I've gone to Coachella on specific days for the last four years and I think this past Friday was pretty weak in comparison to some truly outstanding days of music put on in the past (last year's Prince-Portishead-Animal Collective triple crown being the absolute highlight).
I really enjoyed Beirut and The Presets, and it was sweet to see Leonard Cohen having fun with a Muzak version of his songbook. But boy was Coachella the wrong venue for him. People talking loudly through his set, pausing to sing along to "Hallelujah", and then leaving in exodus as he's drowned out by Morrissey. I felt bad for him. I should have seen him at Nokia!
Paul M... It was a lazy show. Roger Waters and Prince tried to create a unique Coachella experience. This felt like a standard issue roadshow with inane audience patter and a substandard vocal and visual performance. What's with all the new material? I left after 30 minutes. Even a requisite "Eleanor Rigby" felt lackluster. It didn't feel like Paul's heart was in this. Am I too harsh? I dunno, I thought he hadn't lived up to his end of the bargain. It didn't help that every seemed to be convinced they were going to be watching The Beatles.
And the rest of the shows during the day that I saw were "okay" but nothing special (People Under The Stairs, M Ward, Crystal Castles). Going back on Sunday. Much higher hopes for that.
I still love you Coachella.