The Coachella 2009 Line Up Announced!
The organizers of the first big festival of 2009, California’s Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival, have finally announced the lineup for their epic desert fest: Paul McCartney, the Killers and the Cure will headline on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, respectively (the fest runs April 17th, 18th and 19th at the Empire Polo Club in Indio). The date will mark the U.S. festival debut of Sir Paul, who says in a statement, “I have heard that Coachella is one of the greatest festivals in the world. I’m really excited to get out there and rock!” The April 17th lineup will also include Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Leonard Cohen, Franz Ferdinand and Morrissey (not the Smiths, as many had hoped). Joining the Killers on the April 18th are TV on the Radio and the return of Amy Winehouse.
Robert Smith and Co. are headlining on April 19th, but the real draw may be My Bloody Valentine, who will finally make their Coachella debut after being at the forefront of most booking rumors last year. Sunday night is ’80s Night at the Indio festival, with bands like X, Throbbing Gristle, Public Enemy and Paul Weller all performing. Plus, there will be sets from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Lupe Fiasco.
On the smaller stages, each day is dotted with top shelf indie acts, ranging from the Black Keys, Girl Talk and the Hold Steady on Friday to Fleet Foxes, Band of Horses and Liars on Saturday and Okkervil River, Antony & The Johnsons and No Age on Sunday. And that’s just naming a few.
If there’s one night that maybe looks weaker on paper, it’s probably the Saturday, April 18th lineup. Coachella had a cure to improve their slow-selling Saturday bill last year: adding Prince at the last minute. This year, there’s a star by the name of Bruce Springsteen who happens to be available during Coachella because of a six-day gap in his tour schedule that leaves him in Los Angeles with nothing to do starting on April 15th. Coincidence? We’ll find out soon.
Keep in mind, today’s announcement doesn’t include all those specialty dance tents that Coachella features. Britney Spears is among those rumored to be playing a dance tent in a move similar to Madonna’s appearance at the festival in 2006. Tickets for this year’s festival go on sale today at noon at the Coachella site, and interested buyers may want to take advantage of a layaway payment plan: today through February 28th, fans can pay 50 percent of the cost of a weekend pass now and the rest in either two installments or one final payment in March and April.
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