Tiniest crowds

[cutterbutter]

Mariachi El Bronx was far too small

People are just too lazy to get in early sometimes. Great set and way to start the day.

[Gribbz]

throbbing gristle had like 20 people watching in 2009.

Not true at all. It was a small crowd... but not that small.

[Sigur Ros Stache]

I was at both Marina and Eliza, I think Eliza was a smaller crowd if for no other reason it was early on Sunday...exhaustion for many has started to set in. Both were GREAT sets!

[frazzles]

Throbbing Gristle

[foxydj]

lucero 10'

[ivankay]

Last year I took a huge hit for a girl and saw Marina and the Diamonds with her instead of Cut Copy...the crowd was painfully small, maybe a fifth full of the Gobi. What's the smallest crowd you've seen?

[Partly interested because if the set times are the same both weekends, I could see acts finding a way to not perform the second weekend if nobody shows up to their show.]

This is the Marina crowd for the beginning of the set. i've seen smaller.



i think the smallest crowd i've seen was for International Noise Conspiracy in 2002. Seemed like there was only about 50 people in the tent. And still it was one of the best sets i have seen at a Coachella.

Throbbing Gristle picked up people as the set went on.

[RickeyinLA]

Mindless Self Indulgence in 2004 played to a very sparse tent whilst Radiohead were on the main stage and they were GREAT - I'd never heard them before.

[GuyInTucson]

When I went to watch Saul Williams in '02 there were like 30 people at the Outdoor Theater.

[MistaGlitch]

I split the Bloody Beetroots with Leftfield last year and sadly the Mojave was barely half full full for their set. Gave me tons of room to dance around like an idiot at least.

Leftfield was one of the best sets of the festival! I danced my ass off.

[nosurprises12]

Both Wolf Eyes and The Locust in 2005
SuperMayer in 2009

[ivankay]

Leftfield was one of the best sets of the festival! I danced my ass off.

Fuck yeah. Set was awesome. And here's a picture of that crowd:

[TomAz]

Last year I took a huge hit for a girl and saw Marina and the Diamonds with her instead of Cut Copy...the crowd was painfully small, maybe a fifth full of the Gobi.

If I've read this right, this seems like a very odd attitude to have. "painfully"? Small crowds are great if you want to get close to the band. Other people just get in my way. Especially big tall smelly hairy freaks who can't dance.

[Premium Roast]

Mariachi El Bronx was far too small

yeah, don't think anyone was standing. I wasn't. But it was a wake-up-and-smell-the-coffee kind of sunshiny opener.

I liked em, but couldn't help thinking "damn honkies always stealing other genre's. Why couldn't it be a real mexican mariachi band led by a beautiful, long raven haired seniorita? Not a bald white guy.". They were good though. Copy well. Not the first to jump on that train...bought this vinyl from the Goodwill a few months ago (it's more acupulco hotel lobby lounge music, but do incorporate elements of horns and such):

[ods..]

Fuck yeah. Set was awesome. And here's a picture of that crowd:

Amazing. One of my top 5s of the fest last year. Great picture. I was in the very back of the crowd skipping and dancing between people, enjoying the space. Africa Shox is probably the hardest I danced all weekend.

[unknown]

Throbbing Gristle popped into mind immediately but there were quite a few very tiny crowds at the dome last year. Lorn had the smallest I saw.

[Coach Bombay]

lucero 10'

Yeah, that was the smallest crowd I've been in at Coachella.

[mmsk123]

Sly Stone was the smallest crowd I ever saw. He came on at like what 10:30? on Sunday when the Gorillaz were playing hours after his scheduled time. There couldn't have been more than like 100 people.

[GuyInTucson]

If I've read this right, this seems like a very odd attitude to have. "painfully"? Small crowds are great if you want to get close to the band. Other people just get in my way. Especially big tall smelly hairy freaks who can't dance.

This^^

[zircona1]

Amazing. One of my top 5s of the fest last year. Great picture. I was in the very back of the crowd skipping and dancing between people, enjoying the space. Africa Shox is probably the hardest I danced all weekend.

I looked for myself in that picture. I was like a row or two back from the front. I agree, it was a great set (though I left a few minutes early to get a spot for Kanye).

[MistaGlitch]

Fuck yeah. Set was awesome. And here's a picture of that crowd:

I see myself...the bearded dumbass wearing sunglasses to the left of center.

[with_cheese]

Lorn had the smallest I saw.

a shame too because that set was ridiculously awesome

[travelfan]

If I've read this right, this seems like a very odd attitude to have. "painfully"? Small crowds are great if you want to get close to the band. Other people just get in my way. Especially big tall smelly hairy freaks who can't dance.

1. Kills the energy if the crowd is too small.
2. It's mostly just sad for the band to come to a 75,000 person festival and have 200 show up for you unless you are, say, Lightning Bolt who'd just find it funny.

[sonofhal]

Ash and Art Brut.

Honorary mention to The Lemonheads and the 200 or so people who bothered to watch them close the Outdoor.

[Kid Charlemagne]

Sly Stone and Pavement in 2010 were small. I stood out all afternoon to get a spot for Pavement and was amazed when I turned around and there were like four rows of people. Sly was pretty small, but it was worth it to see the trainwreck.

Ariel Pink had a small crowd in 2011, again, that trainwreck was worth it.

[misterpickles]

there were probably 3 times as many waterbottles than people at lighting bolt.. but they kicked my butt nonetheless

[Ha.SK]

Anybody playing at the start of a Satuday or Sunday...my guess, hangovers or long lines for showers.

[Pea]

I must be out of my mind (I definitely was out of my mind at the time), because I really don't remember there being that many people at the Leftfield set. Glad to see my memory serves me wrong.

[MusicIsMyBoyfriend]

It's all relative, and a smaller crowd is bound to seem that much smaller when you've been wading through wall to wall sweaty bodies at a bigger set. Marina seemed pretty small to me too. Amos Lee in 07 was like a ghost town when I walked through. Eliza didnt seem that small to me, but I dont notice as much early in the day as I usually like to laze around in the back of the tents and absorb as much personal space as I can. For main stage acts I thought the crowd was crazy thin for Kings of Leon this year, the loosest it's ever felt that close (mid-way back to the right) to the stage at that time of night.

[fetuspiniata]

DJ Heavygrinder had about 7 people at her set ... I'm pretty sure I got video of it!

[Vic Viper]

flying lotus in 09
the orb in 09 (and only got smaller as the set went on)
daedalus last year