Indie and the classics meet up at Coachella fest

"Indie and the classics meet up at Coachella fest | GoRockFest.Com - The Latest Rockfest, Artist's Event News"

By George Varga Pop Music Critic It's probably too soon to start calling it Oldchella, but the phrase “rock of ages” has seldom seemed as appropriate as it did at the 10th annual Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival. After a sweltering, 99-degree afternoon, the three-day music marathon concluded last night with headlining performances by The Cure and the reunited Throbbing Gristle, two pioneering English bands that were formed in 1976 and 1975, respectively. However, Gristle mastermind Genesis P-Orridge, 59, and Cure leader Robert Smith, 49, were hardly the senior members of the festival's lineup, which featured more legends and pioneering musicians from bygone decades than most of the previous editions of Coachella combined. On Friday, when the high temperature was at least 10 degrees cooler than yesterday, Sir Paul McCartney, 66, delivered an energetic, if erratic, set that was ecstatically received. He mixed classics by his former bands, The Beatles and Wings, with recent and older songs from his solo career and a rollicking version “Honey Hush,” Big Joe Turner's 1963 proto-rock classic. McCartney was preceded by the iconic Canadian singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen, 74, who wore a dark suit, replete with a tie and fedora. He drew an overflow crowd that included many suitably awe-struck young fans, most of whom were still in elementary school when Cohen last toured in 1994. Hearing McCartney live was also a first for many attendees at the festival, held on five stages set up on the enormous lawn of the Empire Polo Club. “It's amazing,” said Julia Morris, a 17-year-old senior at Poway High School, who was attending Coachella for the first time with her half-sister, Claire Harrold, 18. “Paul McCartney is epic. It's pretty cool that we can say we saw one of The Beatles.” Saturday's lineup included the great Memphis soul organist Booker T. Jones, 64, backed by the much younger Southern-rock band Drive by Truckers, and explosive former Husker Du leader Bob Mould, 49. Yesterday featured the still fiery hip-hop group Public Enemy, whose co-leader, Flavor Flav, is 50, and Los Angeles punk trailblazers X, whose members are all in their mid-50s. Also on the bill yesterday was ex-Jam founder Paul Weller and Jane's Addiction leader Perry Farrell, both 50. Of course, the talent roster also showcased dozens of younger acts, including such fresh-faced buzz artists as Somalian rapper K'Naan, New Orleans hip-hop duo The Knux and wispy Swedish singer-songwriter Lykke Li (who performs tonight at the Belly Up Tavern in Solana Beach). The resulting mix of old, new and in-between made for a memorable weekend of musical contrasts and juxtapositions at the festival, which drew more than 150,000 fans. “The event has been pretty peaceful; there has been no violence,” said Indio police spokesman Gen Guitron. “Traffic (congestion) has been our biggest challenge.” Police arrested 27 people at the concert Saturday, mostly on alcohol or drug-related arrests, Guitron said. Four others were arrested Sunday, also for alcohol or drug-related offenses, as of 4:30 p.m., Guitron said. It was the music, and the commitment to rock's historic past, that bound the three days of merriment together. On Saturday, the twangy, spaghetti-western Arizona rock band Calexico deftly covered Love's 1967 psych-rock classic “Alone Again Or,” and the stunning young Seattle vocal harmony quartet Fleet Foxes evoked Crosby, Stills & Nash's 1970 political protest anthem, “Ohio,” with its song “Mykonos.” Then there was Philadelphia's Dr. Dog, which at times echoed The Beatles, yet still sounded fresh and engaging. “We never get concerned with distinctions between 'old' people and 'young'people,” said Matt Curreri, 31, the leader of leading San Diego band The Exfriends. “We like a lot of classic musicians and new indie acts equally well.” Those sentiments were seconded by Joanie Mendenhall, Curreri's musical partner and girlfriend. “We've never been to Coachella before and it's cool to see all these creative old-timers perform who are still so vital,” she said. “It shows you don't have to die to become a legend.” Perhaps the best summation came with – and in – the songs themselves. The Killers concluded its Saturday night set with the melancholic “When You Were Young,” a few hours after TV On The Radio blasted out “Young Liar.” Friday night, Leonard Cohen painted apocalyptic visions with his ominous lyrics to “The Future,” while former Smiths singer Morrissey concluded his Friday performance with “How Soon Is Now?” Early last night, an impassioned Devendra Banhart sang: Please, mama, let me go across the universe. By then, his wish had already been fulfilled – at least musically speaking – many times over.