After an upgrade on Air NZ I had a decent sleep and arrived at LAX midday-ish. A one way ticket. An O1 visa giving me three years entry to the US. The ability to set up an entertainment business. A Coachella ticket to Weekend One in my pocket. A guitar in hand and pocket full of dreams. Lets do this!
I stayed Thursday night at the Four Seasons where my friend Dom Bowden was being put up for his work, interviewing stars for a media junket. It was a taste of classic Hollywood, the lavish vintage hotel having hosted decades of debauchery. We went out to Sunset Boulevard hot-spot Everleigh and another english pub to meet up with his TV producer friend Rob who heads up Dancing with the Stars. It was great to hear some industry war stories from the two of them as I prepare for my next adventure in this thriving megalopolis.
After having breakfast around the pool we made our way out way to Palm Springs checking into the Garden Vista Hotel which was a perfect oasis to plot our accent (decent?) into the festival. We were dangerously close to some other kiwi friends, staying the next block over at the Riviera Resort. 6 guys who were on a smash-and-grab weekend mission. Having been to the festival before we were happy to try and sidestep the partying and focus on seeing some music.
After some first day admin with tickets from the Indian Wells Tennis Center we made our way to the main gate. The sound of Ellie Goulding echoed around the finely manicured Empire Polo Club as we were greeted by the majestic ferris wheel - an iconic feature of the Coachella skyline.
We nestled in to a spot at the main bar, running into our kiwi friends we could see through the fence in the VIP enclosure. 'Auchwitz' was the nick name for the location and became our meeting spot for the weekend. It was here some serious missions were launched, first up balls-deep into Martin Garrix at the Saraha Tent. He dropped a Bruno Mars remix at the end to an euphoric applause. We caught the end of Outkast but the screeching southern hip hop was not something I was fond of. Day 1 ended with a night cap back at Toby's with some characters such as the 'White Pharrell', Jared Leto and some hipsters with long hair wearing a skirt.
Day 2 Began with a margarita over at a the Dolce Vita party close to the venue where we caught up with Alley Long and her Little Local caravan. It is not uncommon for hipster and even mainstream brands to book out mega-mansions and invite their clients and fans to celebrate in the desert. Something Rhythm Group could look at doing at our festivals in NZ.
Once we were in the venue we caught the end of Kid Cudi’s set and his famous Pursuit of Happiness remix by Steve Aoki. It seemed the perfect song for the weekend. On to the main bar to try and meet up with kiwi’s but as the crowd surged it just wasn’t going to happen. I enjoyed the Capital Cities track 'Safe and Sound' before catching some of MGMT. We got right up the front for Lorde who came out to a thunderous applause. To see a kiwi up on the big stage bought a tear to the eye. We found a flag from some kiwi's and waved it passionately, trying to catch the starlets attention with little success.
Once we were in the venue we caught the end of Kid Cudi’s set and his famous Pursuit of Happiness remix by Steve Aoki. It seemed the perfect song for the weekend. On to the main bar to try and meet up with kiwi’s but as the crowd surged it just wasn’t going to happen. I enjoyed the Capital Cities track 'Safe and Sound' before catching some of MGMT. We got right up the front for Lorde who came out to a thunderous applause. To see a kiwi up on the big stage bought a tear to the eye. We found a flag from some kiwi's and waved it passionately, trying to catch the starlets attention with little success.
Back to see some of Foster the People had come along way since I saw them in the Mojave tent in 2011, and to the craft beer hall, a new addition to the festival in line with this popular hipster subculture. Then to Muse who opened with Hysteria. The thundering bass is arguably one of the great riffs. Was lucky to catch their version of Nirvana’s ‘Lithium’ which was arguable the highlight of the festival for me.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjf6yIwna8M
While we probably should have could have stuck around to hear the full set of one of my favourite bands it was time to keep moving. We managed to get a taste of Pet Shop Boys, Nas and Skrillex before returning to catch the epic finale Knight of Cyndonia. As the sand storm descended we hustled an Uber and after an hour in the saddle getting home it was straight to sleep.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjf6yIwna8M
While we probably should have could have stuck around to hear the full set of one of my favourite bands it was time to keep moving. We managed to get a taste of Pet Shop Boys, Nas and Skrillex before returning to catch the epic finale Knight of Cyndonia. As the sand storm descended we hustled an Uber and after an hour in the saddle getting home it was straight to sleep.
Third and final day began over a lunch at classic Palm Springs diner, frequented by the likes of Clark Gable and Bob Hope back in the golden days of Hollywood. Then on to the Adidas Pool Party - the 'Do Over' - to meet the kiwi friends and catch up on their creative endeavours over the past few days. Questlove spun tunes from Pharrell, Nas and Lauren Hill to a more 'urban' crowd while other LA DJ's like Gaslamp Killer looked on.
Another long dusty drive in to the festival and we arrived as Calvin Harris began. It was surely the biggest crowd of the day as glow sticks and the like were tossed high into the air. The whole venue had become a club and just showed that EDM was the music of choice for majority of festival goers. All chips were on the table as the last sun set on the weekend.
Another long dusty drive in to the festival and we arrived as Calvin Harris began. It was surely the biggest crowd of the day as glow sticks and the like were tossed high into the air. The whole venue had become a club and just showed that EDM was the music of choice for majority of festival goers. All chips were on the table as the last sun set on the weekend.
On to Sahara Club for a bit of a look around - Adventure Club, John Newman performing his hit 'Not Giving In'. Back to meet up with the kiwi crew to watch Disclosure. Trying to keep 15 people in sync was like herding cats as last night fever set in. Arcade Fire smashed out hit after hit proving they are one of the most exciting live bands around. Then it was back over to Netsky with the kiwi crowd in full stretch. The final act of the festival. An honour for an act we first booked for R&V at 19 years old. Was stoked for Boris to see him up there loving the moment!
We found our way back to the Riveria Resort for a few celebration drinks after what was a successful, memorable festival. Banter revolved around Liam Neeson, Creed and the old kiwi tradition of paying each other out. Two strangers we had picked up along the way looked on in bewilderment. A long slow drive back to Los Angeles after little sleep. We dropped the rental car and Dom at the airport before I grabbed a Lyft to Santa Monica to begin my new chapter in the City of Angels.
