Friday, May 2, 2003 | 9:32 a.m.
Spencer Patterson covers music for the Sun. His music notes column appears Fridays. Reach him at [email protected] or (702) 259-2309.
"We must be in heaven, man."
Wavy Gravy's "Woodstock" proclamation popped into my head as I stood in a sea of music fans gawking at noise rock veterans Sonic Youth at Coachella last weekend.
The 4-year-old event, set near Palm Springs in Indio, Calif., is officially called the "Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival." And while there are some interesting sculptures scattered around the host Empire Polo Fields, you can drop "arts" from the name.
Coachella is all about music.
Eighty-five acts on five stages over two 12-hour days. It's enough to satisfy even the most voracious of musical appetites.
Those willing to make the four-hour drive from Las Vegas should also find the $140 cost of a weekend pass reasonable, considering bands often charge twice that for a two-hour show on the Strip.
The festival draws audiences of around 30,000 per day, but the grassy grounds are vast enough to support many more. The unique appeal of each stage also keeps crowds to a relative minimum, making it possible to get up close to your favorite bands.
The main stage housed the biggest names, acts such as the Beastie Boys, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Iggy & the Stooges, the White Stripes, Blur and Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals.
The second stage was home to an eclectic mix of artists, many with their own loyal following. Blue Man Group, Ben Folds, Interpol, Cafe Tacuba, Kinky, Talib Kweli, Thievery Corporation and Particle were among acts that performed there.
The festival also housed three music tents, each with its own general theme.
Anything went in the Gobi tent, from spoken-word performances to an unannounced DJ stint by Jane's Addiction frontman Perry Farrell.
The Mojave tent could have been renamed the "it" tent. Buzz bands abounded, including the Libertines, Fischerspooner, the Rapture and Rooney.
And tucked back in Coachella's farthest corner, the dance party raged at the Sahara Tent. A parade of renowned DJs and electronica outfits stepped behind the turntable, from Felix da Housecat to Underworld.
Yet even as fans raced from one site to the next, the scene remained serene. Quite unlike Woodstock '99, no fires were set and no one bum rushed the vending stations to steal bottled water.
Of around 85 acts featured, I managed to see full sets by about 20, along with significant chunks of another 10. A few personal observations:
Top acts: 1. Sonic Youth; 2. Iggy & the Stooges; 3. Interpol, 4; The White Stripes; 5. The Hives.
The Youth were intense yet intricate, precise yet careless as they created the weekend's sweetest sounds to my ears. Drummer Steve Shelley powered the veteran five-piece band through a well-chosen set, as Kim Gordon thundered on the bass and roared into her microphone and Thurston Moore, Lee Ranaldo and Jim O'Rourke created marvelous sonic soup with their blend of guitar sounds.
Iggy Pop's long-awaited reunion with original Stooges Ron and Scott Asheton was the success everyone expected. The seminal punk outfit blitzed through such classics as "1969" and "I Wanna Be Your Dog," with the 56-year-old Iggy characteristically cursing at his adoring public between songs.
The White Stripes get my award for best recovery. After a rough start plagued by equipment problems, frontman Jack White pulled it together for an entertaining and bluesy showcase by one of America's top rock duos.
Up and comers: 1. Hot Hot Heat; 2. The Music; 3. The Polyphonic Spree; 4. The Libertines; 5. The Rapture.
Brimming with '80s references, Canada's Hot Hot Heat turned up the temperature in the Mojave tent with an edgier set than one might expect after listening to their recorded material.
England's The Music was solid opening for the Vines in March at the House of Blues, but absolutely raged in the Mojave tent Saturday night, taking advantage of an ideal time slot as darkness set in.
With members dressed in gospel-style white robes, the Polyphonic Spree got a few guffaws when they stepped onto the main stage Sunday afternoon. But by the end of their psychedelically poppy performance, no one was laughing.
The headliners: The Beastie Boys were slightly more together at Coachella Saturday than they were in Vegas the previous night, but the trio still weren't anywhere near their best. Dropping "Brass Monkey" after 10 seconds didn't endear them to an already unenthusiastic crowd, much of which also seemed even less thrilled about rapper MCA's anti-war speech midway through the set.
Sunday night's festival closers, the Chili Peppers, were also relatively unspectacular, sending myself and many others to the second stage to catch Interpol. Anthony Kiedis' vocals sounded strained, and the Peppers' hard, funky sound seemed out of place in the indie-centric setting.
Blue Man Group: Against tough odds and on unfamiliar footing, Las Vegas' favorite performance artists-turned-rock-musicians managed to hold their own. But the ensemble never quite captured the audience's imagination the way Blue Man routinely does during its nightly production at the Luxor.
Some of Blue Man's rock numbers were well-suited to a concert stage, including "Above" and "Time to Start" from "The Complex" -- the latter of which had the masses pumping their firsts and bobbing their heads as per the song's spoken interactive instructions -- as well as Who cover "Baba O'Riley."
Others, such as "Up to the Roof" (with Tracy Bonham on vocals) and "Sing Along" (with Peter Moore filling in for Dave Matthews on vocals), failed to showcase enough of the three Blue Men's considerable percussive skills.
After drawing well Saturday night, Blue Man Group struggled to pry people away from Iggy in a tough Sunday night time slot. Overall, though, it was a promising beginning for the next phase of Blue Man.
Music notes
Guitar wars: Seven national amateur finalists will do battle today at 5 p.m. at "Guitarmageddon," a guitar showdwn at the House of Blues at Mandalay Bay.
New York City's Randy Romando, Boston's Steve Jones, Orlando's David Andrew Wood, San Francisco's Russell Burnett, Los Angeles' Mark Perry and Chicago's Curtis Robinson were selected as regional winners and will compete for tonight's prize, a $7,500 Guitar Center shopping spree and an XM Radio with a three-month XM satellite radio subscription.
The event precedes performances by Magna Fi and Cheap Trick. Tickets are $20 to $40.
Glitter girl: Mariah Carey has announced an Aug. 30 date on her upcoming U.S. tour, her first in more than three years. Ticket information for the show, slated for the Mandalay Bay Events Center, has yet to be announced.
On sale
Rapper Jay-Z plays Rain in the Desert at the Palms June 8. Tickets are $40 and $75 and went on sale today at the Palms box office, at TicketMaster outlets, by phone at 474-4000 or online at Tickmaster.com.
Grammy dominator Norah Jones visits The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel on Aug. 18. Tickets are $55.50 to $155.50 and go on sale Saturday at 1 p.m. at the Hard Rock box office, by phone at 693-5066 and through TicketMaster.
Alt-metal band Staind plays a pair of shows at The Joint June 17 and June 18. Tickets are $32.50 and go on sale Saturday at noon.
Korn bassist Fieldy brings his hip-hop side project, Fieldy's Dreams, to the House of Blues at Mandalay Bay May 14. Tre Harrison of the Pharcyde opens. Tickets are $15 and are on sale now at the House of Blues box office, by phone at 632-7600, online at hob.com or through TicketMaster.
Tickets for two other House of Blues shows are also on sale now: Trainwreck -- a band fronted by Tenacious D's Kyle Gass -- June 14 ($10) and Reverend Horton Heat Aug. 2 ($13-$18).com
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