and company have made a point of monetizing off Coachella more and more by adding these sideshows to its portfolio and despite the number of them falling to 34 in 2019 after scheduling as many as 53 in 2018 and 62 in 2017, this year’s slate has climbed to 44 in total even with an average of 160,000 new coronavirus cases being recorded in the U.S. each day. But while Goldenvoice may have finally found a “sweet spot” when it comes to how many sideshows to book each spring, it has always showcased an eclectic array of genres and 2022 will be no different with a Brazilian drag queen (Pabllo Vittar) and a self-described “techno marching band” (MEUTE) on the bill.

Other highlights worth sharing include LA four-piece Chicano Batman at the Fox Theater Pomona, two nights of Canadian instrumental trio BADBADNOTGOOD with Freddie Gibbs and Madlib at The Novo in downtown LA, 28-year-old R&B singer-songwriter Amber Mark at the El Rey Theatre and London-based producer Fred again.. at The Fonda Theatre.

Tickets for the sideshows go on sale here this Friday, February 18th at Noon PT with the rest of them available on Friday, February 25th at Noon PT or Friday, March 4th at Noon PT.

Filed Under: Featured, Festivals Tagged With: 100 gecs, Altın Gün, Amber Mark, Arooj Aftab, BADBADNOTGOOD, beabadoobee, Beach Bunny, Chelsea Cutler, Chicano Batman, Coachella, Coachella 2022, Coachella Music and Arts Festival, Coachella Music and Arts Festival 2022, Coachella sideshows, Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival, Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival 2022, Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2022, Code Orange, Crumb, Damian Lazarus, Denzel Curry, Dixon, Ed Maverick, El Rey, El Rey Theatre, ela minus, Epik High, Fox Theater Pomona, Fred again.., Freddie Gibbs, Freddie Gibbs & Madlib, girl in red, Goldenvoice Presents April, Goldenvoice Presents April 2022, Holly Humberstone, Honey Dijon, Hot Chip, Inner Wave, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, Koffee, Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, L'Impératrice, MadGibbs, Madlib, Mariah the Scientist, Masego, Måneskin, MEUTE, Michael Bibi, MIKA, Molchat Doma, Nathy Peluso, Nilüfer Yanya, Omar Apollo, Pabllo Vittar, Pappy & Harriet's, Pup, Purple Disco Machine, Rina Sawayama, Role Model, Skegss, Sound Nightclub, Spiritualized, Still Woozy, The Fonda Theatre, The Fox Theater Pomona, The Glass House, The Marías, The Mayan, The Novo, The Novo DTLA, The Regrettes, The Roxy Theatre, Viagra Boys, Wallows, Yard Act, Zebulon

Coachella unleashes a new group of headliners after three-year hiatus as Harry Styles, Billie Eilish & Ye spearhead 2022 lineup

January 12, 2022 by Josh Herwitt 10 Comments

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival //
Empire Polo Club – Indio, CA
April 15th-17th & April 22nd-24th, 2022 //

The wait is officially over.

Just a year after celebrating its 20th anniversary with Childish Gambino, Tame Impala and Ariana Grande at the top of the poster, Coachella was primed to make another splash in 2020 with Rage Against the Machine headlining for the third time in the legendary band’s career and Travis Scott scheduled to make his headlining debut on the polo fields as well as Frank Ocean.

But the three-day, two-weekend event became one of the first large-scale music festivals in the U.S. — along with South by Southwest and Ultra Music Festival — that was forced to postpone its plans when the COVID-19 pandemic took the world by storm almost two years ago. Goldenvoice worked to quickly reschedule Coachella for October, though with coronavirus cases and deaths spiking out of control all over the country, another delay came in June, signaling the unfortunate reality that there would be no festival in the calendar year for the first time since 2000.

With the state of the pandemic in flux and the U.S. still operating without a vaccination program in place by early January last year, Coachella in 2021 quickly became a fantasy. Fast forward another year, and the famed California fest is finally ready to give it another go in April.

However, none of the previously announced 2020 headliners are still booked for its 21st edition in less than three months. Rage Against the Machine, for starters, dropped out despite the Los Angeles Times reporting last summer in an exclusive interview with Goldenvoice CEO Paul Tollett that the band would still headline and Scott was also pulled following his disastrous Astroworld Festival — or as some might like to call it, Disastroworld — performance back in November while Ocean is now expected to perform in 2023, according to the aforementioned LA Times report.

YAY!

Presale for Weekend 2 starts Friday 1/14 at 10am PT. Weekend 1 is sold out. Register now at https://t.co/qujCsdCWkp pic.twitter.com/cEp5iNJY9M

— Coachella (@coachella) January 13, 2022

Instead, Harry Styles, Billie Eilish and Ye (fka Kanye West) will spearhead the 2022 lineup after reports circled last week about Eilish and Ye being in talks to headline and another surfaced only hours before the roster was unveiled regarding a commitment from Styles.

Swedish House Mafia, in the meantime, will return to Coachella for the first time in a decade since the electronic supergroup’s closing set on the main stage in 2012, although their appearance is not all that surprising thanks to this tweet back in October. Which day they’ll perform, however, is anyone’s guess right now.

Coachella has had a penchant for booking more international acts — from BLACKPINK to Bad Bunny — in recent years, and 2022 will be no different with Grupo Firme, Anitta, Joji and Karol G on the bill. But this year’s undercard showcases plenty of other talent too, including Lil Baby, Flume, Doja Cat, Daniel Caesar, Megan Thee Stallion, Phoebe Bridgers, Disclosure, Jamie xx, Big Sean, 21 Savage, Run the Jewels, Danny Elfman, Maggie Rogers, Louis the Child, Stromae, Ari Lennox, Baby Keem, GIVĒON, Banda MS, Still Woozy, BROCKHAMPTON, Fatboy Slim, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, Rich Brian, Måneskin and more.

Tickets for Weekend 1 are already sold out, but there is a wait list that you can jump on here while three-day GA and VIP passes for Weekend 2 will go on sale here during a presale this Friday, January 14th at 10 a.m. PT.

The Party & The After Party pic.twitter.com/8gT2bF3x5j

— Coachella (@coachella) April 6, 2022

UPDATE (April 6th): With less than two weeks to go, Coachella has revealed some changes to its 2022 lineup after reports surfaced earlier this week indicating that Ye (aka Kanye West) would not perform this year. Ye won a pair of Grammys a few days ago at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards and was scheduled to headline the festival on Sunday over both weekends but will be replaced by the previously announced Swedish House Mafia, who had yet to be assigned a specific day on the initial poster that came out back in January, and newly added The Weeknd — after his last appearance in 2018 — as co-headliners who will perform together as a new collaboration and something that neither Coachella nor many other music festivals have done before at the very top of the poster. That, of course, is the beauty of Coachella after all as Goldenvoice always finds a way to keep the programming fresh with new and exciting surprises.

Headed out to the desert this spring? Look back at our coverage of Coachella over the years here.

Coachella locks down Rage Against the Machine, Travis Scott & Frank Ocean to headline in 2020

January 2, 2020 by Josh Herwitt 8 Comments

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival //
Empire Polo Club – Indio, CA
April 10th-12th & April 17th-19th, 2020 //

Well, if your New Year’s resolution was to see Rage Against the Machine perform at Coachella, it’s time to start packing your bags.

After the legendary rock band posted to Instagram on Halloween that it would be performing in Indio this April and multiple reports surfaced over the last few weeks confirming the news, the California festival made the announcement official with the release of its 2020 lineup.

It marks the third time that RATM have been booked to headline Coachella, with the previous instance dating back to 2007 when Zack de la Rocha (vocals), Tim Commerford (bass, vocals), Tom Morello (guitar) and Brad Wilk (drums) reunited following the group’s unforeseen break-up seven years prior.

Joining Rage at the top of the fest’s famed poster will be Grammy-nominated rapper Travis Scott and enigmatic crooner Frank Ocean, both of whom will be headlining the three-day, two-weekend event for the first time (though they each have played Coachella before).

Weekend 1 is sold out 🌴 Register for Weekend 2 presale at https://t.co/x8PRTb12Eh. Presale starts Monday 1/6 at 12pm PT pic.twitter.com/QPRYnJVe9P

— Coachella (@coachella) January 3, 2020

And in what was nearly an unprecedented move by organizers, 2016 headliner Calvin Harris has retreated to second-line status. It’s just the second time that’s occurred in Coachella’s 21-year history, with the only other artist being Beck when he headlined its inaugural edition in 1999. But the rest of the undercard boasts some highlights like Flume, Lana Del Rey, Run the Jewels (with a de la Rocha cameo as we once witnessed likely), Thom Yorke, Disclosure, Rex Orange County, Daniel Caesar, FKA twigs, Danny Elfman, Louis the Child, BROCKHAMPTON, Fatboy Slim, Caribou, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, Charli XCX, Jai Wolf, Madeon, Yaeji, Chicano Batman, Hot Chip, Mura Masa, Duck Sauce, GRiZ, DJ Koze, Carly Rae Jepsen, Peggy Gou, Duke Dumont, Floating Points, J.I.D, IDLES, BADBADNOTGOOD, Daphni, Weyes Blood, Steve Lacy, (Sandy) Alex G, slowthai, Big Wild, TOKIMONSTA, Noname, Friendly Fires, Altın Gün, Crumb, Cashmere Cat, Sampha the Great and girl in red.

Like in more recent years, many of the acts on the bill lean in the hip-hop, R&B and electronic direction while rock continues to get phased out. Nevertheless, it’s worth mentioning that two of Dan Snaith’s projects are listed in Caribou and Daphni, the latter of which will assuredly be a DJ set in the Yuma Tent.

Coachella’s first weekend is scheduled for April 10th-12th, with its second weekend slated for April 17th-19th. With Weekend 1 passes already sold out, tickets for Weekend 2 will go on sale this Monday, January 6th at 12 p.m. PT here.

UPDATE (March 10th): Due to the global COVID-19 pandemic, Coachella 2020 has been rescheduled for October 9th-11th and October 16th-18th. All passes purchased for the festival’s previous dates in April will be honored in October, with refunds available to those who are unable to attend. Coachella becomes the latest major event to be affected after South by Southwest and Ultra Music Festival were both canceled last week.

pic.twitter.com/ppPdu7WX9b

— Coachella (@coachella) March 10, 2020

UPDATE (June 11th): As coronavirus cases continue to spike in certain parts of the U.S., the sad and unfortunate likelihood of Coachella not occurring in 2020 has now become a reality. Goldenvoice instead has marked some 2021 dates down on the calendar — Weekend 1 will be April 9-11 and Weekend 2 follows April 16-18 with all 2020 passes purchased being honored — though sadly there’s always the possibility that Coachella could be postponed until October again as we near the New Year, when the festival usually reveals its annual lineup.

pic.twitter.com/s8oZARGJYf

— Coachella (@coachella) June 11, 2020

Ready to take the desert by storm? Look back at our coverage of Coachella over the years here.

Filed Under: Featured, Festivals Tagged With: (Sandy) Alex G, 100 gecs, 21 Savage, 88rising's Double Happiness, Adam Port, Alec Benjamin, Ali Gatie, Altın Gün, Amber Mark, Amyl and the Sniffers, Anitta, ANNA, Anna Calvi, Ari Lennox, Aya Nakamura, BADBADNOTGOOD, Banda MS, beabadoobee, Beach Bunny, Beach Goons, Bedouin, Big Sean, Big Wild, BIGBANG, Bishop Briggs, Black Coffee, BLACK MIDI, Black Pumas, Brockhampton, Calvin Harris, Cariño, Caribou, Carly Rae Jepsen, Cashmere Cat, Channel Tres, Charli XCX, Chelsea Cutler, Chicano Batman, Chris Liebing, City Girls, Coachella, Coachella 2020, Coachella Music and Arts Festival, Coachella Music and Arts Festival 2020, Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival, Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival 2020, Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2020, Code Orange, Conan Gray, Crumb, Cuco, DaBaby, Damian Lazarus, Daniel Caesar, Danny Elfman, Daphni, Dave, Denzel Curry, Detlef, Disclosure, Dixon, DJ Koze, DJ Lord, Doja Cat, Dom Dolla, Duck Sauce, Duke Dumont, Ленинград (Leningrad), Ed Maverick, ela minus, Ellen Allien, Emo Nite, Emotional Oranges, Epik High, Erick Morillo, Ezra Collective, Fatboy Slim, FKA twigs, Floating Points, Flume, Fontaines D.C., Frank Ocean, Freddie Gibbs & Madlib, Friendly Fires, GG Magree, girl in red, Giselle Woo & The Night Owls, GRIZ, Guy Laliberté, Hatsune Miku, Hayden James, Hot Chip, IDLES, Inner Wave, J.I.D., Jai Wolf, Jayda G, Jessie Reyez, Joji, Kim Petras, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, Koffee, Kruder & Dorfmeister, Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, Kyle Watson, Kynda Black, L'Impératrice, Lana Del Rey, Lane 8, Lauren Daigle, Lewis Capaldi, Lil Nas X, Lil Uzi Vert, Lost Kings, Louis the Child, Luttrell, Madeon, Malaa, Mannequin Pussy, Mariah the Scientist, Marina, Masego, Matoma, Megan Thee Stallion, Melé, MIKA, Monolink, Mura Masa, NIKI, Nilüfer Yanya, Noname, Rage Against the Machine, Travis Scott

Our favorite performances from 2019

December 30, 2019 by The Bam Team 1 Comment

Ah yes, it’s that time again. Time to wave goodbye to another year, a hectic one that forced us to scale back our coverage toward the latter half of 2019. But before we officially ring in a new year and decade, it’s time for us to revisit the last 12 months at Showbams. For all intents and purposes, this space has provided us the access to witness so many amazing moments in live music, and even though we can’t show love to every performance we covered in 2019, we still managed to see some great ones.

Trimming down the list is never an easy task. Those who didn’t make the cut but still deserve to be mentioned here include the following artists, DJs and bands (in alphabetical order), all of whom we either covered at their own show and/or at a music festival this year:

Albert Hammond Jr., Anderson .Paak & the Free Nationals, Ari Lennox, ASTU, AURORA, Bea Miller, Bebe Rexha, Beirut, Big Wild, Bobby, Bob Moses, Caroline Rose, Cherry Glazerr, Choker, The Claypool Lennon Delirium, Club Night, Coke, Counting Crows, Crumb, CupcakKe, Daniel Caesar, Denzel Curry, Derek Ted, DJ Koze, The-Dream, DREAMERS, Ella Mai, Film School, FITNESS, Foxtail Brigade, Ginger Root, Half Alive, Hozier, Illuminati Hotties, In the Valley Below, Judah & the Lion, Justin Martin, Kali Uchis, Kamaal Williams, Katzù Oso, KONGOS, Lapel, Leon Bridges, Leven Kali, The Lil Smokies, Lil Wayne, LPX, machineheart, The Marías, Max Frost, Melvins, Michigan Rattlers, Mikey Mike, Miserable, MNEK, Mother Mother, Nicotine, (((O))), ORB, Outer Embassy, Princess Nokia, Puddles Pity Party, Queens D.Light, Raveena, Ravyn Lenae, RL Grime, Robyn, Rose Droll, Santigold, Sea Moya, SOAR, Stonefield, Super Unison, Tia Nomore, Tony Danza, Toro y Moi, Twenty One Pilots, Uni, Winnetka Bowling League, You Me at Six, Yuna

Now, it’s time for The Bam Team to present our favorite performances from 2019.

The Bam Team’s 5 Favorite Shows, Albums & Songs of 2019

Listen to The Bam Team’s favorite songs of 2019:

MØ

Date: February 9th
Location: Fox Theater Oakland – Oakland

MØ’s performance, meanwhile, was even brighter than LPX’s with the colors just completely all over the place and smoke coming from behind her as the lights created larger shadows of the 30-year-old’s body against the back wall. Karen Marie Aagaard Ørsted Andersen went on to perform all five singles — “Imaginary Friend”, “Nostalgia”, “Sun in Our Eyes”, “Blur” and “Way Down” — off her sophomore album and even showcased her 2017 collaboration “Don’t Leave” with British electronic duo Snakehips. -Karina Kristensen, photo by Karina Kristensen

Bob Mould Band

Date: March 2nd
Location: The Fillmore – San Francisco

Bob Mould has had a lengthy, fruitful relationship with Noise Pop and the packed Fillmore demonstrated that in spades after recently releasing his rather well-received, and 13th, solo album Sunshine Rock since disbanding Hüsker Dü and intersplicing Sugar releases. Mould is nearing the age of 60, but you’d be hard-pressed to think that when he frantically paces back and forth onstage while firing off his characteristic take of punk-leaning alternative rock. -Kevin Quandt, photo by Mike Rosati

Modeselektor

Date: April 4th
Location: Echoplex – Los Angeles

At LA’s Echoplex last Thursday, we didn’t have the fortune of getting another surprise cameo from Yorke, but it was intriguing to see a sold-out crowd welcome Bronsert and Szary back to the City of Angels under the Modeselektor moniker for the first time in a long time (and on a school night no less). And considering they were only stopping through two U.S. cities — LA and NYC the night before at Elsewhere in Brooklyn — on this tour, the show felt a little extra special for those of us in attendance due to the circumstances. -Josh Herwitt, photo by Josh Herwitt

The Chemical Brothers

Date: May 15th
Location: Shrine Expo Hall – Los Angeles

Leading off with “Go” from their 2015 LP Born in the Echoes, The Chemical Brothers delivered a 24-song set that covered all nine studio albums, including their newest effort No Geography that dropped in April. They seamlessly transitioned from one banger to the next, keeping our spirits high and leaving us not a minute to rest our feet. The onstage production, meanwhile, was next level. With an arsenal full of lights and lasers as well as a massive projection screen mounted behind them, Rowlands and Simons created a scintillating audio-visual experience to remember and one of the best we’ve witnessed in a while. -Josh Herwitt, photo by Josh Herwitt

T-Pain

Date: June 15th
Location: The Queen Mary – Long Beach, CA

The sun finally came out for none other than T-Pain. Bouncing onstage like Tigger, T-Pain made a case for deserving a later set time (and was probably indirectly responsible for the wave of people passing out around 6 p.m.). The man is a party in a human body, and he’s aging like a fine wine — his music, his dance moves, all of it. It’s clear he belongs on that stage, whether it’s 2:15 or 10:15 p.m. -Rochelle Shipman, photo by Rochelle Shipman

Erykah Badu

Date: June 15th
Location: The Queen Mary – Long Beach, CA

As the sun set over the Pacific Ocean, the crowd swelled in front of the festival’s main stage, waiting for our lord and savior Erykah Badu. We waited. And we waited. Finally, 30 minutes later, Ms. Badu walked out and surveyed the scene before all was forgiven. Her shortened set was still probably more than the sun-dried fans could handle, with her vocals perfect and her vibe far-reaching and unmatched. As she threw her body left and right, jutting her limbs into the air and even jumping down to clasp a few lucky hands, you could feel a collective healing washing over the grounds. Before she left, she even thanked us for waiting for her, as though we had done her a favor. Psh. -Rochelle Shipman, photo by Rochelle Shipman

Usher

Date: June 15th
Location: The Queen Mary – Long Beach, CA

How do you follow Erykah Badu? I didn’t think it could be done until about five seconds into Usher’s performance. He came out swinging, energy and choreography at 110 percent, so fast and fierce that I yelped, “Holy shit!” I grew up listening to Usher and respect him for days, but I didn’t expect him to put on one of the most enjoyable shows I’ve witnessed in 2019 so far. To say “he’s still got it” wouldn’t nearly be enough. So, just trust me when I say “you’ve gotta get yourself to an Usher show.” -Rochelle Shipman, photo by Rochelle Shipman

Middle Kids

Date: June 22nd
Location: Hollywood Palladium – Los Angeles

The Aussie rockers have been making a name for themselves on the festival circuit of late, and they did a fine job filling up the Palladium’s expansive floor. With Hannah Joy cementing the power trio’s sound on guitar and vocals, it was a performance that seemed to catch so many spectators off guard. Middle Kids’ songs possess the perfect amount of 90’s nostalgia to keep things catchy while remaining unpretentious and accessible, so expect big things from them in the future. -Zach Bourque, photo by Zach Bourque

Local Natives

Date: June 22nd
Location: Hollywood Palladium – Los Angeles

The band’s subdued lighting setup let the music do the talking and echoed its simple formula for success. Sometimes three amazing vocalists singing in harmony is all that you need to sell out a 5,000-person theater. While Local Natives haven’t taken a whole lot of risks over the last decade, including on the 10-track Violet Street, they still know how to hit you right in the feels every time. Nonetheless, time will tell which room they can sell out next. -Zach Bourque, photo by Zach Bourque

Empire of the Sun

Date: June 25th
Location: The Regency Ballroom – San Francisco

We showed up for the second of three Bay Area performances only to find the crowd anxiously awaiting the group’s arrival onstage. When lead vocalist/guitarist Luke Steele finally emerged through all the smoke donning his usual headdress and face paint however, it quickly came to life. Complemented by a pair of backup dancers and plenty of eye-catching on-screen visuals, Empire of the Sun kicked things off appropriately with “Standing on the Shore” and between multiple costume changes and instrument swaps, completely blew us away before uncorking the LP’s title track to close their headlining set. -Karina Kristensen, photo by Karina Kristensen

Jim James

Date: July 3rd
Location: The Wiltern – Los Angeles

That said, one could argue fairly easily that James’ songs are a bit more accessible than The CLD’s, and with that in mind, it wasn’t hard at all to understand why the man who has also put out music under the pseudonym Yim Yames assumed the closing duties for this tour. It became even more evident once James took the stage, shredding his way through tracks on Uniform Distortion like “Over and Over” and “You Get to Rome” before going to an acoustic guitar for “A New Life” from 2013’s Regions of Light and Sound of God. James would end up performing almost all of Uniform Distortion, but the real standouts of the show were in fact slightly altered versions of the Marvin Gaye-inspired “Here in Spirit” and the ever-haunting “Same Old Lie” to close what felt like a roller-coaster set full of peaks and valleys — and of course, plenty of screeches and squeals emanating from his Gibson ES-335, too. -Josh Herwitt, photo by Josh Herwitt

COMMON

Date: July 25th
Location: Apogee Studio – Santa Monica, CA

That’s what COMMON does — he spreads love to each and every person his music reaches. As KCRW DJ Anthony Valadez pointed out during his sit-down interview with the emcee midway through the evening, COMMON has lots of songs about love, and you could quickly find more than enough evidence to assert that fact by looking at the setlist alone. Of the seven tracks he showcased off Let Love, five had the word “love” in its title, starting with “Show Me That You Love” that opened his set. The album, which is inspired by COMMON’s new memoir “Let Love Have the Last Word”, remains a departure from the political deliberations that dominated his 2016 LP Black America Again and spawned out of our most recent U.S. presidential election. I don’t think we need to revisit that moment in history right now, so let me stick to the script. -Josh Herwitt, photo by Brian Lowe

The Raconteurs

Date: July 27th
Location: Santa Barbara Bowl – Santa Barbara, CA

On a Saturday night at the picturesque Santa Barbara Bowl — which we’ll argue is the best music venue in Southern California and where we caught White’s first-ever show there last year — The Raconteurs brought those songs to life as they stormed onstage and unleashed total sonic bliss on our ears with a 90-minute performance highlighted by Consolers of the Lonely tracks “You Don’t Understand Me” and “Carolina Drama”, the latter of which came during an extended encore that was capped off by the quartet’s biggest hit “Steady, as She Goes” and what ultimately inspired White and Benson to form the group back in 2005 as a couple of longtime friends from Detroit. All of this, of course, without having access to our mobile phones after locking them in a Yondr pouch and Dean Fertita (Queens of the Stone Age, The Dead Weather) assisting on keyboards and guitar as a touring member. -Josh Herwitt, photo by David James Swanson

FKJ

Date: August 5th
Location: Shrine Expo Hall – Los Angeles

2019 has already been a banner year for Venton in several ways. Besides making his debut at Coachella less than four months ago, he partnered with livestream media company Cercle to release this jaw-dropping live video that sees him performing on the world’s largest salt flat. Plus, he married Marieezy in March after previously working with the Filipino songstress. So with Marieezy by his side and fan bases in both Europe and North America now solidified, it appears that FKJ is ready to share his one-of-a-kind live show with the rest of the world. -Josh Herwitt, photo by Josh Herwitt

blink-182

Date: August 9th
Location: Golden Gate Park – San Francisco

Though these 90’s pop-punk kings may be short an OG member, that didn’t stop them from a summer shed tour alongside Lil Wayne. Sure, we all miss Tom DeLonge, and yes, Matt Skiba of Alkaline Trio remains a considerably solid stand-in, but how effective is this nostalgia act in 2019? That’s a tricky question we won’t answer because at the end of the day, festivalgoers of all ages still love singing along to “What’s My Age Again?” and “All the Small Things”. It’s really as simple as that to be honest. Does frontman Mark Hoppus’ silly onstage banter work even as he approaches 50? That’s a whole other can of worms I won’t unpack here. -Kevin Quandt, photo by Marc Fong

Childish Gambino

Date: August 10th
Location: Golden Gate Park – San Francisco

As one of the most anticipated sets of the weekend, Childish Gambino (born Donald Glover) was an absolute highlight of OSL 2019 and it could very well go down as one of the best sets over the festival’s 12-year run. Minutes before making his grand entrance on the main stage, Glover was informed that he had induced the largest crowd in OSL history. When he finally dismounted from his disco platform in the middle of the polo fields, he shared the news and the audience’s energy from that point forward was palpable. Catching Childish Gambino on his current touring schedule is not only rare, but also few and far between. This year he has been mainly headlining festivals, and rumor has it that this cycle will be his final one billed under the “Childish Gambino” moniker, which made for an even more monumental event in SF. Glover dove straight into an aggressive set of songs from Because the Internet and notable cuts on 2016’s Awaken My Love while being accompanied by a backup band and rotating cast of creative support, including a full choir and crew of dancers/performance artists. More of a conceptual art piece than a typical headlining set, Childish’s masterpiece is one that we will remember for a long time. -Molly Kish, photo by Marc Fong

Kacey Musgraves

Date: August 11th
Location: Golden Gate Park – San Francisco

Kacey Musgraves is arguably one of 2019’s top artists. Her fourth LP Golden Hour has received incredible accolades since its release in 2018, eventually nabbing the highly coveted Grammy for Album of the Year. That said, it was little surprise that Musgraves was able to fill the main stage with fans. Her subtle, yet powerful opener “Slow Burn” could not have been more ideal as she took in the immense crowd. She cutely quipped about playing the Sutro stage in 2014, and you could tell she was well-aware of the moment’s gravity. She naturally leaned heavily on Golden Hour, making sure to include fan favorites such as “Butterflies” and “High Horse” during her set, and at this rate, it seems like it’s only a matter of time before this alt-country breakout star finds herself in big font at the top of festival posters. -Kevin Quandt, photo by Marc Fong

Paul Simon

Date: August 11th
Location: Golden Gate Park – San Francisco

Now that OSL has casually cruised into its 12th year, some musical traditions appear to be in place. Sunday night has become the “legacy artist” slot for many years now, and while these may not be the highest-attended sets of the weekend, they have become a quintessential part of the event. Simon was no different in all circumstances referenced above. No one should be upset that his live retirement barely lasted a year, as the 77-year-old came out jubilant and as entertaining as ever. He quipped about his past musings and even invited a Bay Area legend onstage. As the sun began to set on a shockingly sunny August day, Simon waltzed out there and opened with “Late in the Evening”. Other classic hits like “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover” and “Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard” were featured early. “Graceland” kicked off his encore, which saw the Grateful Dead’s Bob Weir join in on the Simon & Garfunkel tune “The Boxer”. Although Weir didn’t tackle any major vocals, it was a unique moment to see the two share the stage. And in a fitting way, “The Sound of Silence” served as Simon’s closing song before the masses strolled into SF’s Outerlands one last time. -Kevin Quandt, photo by Marc Fong

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard

Date: August 13th
Location: Greek Theatre – Los Angeles

All jokes aside, as these Aussie weirdos continue to explore other creative avenues, catching a King Gizzard show remains a fairly unique experience in its own right. You can usually expect at least one mosh pit, if not more, to form, but with the Greek only having a small floor area at the front of the stage, the lively audience that showed up on a Tuesday night could only get so rowdy with most of it resigned to the venue’s seated sections. That, however, didn’t stop these mates from delivering the goods. Over the course of a 90-minute set, they touched upon seven of their 15 albums, including opening and closing with three straight tracks off Infest the Rats’ Nest. There was “People-Vultures” from 2016’s Nonagon Infinity, plus a version of “Wah Wah” that featured a snippet of “The River” at the performance’s midway point. I’m actually a little surprised that they didn’t throw us a couple of curveballs before saying goodbye to be honest, because for as prolific and unpredictable as they’ve become lately, King Gizzard might be one of the most versatile rock bands on Planet Earth, too. -Josh Herwitt, photo by Josh Herwitt

Maribou State

Date: October 16th
Location: The Regency Ballroom – San Francisco

When Maribou State walked off stage for their encore break, it was almost as if the crowd immediately expected an encore. But no one left until they came back out and performed “Turnmills” from Kingdoms in Colour in honor of the London club that closed in 2008. We really couldn’t have asked for a better way to spend a fall night in The City by the Bay. -Karina Kristensen, photo by Karina Kristensen

Filed Under: Best of, Best of 2019, Editor's Picks, Featured Tagged With: (((O))), Albert Hammond Jr, Anderson .Paak & The Free Nationals, Ari Lennox, ASTU, AURORA, Bea Miller, Bebe Rexha, Beirut, Best of 2019, Big Wild, Blink-182, Bob Moses, Bob Mould, Bob Mould Band, Bobby, Caroline Rose, Cherry Glazerr, Childish Gambino, Choker, Club Night, Coachella, Coachella 2019, Coachella Music and Arts Festival, Coachella Music and Arts Festival 2019, Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival, Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival 2019, Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2019, Coke, COMMON, Counting Crows, Crumb, CupcakKe, Daniel Caesar, Denzel Curry, Derek Ted, DJ Koze, DREAMERS, Ella Mai, Empire of the Sun, Erykah Badu, Film School, Fitness, FKJ, Foxtail Brigade, French Kiwi Juice, Ginger Root, Half Alive, Hozier, Illuminati Hotties, In The Valley Below, Jim James, Judah & the Lion, Justin Martin, Kacey Musgraves, Kali Uchis, Kamaal Williams, Katzù Oso, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, KONGOS, Lapel, Leon Bridges, Leven Kali, Lil Wayne, Local Natives, LPX, machineheart, Maribou State, Max Frost, Melvins, Michigan Rattlers, Middle Kids, Mikey Mike, Miserable, MNEK, MO, Modeselektor, Mother Mother, Nicotine, Noise Pop, Noise Pop 2019, ORB, Outer Embassy, Outside Lands, Outside Lands 2019, Outside Lands Music Festival, Outside Lands Music Festival 2019, Paul Simon, Princess Nokia, Puddles Pity Party, Queens D.Light, Raveena, Ravyn Lenae, RL Grime, Robyn, Rose Droll, Santigold, Sea Moya, Soar, Stonefield, Super Unison, T-Pain, The Chemical Brothers, The Claypool Lennon Delirium, The Lil Smokies, The Marías, The Raconteurs, The-Dream, Tia Nomore, Tony Danza, Toro Y Moi, Twenty One Pilots, Uni, Usher, Winnetka Bowling League, You Me at Six, Yuna

The prolific, often unpredictable King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard turn heavy at LA’s Greek Theatre

August 19, 2019 by Josh Herwitt 2 Comments

By Josh Herwitt //

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard with Stonefield, ORB //
Greek Theatre – Los Angeles
August 13th, 2019 //

Are King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard the most prolific and unpredictable band in all of rock?

If they aren’t, they’re certainly making a convincing case for that crown right now.

The Australian septet that’s made up of Stu Mackenzie (vocals, guitar, bass, keyboards, flute), Ambrose Kenny-Smith (vocals, harmonica, keyboards), Cook Craig (guitar, bass, vocals), Joey Walker (guitar, bass, keyboards, vocals), Lucas Skinner (bass, keyboards), Michael Cavanagh (drums, percussion) and Eric Moore (drums, percussion, management) have put out 15 studio albums, including five in 2017, and two EPs since forming almost a decade ago while shifting styles and genres with each one. It’s in part why they have harvested one of the strongest and fastest-growing cult followings out there today as more new fans jump on the bandwagon (no pun intended) like yours truly.

In fact, just last year, a sold-out crowd packed the 5,000-person Hollywood Palladium to see the Gizz on a Thursday night, affirming that these guys’ popularity is no joke even if you feel compelled to laugh at their name (a colleague, who was unfamiliar, did when I brought them up recently during one of our conversations about music).

Fast forward more than a year later to now, and King Gizzard’s popularity has only continued to rise, with their latest date in LA at the historic, 5,870-seat Greek Theatre serving as another example of how far they’ve come since their early days in Melbourne. Also on the bill for this North American tour opener were their fellow countrymen and women in ORB and Stonefield respectively, and with both supporting acts leaning in the direction of psychedelic rock upon first listen, the table was set quite nicely for Mackenzie and company to showcase their most recent sonic foray into the world of none other than thrash metal.

Yep, that’s right. You know, like, Metallica pre-1990?

Of course, with the arrival of Infest the Rats’ Nest just a couple of days away, I was prepared to have my ears pummeled while hearing a good portion of the nine-track LP that sees the group diving even deeper into heavy metal than it ever has before. This is what KG&TLW do, though. There simply are no boundaries or formulas when it comes to their songwriting. Sure, most of their albums fall under the general “psych rock” label, but 2015’s Quarters!, for instance, was inspired by jazz fusion and prog rock, and their third LP from 2017, Sketches of Brunswick East (with Mild High Club), was also rooted predominantly in jazz. So far this year, they’ve already taken their shot at the blues with the release of Fishing for Fishies and now they’ve unleashed their new doom-filled effort. Because after jazz and the blues, what could be a more respected musical genre than heavy metal?

Setlist:
Self-Immolate
Mars for the Rich
Venusian 2
Inner Cell
Loyalty
Horology
People-Vultures (tour debut)
Alter Me III
Altered Beast IV
The River
Wah Wah (with “The River” snippet)
Road Train
This Thing
Beginner’s Luck
The Bird Song
Acarine
Murder of the Universe
Boogieman Sam
Cyboogie
Planet B
Perihelion
Hell

*Editor’s Note: “Venusian 1” and “Organ Farmer” were originally listed on the setlist after “Hell” but were not played.

Filed Under: Editor's Picks, Featured, Live Music Reviews Tagged With: Greek Theatre, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, Metallica, Mild High Club, ORB, Stonefield

Desert Daze 2018: A stacked lineup & new location for one of California’s premier boutique festivals

October 1, 2018 by Kevin J Quandt Leave a Comment

Photo by David Evanko // Written by Kevin Quandt //

Desert Daze //
Moreno Beach – Lake Perris, CA‎
October 12th-14th, 2018 //

It was really only a matter of time before Desert Daze outgrew its home of the past two years, as it was evident The Institute of Mentalphysics in Joshua Tree had reached peak capacity in 2017 (read our review here).

So, it was no surprise to longtime attendees when a new location was announced, coupled with a talent roster that proved growth was in the works, and a recipe for something special was concocted. Desert Daze founder Phil Pirrone and his team at Moon Block had slyly put together one of the banner rock lineups on U.S. soil in many moons.

Did this signal the next fad in rock ‘n’ roll? Was this a strong thesis in the argument that boutique music festivals would start to rule the landscape as the behemoths dealt with homogenization?

I’m sure there could be convincing cases made for both, but at the end of the day, word of mouth had worked its magic and the event was “movin’ on up.”

Early reports from events held on the new site have been rolling in, lauding Moreno Beach as a scenic little slice of nature hidden in the hills above Moreno Valley. Though many will miss the magic that can only be found in Joshua Tree, there are a multitude of amenities that will make the three-plus days a little bit easier for attendees, such as permanent bathrooms and showers, more grassy and shaded areas, and plenty of accessible parking for both campers and day attendees alike.

There’s also a smorgasbord of VIP add-ons if you’re looking for a touch of luxury in between sets, as the Beach Club will offer some top-notch perks if that’s your thing. Meanwhile, there have been some other shifts in the event as it eases into a new home.

Lake Perris

Pirrone has recently stated in interviews that the music schedule this year will start a tad later each day to allow attendees to properly enjoy Lake Perris’ natural beauty. What better way to prepare for some long nights of blistering music than with a daytime boat excursion or a hike into the surrounding hills?

Now, onto the real reason we’re going to Desert Daze: the music. As has been the trend for many years, Moon Block continues to up the ante with another stacked roster, and with a larger capacity and budget, they went all-in on with three packed days and nights.

The top of the poster is simply bananas as we see this past decade’s psych-pop torchbearers, Tame Impala, top Friday’s billing with fellow neo-psychedelia Aussies, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, holding down Saturday’s headline slot.

Lastly, the Irish shoegaze demigods My Bloody Valentine will be bringing their wall of sound to the outdoor areas of Southern California. Fans can expect a smattering of new songs as the band has been unleashing fresh material most of this year.

As we take a peek further down the lineup, we see some rarities in the form of Ty Segall and White Fence, Jarvis Cocker Introducing Jarv Is… and Mercury Rev performing all of Deserter’s Songs. Never one to exclude stellar international acts, Desert Daze will also boast Boogarins from Brazil, Ukraine’s DakhaBrakha and the first U.S. show by English space-rockers Ulrika Spacek on Saturday.

A deeper dive into three international acts can be found below.

Kikagaku Moyo

The Holydrug Couple: It has been more than three years since the Chilean duo graced the states with live shows, and what better locale for their return. Holydrug Couple write some seriously dreamy psych-pop that will fit perfectly into the festival’s new landscape, literally. Expect to hear songs from their expansive catalog, with an emphasis on new tracks off their Sacred Bones release Hyper Super Mega. The band is celebrating its 10-year anniversary, so make sure to welcome Ives Sepúlveda and Manuel Parra warmly.

Kikagaku Moyo: Over the past year, this Japanese psych-rock outfit has been turning heads in some serious ways as they deliver a truly authentic sound. They hit a few smaller fests like Pickathon and have been gaining steam as the psych flag-bearer from the Far East. Their use of sitar and other less-traditional rock instrumentation has only helped garner a truly unique sound. Their 2016 release House in the Tall Grass is sure to get you pumped for their multiple sets at Desert Daze.

IDLES: While Desert Daze has a decided niche for all things rock, this year’s event sees the inclusion of slightly more punk-leaning artists in the form of UK’s own IDLES. Coming off a banner summer season, this whirlwind live act was much talked about at Primavera Sound and Rock Werchter for its raucous performances. Their second LP Joy Is an Act of Resistance, which came out in August, only cements that there is indeed still life in angst-ridden guitar rock. See ya in the pit for this one.

Want to go to Desert Daze? Tickets are still available for $299, or you could win a pair of tickets by submitting your full name and email below.

Contest ends this Friday at 3 p.m.

Enter your name (First and Last) along with your email below. If you win a contest, you’ll be notified on the day the contest ends (details above).

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Filed Under: Featured, Festivals Tagged With: Boogarins, DakhaBrakha, Desert Daze, Desert Daze 2018, IDLES, Jarvis Cocker, Kikagaku Moyo, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, Mercury Rev, Moreno Beach, My Bloody Valentine, Tame Impala, The Holydrug Couple, Ty Segall, Ty Segall & White Fence, Ulrika Spacek, White Fence

Desert Daze 2017: Another stellar year for one of California’s premier music festivals

October 20, 2017 by Kevin J Quandt 1 Comment

Photos by Zach Roth, David Evanko, Sheva Kafai & Zane Roessell // Written by Kevin Quandt //

Desert Daze //
Institute of Mentalphysics – Joshua Tree, CA
October 12th-14th, 2017 //

There’s something special about climbing the hills of Big Morongo Canyon Preserve cresting into Yucca Valley that removes one’s self from what exists to the east and west. Gone are the masses of cars and people all across Riverside County or the ticky-tack of Palm Desert, both replaced by the rugged personality of Joshua Tree and the surrounding area.

It’s always a treat to visit these nether regions, but it’s even better when a slew of today’s most exciting rock acts converge on this positively charged piece of land many have fondly come to know as the Institute of Mentalphysics. Plenty of attendees didn’t quite realize how fortunate we were to be able to return to this desert sanctuary for a second year, and just like any good thing, the word had spread about Desert Daze after the music festival’s run last year.

Desert Daze promoter Moon Block really pulled off quite a doozy for the sixth installment of California’s premier psychedelic and garage-rock extravaganza, which occupied more than 400 acres of wild desert earth. With the four-day festival continuing along an up-and-to-the-left trajectory, it was no real surprise to followers that Desert Daze founder Phil Pirrone and crew upped their booking to include legends like Iggy Pop and John Cale. Though the lineup was a shining star for the weekend, it was the amalgamation of the venue, attendees and art that put an extra layer of buttercream on the fest, cementing Daze’s status as a stellar event.

An expanded program featured added stages and a cavalcade of programs, including Sacred Plant Medicine, Modular Sound Baths, Black Metal Yoga and a Women’s Moon Lodge. 2017’s edition also included screenings from comedy duo Tim & Eric such as their Adult Swim series “Bedtime Stories”, which suited those who were looking for a quick chuckle. As far as the art went, there was no shortage of intriguing installations dotted across the Institute. One of the larger, more immersive artworks was Cristopher Cichocki’s “Circular Dimensions” piece as it took over the Sanctuary Hall space with 3-D projections and a variety of dronal soundtracks.

As stated, Daze attendees could have easily filled their day and night with the programming described above, but the majority of them rarely had much expendable time for those sort of extracurricular activities as the festival consistently churned out a veritable smorgasbord of garage, psych and various other outlying subgenres of rock ‘n’ roll across three stages. While the last statement is generally true, this year saw an expansion into more jazzy areas thanks to BADBADNOTGOOD’s showing on the event’s first day.

Other highlights on Friday saw a wildly energetic performance from French cold-wave band La Femme. These exports don’t cross the Atlantic a bunch, so it was a rare treat for the early arrivals that culminated with set closer “Antitaxi”. Tim Presely (White Fence) and LA-based singer-songwriter Cate Le Bon brought their collaborative project DRINKS to the desert and whipped through a set of angular-leaning art rock. Japanese experimental juggernauts Boris put on a spectacle worthy of the big stages at European metal festivals, as they have for well over two decades. Day 1 also saw Ty Segall and his Freedom Band obliterate the larger Moon Stage, opening with “Alta” and later covering DEVO’s “Gut Feeling”. Courtney Barnett, Kurt Vile and the Sea Lice played just their third headlining show, and while it was evident they were still working out a few kinks onstage, they still managed to dazzle with a mix of songs from both of their catalogs.

It was rather evident early on Saturday that Desert Daze was ramping up for its most popular day in the event’s short history with a combination of legends, today’s hottest acts and a few rarities that peppered the schedule. Detroit stalwarts The Gories offered their Michigan-bred take on garage rock in a powerful display of dual guitars coupled with a sparse drum set. At the Moon Stage, the Marshall amps were stacked high for doom-metal outfit Sleep’s banner performance of their 1992 opus Holy Mountain. Al Cisneros and associates delivered a lead-heavy set to wafting plumes of smoke, playing such classics as “Dragonaut” flawlessly, but the new sound ordinance imposed by the local community became a factor for the San Jose trio that’s known for its abuse of volume.

Brooklyn three-piece Sunflower Beam drew a sizable crowd in the Wright Tent as bassist Julia Cumming commanded the stage better than most while barreling through a set that included “I Was Home”. Elsewhere, it wasn’t surprising to see King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard have a wild and energetic crowd assembled well prior to their hit time. A rabid following continues to grow for the Australian septet that is capping off a massive year filled with multiple studio releases and lengthy tours. Of course, That Fucking Panda made sure to take advantage of the ruckus crowd, getting in a solid crowd surf, as is tradition.

Iggy Pop

Iggy Pop is a fucking legend, one who is still a ball of energy onstage even as he gracefully creeps into his 70’s and destroys expectations on a near-nightly basis. His setlist at Desert Daze was rather standard, but his persona continues to be anything but.

Meanwhile, those looking for something different were treated to a rare live performance by Black Moth Super Rainbow. With Desert Daze marking only their second show in more than four years, the TOBACCO-led group dazzled on tracks like “Sun Lips”. Sure, a large chunk of the set was reserved for TOBACCO tracks, but their sound had more oomph behind it as they were fleshed out by a full band rather than one man. Nearing the 30-year mark, Tortoise held closing duties for the night, shooting out darts of experimental post-rock before they were cut short at the stroke of 12:30 a.m.

Sunday saw a sustained crowd that was doing its best to shake off a big night after the fest’s second day. Luckily, the mellow sounds of the Allah-Las, plus a few drinks, got fans back into prime form for the closing evening. L.A. Witch followed on the Block Stage, forcefully proving that females belong on this lineup just as much as the opposite sex.

While Eagles of Death Metal continue their domination at the hands of Jesse Hughes and his not-so-merry band of pranksters, it must have felt truly amazing for the Palm Desert band to play Desert Daze. The highlight of the set was undoubtedly their prime cover of David Bowie’s “Moonage Daydream”.

The tent hosted something a tad more on the mellow side as Texas’ own Khruangbin served up their patented combination of surf rock and Thai funk. Tracks like “Mr. White” sounded sublime as the Sunday evening sets were a tad more toned-down than what we witnessed at the same time during the festival’s previous nights. K-Bin’s set led into an equally beautiful one by Hope Sandoval & the Warm Inventions, as the Mazzy Star vocalist and her sidekicks set the vibe perfectly for the final headliner.

Spiritualized are truly an ideal band to close out the main stage at Desert Daze, and similar to Television last year, these longtime UK legends still know how to thrill a crowd with their pea soup-thick wall of sound. Jason Pierce and company delivered a truly epic performance under the desert stars that opened with “If I Were With Her Now” from their 1992 debut album Lazer Guided Melodies, was punctuated by Laurie Anderson’s “Born, Never Asked” and concluded with “Oh Happy Day”. Classic hits like “Come Together” seem to have a stronger message in these times, and Desert Daze is truly one of those events where the bullshit of reality quickly gets washed away, if only for a long weekend.

Although Cigarettes After Sex are a band on their way to bigger things, we opted to close the weekend with Unknown Mortal Orchestra. Having played the event in 2014 when it was held in Mecca, Calif., UMO were warmly welcomed back. Ruben Nielson was ready to close things out with a bang as they rattled through their current set with highlights such as “Ur Life One Night” and even debuted a new track entitled “American Guilt”.

Growth is generally seen as positive for any sort of event, but Desert Daze remains one of those hidden gems you want to announce from the mountaintops yet also don’t want it to outgrow its unique place in the festival stratosphere. Regardless, Moon Block is carrying a bright torch for how boutique festivals are supposed to be produced, and we applaud their staff with high hopes that they continue to set the bar high.

Filed Under: Editor's Picks, Featured, Festival Reviews, Festivals Tagged With: Allah-Las, BADBADNOTGOOD, Black Moth Super Rainbow, Boris, Cate le Bon, Cigarettes After Sex, Desert Daze, Desert Daze 2017, DRINKS, Eagles of Death Metal, Hope Sandoval, Hope Sandoval & the Warm Inventions, Iggy Pop, Khruangbin, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, L.A. Witch, La Femme, Sleep, Spiritualized, Sunflower Beam, That Fucking Panda, The Gories, Tim & Eric, Tobacco, Tortoise, Ty Segall, Unknown Mortal Orchestra

Goldenvoice reveals 2017 Coachella sideshows

February 13, 2017 by Josh Herwitt 3 Comments

We’re already six weeks into 2017, and for many music fans residing in California, that means Coachella isn’t all that far away. But while much of the talk around this year’s lineup has been centered on Beyoncé’s debut and more recently her pregnant-with-twins news (the jury is still out on whether it will put a wrench in her plans to perform both weekends), Goldenvoice has turned a good portion of April into a long stretch of top-notch shows, similar to what Red Bull Sound Select has done in November with its month-long “30 Days in LA” series that last year included artists like Nick Murphy (formerly Chet Faker), YG, Jhené Aiko, AlunaGeorge, Pusha T and Isaiah Rashad (look back at our coverage here).

Much like in 2016, Goldenvoice has once again released a list of sideshows that will take place at venues in the greater Los Angeles area, with a select few extending into Orange County (at The Observatory and Constellation Room), Santa Barbara County (at the Santa Barbara Bowl) and the desert (at Pappy and Harriet’s).

Florida emcee Denzel Curry will kick off the festivities on Friday, April 7th at The Glass House before LA outfit Chicano Batman close things out at the same venue on Saturday, April 29th. In between those gigs, Sampha, Banks, Jack Garratt, Crystal Castles, Francis and the Lights, Bishop Briggs, SOHN, Oh Wonder, Future Islands, Little Dragon (with Sophie Tukker), The Head and the Heart, Joseph, Kaytranada, Banks & Steelz, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, Nicolas Jaar, Car Seat Headrest (with Preoccupations), Bonobo, Mura Masa (with Kamaiyah), DJ Shadow, Breakbot, Blossoms, New Order (with Poliça), Hinds (with Twin Peaks), Bonobo, Galantis, Local Natives (with Tennis), S U R V I V E, The Avalanches, Glass Animals (with Little Dragon and/or Jagwar Ma), Empire of the Sun (with Broods), Tacocat, Bastille, Roisin Murphy, Whitney, Lil Uzi Vert, Mitski, Röyksopp, Future Islands, Pond (with Ezra Furman), Moderat, Swet Shop Boyz, Floating Points (Live), HONNE (with Arkells), Daphini, Jai Wolf, Guided by Voices and Phantogram will all perform — some even more than once — inside and/or outside of LA’s city limits.

Furthermore, British independent record label Young Turks will host a special showcase for its roster of artists with performances by Ben UFO, Four Tet, Francis and the Lights, Jamie xx, Kamaiyah, Sampha and special guest PNL in Palm Springs on Thursday, April 13th. Check out the full list of sideshows in the poster above.

It’s hard to believe that Goldenvoice has found a way to top their efforts from a year ago, but the renowned concert promoter has managed to do just that. This year’s Coachella sideshows are jam-packed with alternative-electronic and indie-rock acts, with Nicolas Jaar’s headlining performance at Pappy and Harriet’s alongside Floating Points (Live) and Pond as well as Future Islands’ date at The Glass House featuring support from Car Seat Headrest as two of the bigger highlights — and no doubt there are plenty on this bill. Yet, one of the most enticing pairings has to be the Glass Animals-Little Dragon-Jagwar Ma one that’s slated to take over the Santa Barbara Bowl, arguably our favorite venue in Southern California, on Saturday, April 23rd.

Tickets for most of the sideshows go on sale here this Friday, February 17th at Noon PT with the rest of them available Friday, February 24th at Noon PT or Friday, March 3rd at Noon PT.

Filed Under: Featured, Festivals Tagged With: Arkells, BAILEN, Banks & Steelz, Bastille, Ben UFO, Bishop Briggs, Blossoms, Bonobo, Breakbot, Broods, Car Seat Headrest, Coachella, Coachella 2017, Coachella 2017 sideshows, Coachella Music and Arts Festival, Coachella Music and Arts Festival 2017, Coachella sideshows, Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival, Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival 2017, Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2017, Constellation Room, Crystal Castles, Daphini, Dent May, DJ Shadow, Echoplex, El Rey Theatre, Empire of the Sun, Ezra Furman, Floating Points, Four Tet, Fox Theater Pomona, Francis and the Lights, Future Islands, Galantis, Glass Animals, Goldenvoice, Goldenvoice Presents April, Goldenvoice Presents April 2017, Goldlink, Guided by Voices, Hinds, Honey Dijon, HONNE, Jack Garratt, Jagwar Ma, Jai Wolf, Jamie xx, Joseph, Julie Byrne, Kamaiyah, Kaytranada, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, Lil Uzi Vert, Little Dragon, Local Natives, Lot 613, M. Geddes Gengras, Mitski, Moderat, Mura Masa, New Order, Nicolas Jaar, Nylo, Oh Wonder, Palm Springs Air Museum, Pappy & Harriet's, Pappy & Harriet's Pioneertown Palace, Pappy and Harriet's, Pappy and Harriet's Pioneertown Palace, Phantogram, PNL, Poliça, Pond, Preoccupations, Roisin Murphy, S U R V I V E, Sam Gellaitry, Sampha, Santa Barbara Bowl, SHAED, Shrine Expo Hall, SOHN, Sophie Tukker, Springtime Carnivore, SSLEEPERHOLD, Steady Holiday, Swet Shop Boyz, Tacocat, Tennis, The Avalanches, The Echo, The Fonda Theatre, The Glass House, The Head and The Heart, The Mayan, The Novo DTLA, The Observatory, The Regent Theater, The Roxy Theatre, The Theatre at Ace Hotel, Twin Peaks, Whitney, William Doyle, Young Turks

Was FYF Fest 2015 the ‘best weekend of summer’? Here are 10 highlights from this year’s festival

August 27, 2015 by Josh Herwitt 3 Comments

By Josh Herwitt //

FYF Fest //
LA Sports Arena & Exposition Park – Los Angeles
August 22nd-23rd, 2015 //

The 12th annual FYF Fest returned to the LA Sports Arena and Exposition Park last weekend, and from everything we witnessed over two action-packed days, it felt like a major success. For starters, we didn’t have to wait in a three-hour security line and it didn’t take 20 minutes to walk from one end of the festival grounds to the other (it was more like 10 minutes), which already made this year a huge improvement compared to last year.

It should also go without saying that FYF has come a long way since its early beginnings as a punk fest, and teaming up with Coachella promoter Goldenvoice back in 2011 hasn’t hurt its rep by any means. If anything, it’s only made it more accessible for mainstream music fans (though there are still plenty of “indie” acts to come by). That couldn’t have been any more apparent than this year with Kanye West replacing Frank Ocean as Saturday’s headliner less than two days before the gates officially opened. And yet, somehow FYF didn’t end up selling out. We’re still not sure how that didn’t happen.

But the festival’s well-publicized slogan has long been that it delivers the “best weekend of summer,” and such a proclamation certainly sets the bar pretty high, especially in Southern California, where there is no shortage of ways to keep oneself preoccupied on a late-August afternoon. So, whether FYF was or wasn’t (it was one of our eight California music festivals you won’t want to miss before the end of 2015), here are our top 10 highlights from its 2015 edition.

10. Battles

New York City trio Battles have been creating some of the most interesting rock music in the business for more than a decade, bordering on prog while throwing a heavy dose of math rock into the equation. With their third full length La Di Da Di due out September 18th (and thanks to Ableton, fans can get a behind-the-scenes look at the band’s writing and recording process for the album here), Ian Williams (guitar, keyboards), Dave Konopka (bass, guitar, effects) and John Stanier (drums) debuted some new material on Sunday evening for their Southern California fan base, most notably “The Yabba”, which gradually navigates its way through sonic peaks and valleys over the course of seven minutes. Meanwhile, Stanier, the glue that holds it all together for Battles, is still proving to be an absolute beast on the skins at age 47.

9. FKA twigs

British singer-songwriter Tahliah Debrett Barnett, better known as FKA twigs, has been all the rage lately after performing at Coachella in April, and she closed out FYF in style, donning an elaborate burgundy- and gold-colored robe for her Sunday night set. Just the week before, the 27-year-old fiancée of actor/musician Robert Pattinson released her brand-new EP M3LL155X, and with it receiving high marks from a number of music outlets, there were quite a few fans who stuck around after 11:30 p.m. on a “school night” to watch her perform some of them, including the opening track “Figure 8”, “In Time” and “Glass & Patron”. FKA twigs might be one of the most compelling live acts out there right now, and after scheduling Purity Ring to close out The Lawn the night before, FYF seemed to make a point of letting women rule that stage in the late-night hours this year.

8. The Arena

While there hasn’t been much use for the LA Sports Arena these days with The Forum and Staples Center serving as LA’s two primary large-scale music venues now, FYF made sure to utilize the 56-year-old stadium as best it could in conjunction with Exposition Park — and surprisingly enough, it actually ended up being our favorite stage this year. With space to roam on the floor — except during Flying Lotus’ DJ set from what we were told — and the seated area upstairs providing a nice respite from more standing, The Arena felt very much like a different world when you walked inside its doors. Plus, it had one of the most visually stunning stage backdrops and lighting setups that we’ve ever seen at a music festival.

7. Unknown Mortal Orchestra

After capitalizing on the success of their 2013 sophomore album entitled II, UMO have been trending upward as one of indie rock’s buzziest bands this summer thanks to the release of their third full length Multi-Love in May. Led by singer and guitarist Ruban Nielson, the New Zealand/Portland, Ore., quartet creates an intriguing mixture of lo-fi, psychedelic rock with garage, funk and R&B elements thrown in for good measure. After a long and tiring first day at FYF, UMO served as an uplifting way to start Day 2, and the turnout was pretty impressive with a large crowd arriving at The Lawn on Sunday for their 4:30 p.m. set.

6. BADBADNOTGOOD

Instrumental jazz/hip-hop trio BADBADNOTGOOD was high on our list of artists to catch at FYF this year, holding down a relatively early slot in The Arena on Saturday. Evoking almost a free-jazz spirit at times, Matthew Tavares (keyboards), Chester Hansen (bass) and Alexander Sowinski (drums) put their chops on display for close to an hour. Within minutes of arriving at the festival’s only indoor stage, it was fairly easy to see just how talented they are when it comes to playing their instruments, and together their sound had us wanting to hear more the next time these three Torontonians come to town.

5. Chet Faker

When we saw Chet Faker perform in LA following the release of his debut album Built on Glass last year, we were underwhelmed by Nicholas Murphy’s stage presence and a cast of sidekicks who didn’t add much to his overall sound. But a lot has changed since that early June night at The Roxy Theatre, and Murphy’s live show has grown leaps and bounds from 2014 to 2015, in part because he’s surrounded himself with some very skilled players lately. Though Murphy didn’t drop his newest single “Bend” into a nine-song set on Saturday, the FYF mainstay gave us every reason to believe why he belongs on the festival’s main stage.

4. Special guests

Ever since FYF founder Sean Carlson teamed up with Goldenvoice, his festival has felt more and more like a mini Coachella each year. That trend continued in 2015 on a number of levels, with one of them being the fact that quite a few artists introduced special guests during their sets, something that has become rather synonymous with Coachella over the past few years. Chet Faker brought out BANKS, Travi$ Scott joined Kanye, Flume handed the mic right over to Miike Snow’s Andrew Wyatt (pictured above) and then later danced with Lorde, and Run the Jewels gave Zack de la Rocha and Travis Barker their moment to shine onstage, too. If that doesn’t sound like a typical weekend at Coachella, then we don’t know what does.

3. Kanye West

Yeezus was all the talk less than two days before the festival kicked off, and we must say that we were pleasantly surprised by the last-minute Kanye-West-for-Frank-Ocean trade that FYF was able to pull off in the end. The headlining performance, nonetheless, delivered on all fronts, as Kanye ran through a career full of hits, eventually playing one every minute as his set went down to the very last second. We won’t go as far as to say that it was the best show of the weekend, but an impromptu performance from Rihanna on “Four Five Seconds” and “All of the Lights” after she was pulled onstage by Yeezy himself will have us remembering that moment for quite some time.

2. D’Angelo & The Vanguard

One of the most anticipated sets of the weekend was none other than D’Angelo’s — and for good reason. The R&B/neo-soul singer-songwriter hadn’t released an album in 14 years (yes, really) until he suddenly dropped his 2014 masterpiece Black Messiah last December, so you knew that getting the rare opportunity to see Michael Eugene Archer work a crowd, much like the one that assembled for his set at FYF, would be something special. Sounding more like a youthful James Brown than a wannabe Prince (we still don’t totally understand where those comparisons are coming from), D’Angelo and his eight-piece backing band that he now calls The Vanguard took the audience for a ride as they doled out new and old hits such as “Really Love” and “Brown Sugar” over an eight-song setlist.

1. Run the Jewels

It’s hard to find a more entertaining and raucous show in hip-hop right now than Run the Jewels’. Yes, El-P and Killer Mike have been making the festival rounds this year much like Outkast did in 2014, but one actually released an album last year and the other hasn’t since 2006. Never ones to hold back, RTJ’s post-sunset show on the festival’s main stage was both highly provocative and hilarious, getting the adrenaline pumping within the first few minutes and setting the tone for the rest of Day 1.

FYF Fest 2015 - Unknown Mortal Orchestra

Filed Under: Editor's Picks, Featured, Festival Reviews, Festivals Tagged With: Alvvays, Andrew Jackson Jihad, BADBADNOTGOOD, Battles, Belle & Sebastian, Bloc Party, Bonobo, Broncho, Chet Faker, CHK CHK CHK, Coachella, Coachella 2015, Coachella Music and Arts Festival, Coachella Music and Arts Festival 2015, Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival, Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival 2015, Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2015, Cold Cave, D'Angelo and the Vanguard, Death Grips, Deerhunter, Dinosaur Jr., Dixon, DJ Dodger Stadium, DJ Harvey, Evian Christ, FKA twigs, Flume, Flying Lotus, Frank Ocean, FYF Fest, FYF Fest 2015, Girlpool, Goldroom, HEALTH, Hop Along, Horse Meat Disco, Jon Hopkins, Joyce Manor, Junk, Kanye West, Kaytranada, Kevin Morby, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, La Femme, LA Sports Arena & Exposition Park, Laura Marling, Leon Vynehall, Lower Dens, Mac Demarco, Melody's Echo Chamber, METZ, Mikal Cronin, Morrisey, Morrissey, Neon Indian, Nicolas Jaar, Purity Ring, Run The Jewels, Savages, Shlohmo, Simian Mobile Disco, Solange, Spiritualized, Tennis, The Drums, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Thee Oh Sees, Title Fight, Tobias Jesso Jr., Toro Y Moi, Unknown Mortal Orchestra

Kanye West to replace Frank Ocean as headliner at FYF Fest 2015 this weekend

August 20, 2015 by Josh Herwitt Leave a Comment

FYF Fest //
LA Sports Arena & Exposition Park – Los Angeles
August 22nd-23rd, 2015 //

FYF Fest sent shock waves across the Internet less than two days before the festival takes place at the LA Sports Arena and Exposition Park, announcing that Kanye West will replace Frank Ocean as this Saturday’s headliner.

The festival officially released the news around 4:30 p.m. PT on Thursday, stating that Ocean had “decided on his own terms to cancel his appearance.”

FYF, now in its 12th year, changed its schedule in 2015, with music slated to go all the way up until 2 a.m. on Saturday and as late as 12:30 a.m. on Sunday.

The Frank-Ocean-for-Kanye-West trade isn’t the first shake-up to this year’s lineup. Earlier on Thursday, Resident Advisor reported that Ben UFO was forced to cancel his upcoming shows with Joy Orbison in Canada and the U.S., including his Saturday evening set in The Arena at FYF, due to visa issues. Orbison’s set had been extended by 80 minutes as a result, meaning that he was scheduled to perform for a total of two hours and 40 minutes, which might have been the longest festival set in the history of the modern-day music festival (or at least that we’ve ever seen). However, he is also dealing with visa issues — both him and Ben UFO are from London — and will now miss his FYF set after canceling his Friday night show in San Francisco at Public Works a few hours earlier.

UPDATE: FYF Fest announced the replacements for Ben UFO and Orbison on Friday evening. LA experimental producer Flying Lotus will perform a DJ set in The Arena from 8:10-9:10 p.m. on Saturday, followed by one of our favorite electronic musicians, Bonobo, hitting the decks from 11:15 p.m.-12:30 a.m. Both performances will be DJ sets.

Here is the updated schedule for this weekend’s festival:

SATURDAY SET TIMES

SUNDAY SET TIMES

Meanwhile, just last week, the two-day festival also announced that Deerhunter had canceled their performance, replacing the Atlanta indie-rock band with dance-punk outfit !!! (Chk Chk Chk), who we recently caught open for Hot Chip (read our review here) at the Greek Theatre.

Other big names performing at this year’s FYF Fest include Sunday headliner Morrissey, Bloc Party, D’Angelo and The Vanguard, Chet Faker, The Jesus and Mary Chain, FKA twigs, Purity Ring, Belle & Sebastian, Flume, Run the Jewels and Solange.

With all those acts already on the bill and now the late addition of Kanye, we have to say that we’re feeling pretty good about picking FYF as one of our eight California music festivals you won’t want to miss before the end of 2015. Single-day passes for FYF have long been sold out, but GA and VIP weekend passes can still be purchased for $175 and $329, respectively, here.

Filed Under: Featured, Festivals Tagged With: Alvvays, Andrew Jackson Jihad, BADBADNOTGOOD, Battles, Belle & Sebastian, Ben UFO, Bloc Party, Bonobo, Broncho, Chet Faker, CHK CHK CHK, Cold Cave, D'Angelo and the Vanguard, Death Grips, Deerhunter, Dinosaur Jr., Dixon, DJ Dodger Stadium, DJ Harvey, Evian Christ, Exposition Park, FKA twigs, Flume, Flying Lotus, Frank Ocean, FYF Fest, FYF Fest 2015, Girlpool, Goldroom, HEALTH, Hop Along, Horse Meat Disco, Jon Hopkins, Joy Orbison, Joyce Manor, Junk, Kanye West, Kaytranada, Kevin Morby, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, La Femme, LA Sports Arena, LA Sports Arena & Exposition Park, Laura Marling, Leon Vynehall, Lower Dens, Mac Demarco, Melody's Echo Chamber, METZ, Mikal Cronin, Morrisey, Morrissey, Neon Indian, Nicolas Jaar, Purity Ring, Run The Jewels, Savages, Shlohmo, Simian Mobile Disco, Solange, Spiritualized, Tennis, The Drums, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Thee Oh Sees, Title Fight, Tobias Jesso Jr., Toro Y Moi, Unknown Mortal Orchestra

FYF Fest unveils 2015 set times with later end times

August 14, 2015 by Josh Herwitt Leave a Comment

FYF Fest //
LA Sports Arena & Exposition Park – Los Angeles
August 22nd-23rd, 2015 //

As the summer winds down, the 12th annual FYF Fest is almost upon us. With Frank Ocean and Morrissey set to headline the two-day festival near downtown LA next weekend, FYF has released its set times for both Saturday and Sunday. You can take a look at them below.

SATURDAY SET TIMES

SUNDAY SET TIMES

After ending the festival at midnight in previous years, FYF is taking things up a notch in 2015 with the music going all the way until 2 a.m. on Saturday. That should boast well for English analog electronic duo Simian Mobile Disco, who will put a stamp on Saturday’s festivities in The Arena after Frank Ocean finishes up on the Main Stage. The fun will come to an end a little bit earlier on Sunday, as FKA twigs will close up shop on The Lawn at 11:30 p.m. and is scheduled to play until 12:30 a.m. That’s still pretty late for a Sunday night at a music festival if you ask us. It’s why FYF Fest is one of our eight California music festivals you won’t want to miss before the end of 2015.

In other news, the festival announced yesterday that Atlanta indie-rock band Deerhunter have been forced to cancel their performance. In their place will be dance-punk outfit !!! (Chk Chk Chk), who we caught open for Hot Chip (read our review here) at the Greek Theatre earlier this week. !!! is scheduled to play The Lawn at 8:25 p.m. on Saturday.

While single-day passes for FYF have long been sold out, GA and VIP weekend passes can still be purchased for $175 and $329, respectively, here.

Filed Under: Featured, Festivals Tagged With: Alvvays, Andrew Jackson Jihad, BADBADNOTGOOD, Battles, Belle & Sebastian, Ben UFO, Bloc Party, Bonobo, Broncho, Chet Faker, CHK CHK CHK, Cold Cave, D'Angelo and the Vanguard, Death Grips, Deerhunter, Dinosaur Jr., Dixon, DJ Dodger Stadium, DJ Harvey, Evian Christ, Exposition Park, FKA twigs, Flume, Flying Lotus, Frank Ocean, FYF Fest, FYF Fest 2015, Girlpool, Goldroom, HEALTH, Hop Along, Horse Meat Disco, Jon Hopkins, Joy Orbison, Joyce Manor, Junk, Kaytranada, Kevin Morby, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, La Femme, LA Sports Arena, LA Sports Arena & Exposition Park, Laura Marling, Leon Vynehall, Lower Dens, Mac Demarco, Melody's Echo Chamber, METZ, Mikal Cronin, Morrisey, Morrissey, Neon Indian, Nicolas Jaar, Purity Ring, Run The Jewels, Savages, Shlohmo, Simian Mobile Disco, Solange, Spiritualized, Tennis, The Drums, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Thee Oh Sees, Title Fight, Tobias Jesso Jr., Toro Y Moi, Unknown Mortal Orchestra

Skipping FYF Fest? You can still see all these shows

July 8, 2015 by Josh Herwitt Leave a Comment

FYF Fest returns to the LA Sports Arena and Exposition Park this August for its 12th edition with an amalgam of trending indie in tow. It’s also one of our eight music festivals taking place in California that you won’t want to miss before the end of 2015.

But if you’re not keen on catching headliners Frank Ocean and Morrissey yet still want to see sub headliners like Bloc Party or The Jesus and Mary Chain without shelling out $175 for a two-day GA pass (single-day passes have already sold out, by the way), well then, you’re in a bit of luck.

FYF and Goldenvoice have announced a series of sideshows around the festival’s August 22nd-23rd dates, which include performances by Toronto experimental hip-hop/post-bop trio BADBADNOTGOOD, Northeastern legendary alt-rockers Dinosaur Jr. and even NorCal industrial hip-hop group Death Grips, who, if you can remember, broke up not all that long ago, reneging on an opportunity to tour with 90’s rock heavyweights Nine Inch Nails and Soundgarden last summer.

The sideshows start later this month, with LA’s own HEALTH kicking things off at The Echo before London-based post-punk revival band Savages finish the run off with a headlining gig at The Roxy on August 26th. It’s worth noting, however, that none of the sideshows will take place over the weekend of FYF, much like what Goldenvoice does in April by booking high-profile shows in and around Coachella’s two weekends.

Tickets for the sideshows go on sale at FYFpresents.com this Friday, July 10th at 10 a.m.

Here is the schedule for the festival’s upcoming sideshows with links to purchase tickets:

July 24th: HEALTH at The Echo // BUY TICKETS

August 19th: The Jesus and Mary Chain with A Place to Bury Strangers at The Fonda Theatre // BUY TICKETS

August 19th: Bloc Party at Glasshouse // BUY TICKETS

August 20th: The Jesus and Mary Chain with A Place to Bury Strangers at The Fonda Theatre // BUY TICKETS

August 20th: Bloc Party at The Roxy Theatre // BUY TICKETS

August 20th: METZ at The Echo // BUY TICKETS

August 21st: BadBadNotGood with Show Me the Body at The Regent Theater // BUY TICKETS

August 21st: NAILS at Echoplex // BUY TICKETS

August 21st: The Drums with Froth at Glasshouse // BUY TICKETS

August 21st: Lower Dens with Empress Of at The Echo // BUY TICKETS

August 21st: Dinosaur Jr. at The Roxy Theatre // BUY TICKETS

August 25th: Death Grips at Glasshouse // BUY TICKETS

August 26th: Savages at The Roxy Theatre // BUY TICKETS

August 26th: King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard at The Echo // BUY TICKETS

Filed Under: Featured, Festivals Tagged With: A Place to Bury Strangers, Alvvays, Andrew Jackson Jihad, BADBADNOTGOOD, Battles, Belle & Sebastian, Bloc Party, Bonobo, Broncho, Chet Faker, CHK CHK CHK, Coachella, Coachella Music and Arts Festival, Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival, Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, Cold Cave, D'Angelo and the Vanguard, Death Grips, Deerhunter, Dinosaur Jr., Dixon, DJ Dodger Stadium, DJ Harvey, Echoplex, Empress Of, Evian Christ, Exposition Park, FKA twigs, Flume, Flying Lotus, Frank Ocean, Froth, FYF Fest, FYF Fest 2015, Girlpool, Glasshouse, Goldenvoice, Goldroom, HEALTH, Hop Along, Horse Meat Disco, Jon Hopkins, Joyce Manor, Junk, Kaytranada, Kevin Morby, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, La Femme, LA Sports Arena, LA Sports Arena & Exposition Park, Laura Marling, Leon Vynehall, Lower Dens, Mac Demarco, Melody's Echo Chamber, METZ, Mikal Cronin, Morrisey, Morrissey, NAILS, Neon Indian, Nicolas Jaar, Purity Ring, Run The Jewels, Savages, Shlohmo, Show Me the Body, Simian Mobile Disco, Solange, Spiritualized, Tennis, The Drums, The Echo, The Fonda Theatre, The Jesus and Mary Chain, The Regent Theater, The Roxy Theatre, Thee Oh Sees, Title Fight, Tobias Jesso Jr., Toro Y Moi, Unknown Mortal Orchestra

FYF Fest reveals 2015 lineup

May 6, 2015 by Mike Frash Leave a Comment

FYF Fest //
LA Sports Arena & Exposition Park – Los Angeles
August 22nd-23rd, 2015 //

The 12th annual FYF Fest once again promises a delicious distillation of trending indie music, whether in the vein of electronic, rap or rock acts. Although, this year seems to be pretty lean in the traditional rock department.

Frank Ocean and Morrissey will headline the festival’s 2015 edition, while D’Angelo and the Vanguard, Deerhunter, Run the Jewels, Flume, Jon Hopkins, Spiritualized, FKA Twigs, Nicolas Jaar, Mac DeMarco, Thee Oh Sees and many more are also on the docket.

Produced in conjunction with LA concert promoter Goldenvoice, FYF will sell weekend passes for $175 and single-day passes for $109. Buy tickets starting this Friday, May 8th at 12 p.m.

Filed Under: Featured, Festivals Tagged With: Alvvays, Andrew Jackson Jihad, BADBADNOTGOOD, Battles, Belle & Sebastian, Ben UFO, Bloc Party, Bonobo, Broncho, Chet Faker, CHK CHK CHK, Cold Cave, D'Angelo and the Vanguard, Death Grips, Deerhunter, Dinosaur Jr., Dixon, DJ Dodger Stadium, DJ Harvey, Evian Christ, Exposition Park, FKA twigs, Flume, Flying Lotus, Frank Ocean, FYF Fest, FYF Fest 2015, Girlpool, Goldroom, HEALTH, Hop Along, Horse Meat Disco, Jon Hopkins, Joy Orbison, Joyce Manor, Junk, Kaytranada, Kevin Morby, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, La Femme, LA Sports Arena, LA Sports Arena & Exposition Park, Laura Marling, Leon Vynehall, Lower Dens, Mac Demarco, Melody's Echo Chamber, METZ, Mikal Cronin, Morrisey, Morrissey, Neon Indian, Nicolas Jaar, Purity Ring, Run The Jewels, Savages, Shlohmo, Simian Mobile Disco, Solange, Spiritualized, Tennis, The Drums, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Thee Oh Sees, Title Fight, Tobias Jesso Jr., Toro Y Moi, Unknown Mortal Orchestra

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