Coachella 2011 Review - Coachella Festival Rankings By Clark Benson [94 more lists]

Reviewing Coachella 2011 on-the-fly liveblogging as it happens, and ranking the highlights. Videos of the performances as well. Friday's Coachella was pound-for-pound the best day of music at Coachella yet, and I've been to them all. Overall the 2011 Coachella festival was on a par with the best of them, maybe the best of all, though there wasn't one particular jaw-dropping headliner or one-of-a-kind reunion.

See also my Coachella 2007, Coachella 2008, Coachella 2009, and Coachella 2010 wrapups.

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Show: 5 25

Rank Name

1

One Day As a Lion

One Day As a Lion
Mojave Tent - absolutely packed

The loudest, and best, set of the weekend. And why not - given the pairing of The Best Frontman In Rock (Zach from Rage Against the Machine) with The Best Drummer in Rock (ex-Volta Jon Theodore) + a euro-lookin dude triggering all kindsa fat thick rock sounds from a keyboard. Amazing.
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2

The Strokes

Main Stage. Crowd: big

The Strokes are frankly great. I'm kinda shocked that they are my #2 for the fest, given that - while I'm a pretty big fan - I've never thought they were a particularly great LIVE band. Maybe it's that as amazing as this weekend has been, there are no Godhead-live-bands-at-the-top-of-their-games on the bill?

Regardless of the reason and notwithstanding a not-100%-perfect setlist, the Strokes are rocking my - and everyone else near me - 's world. Casablancas is in a playful mood and they are playing as good as I've ever seen them.

The Strokes Coachella 2011 Setlist:
I Can't Win
Hard To Explain
Under Cover of Darkness
New York City Cops
Games
Someday
You're So Right
The Modern Age
You Only Live Once
Taken for a Fool
Juicebox
Under Control
Gratisfaction
Reptilia
Last Nite
Take It Or Leave It
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3

Cold War Kids

Outdoor Theatre. Crowd: decent sized.

Cold War Kids pretty much kill it in a tight no-filler set. Out of a fantastic and packed no-lull Friday lineup, the Cold War Kids' set was the one still ringing in my brain walking to the car at 1:30 AM, so i'm going to give them the nod for my fave so far.
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4

Chemical Brothers

Main Stage - big crowd considering they went on late (midnight)

WOW. The Brothers are back.

The Chemical Brothers are probably my favorite electronica artists of alltime, and I have been blown away by them live on numerous occasions. But those occasions were all in the 90s, until now.

Every time I have seen them since the 90s (usually at Coachellas) has been more and more diminishing returns - I just haven't liked the more housey-guest star elements they brought to both their albums and live shows as much as the classic big beat style of their first 3 albums.

This set turned it around - it wasn't dominated by oldies at all (had a decent amount of material off last year's album, and a pretty good mix of tracks from around their career), but the overall feel and way they blended the set and jammed out the tracks was just . . . sublime. Something about it just felt right. I was never remotely bored, and rarely not dancing. I am now seriously bummed I didn't catch their Hollywood Bowl show last year, and will not make that mistake again.

The Brothers are Back.

The Chemical Brothers Coachella 2011 Setlist:
Galvanize
Do It Again
Get Yourself High
Horse Power
Chemical Beats
Swoon
Star Guitar
Three Little Birdies Down Beats
Hey Boy Hey Girl
Galactic Phase Shift Interlude
Don't Think 2011
Out of Control
Doesn't Matter
Setting Sun
Saturate
Believe
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5

Kings of Leon

Main Stage - crowded but not as much as prior year headliners

KOL are one of my favorite bands today and I have seen them many times over their career. Like The Strokes, they aren't the most dynamic live unit. But they really stepped up a notch with this headline Coachella Main Stage performance - it was even better than last year's Bonnaroo headline slot which redeemed my faith in KOL live.

They were aided by a very innovative Coachella main stage setup that I would have a hard time explaining, but really was able to take a band that basically just stands in one place and plays, and make them seem larger-than-life. They also had some video screen treatment that was perfectly suited for KOL.

Dan was also really into the show and he feels similarly with me about them live, but is a harsher critic. We were both stoked to see a newer band stepping up and proving it.

Kings of Leon Coachella 2011 Setlist:
Closer
Crawl
Radioactive
Taper Jean Girl
Velvet Snow
Pistol of Fire
Molly's Chambers
The Bucket
Mi Amigo
Back Down South
Fans
Mary
The Immortals
Notion
No Money
Four Kicks
On Call
Sex on Fire
Use Somebody
Black Thumbnail
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6

The Honeybears

Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears Coachella 2011 Review

Mojave Tent: full - and stayed full

Crowd: really into it, particularly impressive considering there obviously wasn't massive familiarity with their material.

Performance was fantastic and the new songs even better than the album he put out a few years back which I quite liked. GREAT band.

Not a remotely dull mention in the set, including an inspired killer cover of Iggy Pop's I Got A Right. Black Joe Lewis has one of the most soulful new voices I've heard. I had heard good things about these guys live, but they surprised my expectations - an A-list band, worth seeing doing a full headline set, and like the Black Keys, a rare band that would be equally at home playing Coachella, Lollapalooza, Jazzfest, or Bonnaroo.
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7

Broken Social Scene

Crowd: decent

Perfect main stage time slot and a perfect set list for BSS, who are the perfect indie rock festival band.

Perfect!

Broken Social Scene Coachella 2011 Setlist:
World Sick
Texico bitches
7/4 Shoreline
Cause = Time
All to All
Anthems For a 17 Year Old Girl
KC Accidental
Meet Me in the Basement
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8

Fistful of mercy

Fistful of Mercy

Mojave tent - crowd 2/3 full

Fistful of Mercy is the most low-key supergroup in rock history - Ben Harper, Joseph Arthur, and George Harrison's son Dhani. They put out a pretty solid record last year that got almost completely ignored, and to the best of my knowledge they haven't toured outside of some promotional appearances.

They start 15mins late. Seated and mostly acoustic w full 3part harmonies, accompanied only by the gorgeous Jessy Brady on violin. Like on the album, Arthur and Harper sing the leads or 'blended leads' but Harrison's harmony vocals do a lot to shape the sound into something unique.

They open w 3 of the stronger songs on the album followed by a Ben Harper song I didn't recognize titled leaving me is the best you can do.

They may not have the most killer songbook but when these guys sing at the same time it's uniquely powerful (the audience agrees). I think they are every bit as good as Monsters of Folk.
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9

Animal Collective

Animal Collective
The most inconsistent, and most interesting, set of the weekend

As my friend Dave McQuillen texted me from elsewhere in the crowd partway in:

Hate to say it bud, But AC should never have been on Mainstage
The exodus of crowd from where I'm standing is almost biblical and no one left is paying the slightest bit of attention other than me>

Quills's assesment is indeed acccurate for the first half of the set, tho i was way front left with diehards and didn't see such a massive audience-exodus.

I personally am not an AC expert but the configuration seemed different from the 2 times I had prior been blown away live (Coachella 08 and Fonda 09). Drums. Guitar. Not 4guys all on keyboards. This was interesting and experimental, but the results for the first half of the show were not anthemic in the least.

Quills:

But then it changed halfway. It hit the groove.

More familiar songs came out, and the crowd next to me at least is dancing in near-phishead frenzy. (though the absolute best song, played 2nd to last, I think was a new unreleased track). i really really get into the 2nd half of their set.

My personal verdict? My most-anticipated set was the most mixed bag. I can't wait to see AC again. But they didn't take it to the next level, and aren't necessarily yet mainstage material - if you are going to play to a crowd that big, you gotta hold their attention a little better.
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10

Sasha

Sahara Tent - pretty packed

Had planned on seeing more of his show, but there was major overlap with Kings of Leon, and we liked them so much we stayed at the main stage till KOL started their last few songs. Sadly only able to catch the last 20mins or so of my alltime fave DJ. Sasha thus became my only disappointment of the day - disappointing in the sense that what I heard was sooo good I was seriously bummed to have not seen a lot more.
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11

Ratatat

Ratatat

Mojave Stage - overflow tent

I dig Ratatat and have most of their albums but wasn't sure why they had such a large font size on the coachella poster.

I now understand. They are a great live band, at least from the 20mins I saw. Ripping Guitaronica - I don't know what the hell else to describe it as. Wish I coulda seen the full set.
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12

Omar Rodriguez-Lopez

Gobi Tent: started:packed. ended:half full

Caught the whole set. Omar's band had the core Mars Volta team (Cedric, Juan the bass player) + a couple other dudes. Though it was no Volta, it certainly filled my need for a Volta fix.

Volta fans dug it but some of the crowd bailed in a 'huh?' way

I wish I could tell you what songs they played but...yeah. They were definitely the more accessible side of Omar's solo work, but like his seeming-thousands of solo albums they aren't as hooky as Volta. Yeah I know, Volta aren't exactly the Beatles when it comes to hooks in the first place. The better songs were as good as lesser Volta. But nothing sucked and frankly the set was less experimental than a few Volta shows I've seen (such as KROQ Weenie Roast where they improvised a 50 minute set with Cedric writing lyrics on a typewriter for the first half of it).

Seeing a rare performance by the no-longer-US-based Omar/Volta band was a special treat on a day as diverse as this. My only real complaint would be that the sound quality was pretty muddy, but that wasn't much of a surprise either.
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13

Lauryn Hill

Main Stage: crowd decent-sized

Shockingly strong and together set. Hit packed and backed by an excellent band with an amplified reggae sound and style. Ms. Hill was even a strong bandleader. Definitely the biggest surprise of this (maybe any) Coachella for me.

Lauryn Hill Coachella 2011 Setlist:
Instrumental Intro
Rastaman Chant
(Bob Marley cover)
Everything Is Everything
The Sweetest Thing
Lost Ones
Ex-Factor
Fu-Gee-La
(Fugees cover)
Ready Or Not
(Fugees cover)
Doo W*p (That Thing)
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14

PJ Harvey

PJ Harvey has never blown me away live. I was hoping this time would be different - I LOVE her latest album, and she tends to play her new material when on your.

She didn't change deviate from this, but I was glad I caught the set. A bunch of new material + Ze Monsta and Big Exit off the amazing Stories By The Ocean . . . Album. A nice set from up front where I was standing, but probably not one that translated back aways.

PJ Harvey Coachella 2011 Setlist:
Let England Shake
The Words That Maketh Murder
C'mon Billy
The Glorious Land
The Last Living Rose
Down By the Water
Written on the Forehead
The Sky Lit Up
Angelene
Bitter Branches
On Battleship Hill
Big Exit
Meet Ze Monsta
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15

The Black Keys

Black Keys - Main Stage

1st 1/3 of set plagued by sound + video probs, though it doesn't seem to really affect the Keys, who are total pros. Their set was bookended as a duo, bringing the extra members in for the middle portion which focused on the Brothers material.

I have seen these guys at least 10 times at various festivals over the last 8 or 9 years, and they are always worth seeing, though as usual there weren't any surprised.

The Black Keys Coachella 2011 Setlist:
Thickfreakness
Girl is On My Mind
Your Touch
Everlasting Light
Next Girl
Chop and Change
Howlin' For You
Tighten Up
She's Long Gone
Ten Cent PIstol
I'll Be Your Man
I Got Mine
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16

Cee-Lo

Main Stage: crowd OK but a bit smaller than I would have expected.

Cee-lo is a half hour late. Major faux pas especially mid-day main stage. Finally walks out says sorry he just got here and he's wearing the clothes he slept in.

All-female band, interestingly with kinda a punk/metal thing going - no flashy stage show.

He bitches about only being given 20mins left to play. Then proceeds to open with an instrumental version of Black Sabbath's Iron Man, segued into The Ladykiller. The set is indeed short, and hit-packed, including 'Crazy'.Though it isn't what I'd expected, the man does have a voice, and hella songs - and though I and everyone else was annoyed by the late start, I found myself liking the set more than the one time I saw Gnarls Barkley (Lollapalooza a few years back). Cee-lo bitches again about how f**king pissed he is, the band plays a solid rocking 'F**k You'. They then start a segue into Don't Stop Believin'. The sound cuts out right around the same time Cee-lo walks offstage, cursing. The band continues to finish Don't Stop Believin', with no sound. Finally it ends. Bad vibes and confusion.

This was not a normal Coachella set.

Cee-Lo Coachella 2011 Setlist:
Iron Man
(Black Sabbath cover) (Just the intro)
Ladykiller
Smiley Faces
(Gnarls Barkley cover)
Bright Lights Bigger City
Crazy
(Gnarls Barkley cover)
F**k You
Don't Stop Believing
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17

Interpol

Main Stage - decent crowd

Caught 2nd half of Interpol - enjoyed but they have never been a great live band and are certainly not getting better at it.

Still, dug what I heard - can't fault the quality of their material - and glad to have them on this packed Day 1 bill

Interpol Coachella 2011 Setlist:
Success
Slow Hands
Say Hello To The Angels
Narc
NYC
Barricade
Evil
Lights
The Heinrich Maneuver
Memory Serves
Obstacle 1
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18

Elbow

Elbow

Mojave tent - half full though steadily filling up

I've always liked Elbow but never loved them and never seen them live. So this was a nice treat. A forceful set, well-received and confident. Lots of strong new songs.

Elbow Coachella 2011 Setlist:
The Birds
Grounds for Divorce
Neat Little Rows
Lippy Kids
Station Approach
Open Arms
One Day Like This
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19

Lightning Bolt

Lightning Bolt are one of my favorite loud/extreme bands and their "how do 2 dudes make such a wall of noise" assault did not disappoint. Only saw about 15 mins because Ratatat were on at same time, but you don't need a long set to get your first Lightning Bolt fix.
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20

Arcade Fire

Main Stage - biggest crowd of the festival so far

I have a lot of respect for Arcade Fire, and like their last album The Suburbs, but they just aren't a favorite of mine. They are a great live band and had the crowd going off. Watched about an hour and enjoyed what I saw, but we bailed to get some sleep at about 12:30.

Arcade Fire Coachella 2011 Setlist:
Month of May
Rebellion (Lies)
No Cars Go
Haïti
City With No Children
The Suburbs
The Suburbs (Continued)
Crown of Love
Rococo
Intervention
Neighborhood #2 (Laika)
We Used to Wait
Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)
Keep the Car Running
Wake Up
Encore:
Ready to Start
Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)
Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)
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21

Titus Andronicus

Outdoor Theatre - surprisingly small crowd considering time of day

I don't know much about this band other than that I love their 2010 album, so I had been very bummed when the schedule overlapped them with Omar Rodriguez-Lopez. So I was only able to catch the last 15mins.

Not sure what to think - about half of what I heard I really didn't like at all, but then they closed on a high note. Need to catch them again, but jury is still way out on these guys live with me.
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22

Warpaint

Outdoor Theatre - had pretty decent crowd

Don't really want to judge as I only saw one song, which was a mistake as Cee-lo then ended up going on late and time was wasted. But I wasn't blown away by what I saw - need to give them another chance.
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23

Big Audio Dynamite

Outdoor Theatre: crowd smaller than expected

B.A.D. were fun to watch, and I always root for Mick Jones. But contrary to most, I vastly prefer later period B.A.D. to the classic lineup which was reunited here. Caught about 40 mins and headed over to Animal Collective. Sounds like I missed the best part, including "Rush".
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24

The Kills

The Kills Outdoor Theatre

Crowd: pretty big

Verdict: so/so

I'm so-so in general about The Kills, and the handful of songs I saw didn't change my mind. But they were better than the one other time I saw them (Coachella awhile back).
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25

Moving Units

Main Stage

I didn't really watch this band properly since we were in the beer garden btw Main Stage and Outdoor Theater, but I heard about 15 minutes and watched them a bit on the screen and liked what I heard (so did Dan). We were both unfamiliar with the band, but I can see why they were on Main Stage at a decent slot.
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26

12th Planet

12th Planet Coachella 2011 Review

Sahara Tent - crowded

Saw 10 mins - banging diverse electronica, pretty cool. Crowd was going off.
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27

!!!

Outdoor Theatre - OK sized crowd

Saw them here about 6 years ago, same stage.

I think singer was wearing same outfit.

My verdict was the same - hit and miss songs, hit and miss groove, hard to watch singer
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28

Nas

Nas & Damien Marley

Main stage: big crowd, very into it

Dan really enjoyed the set but I am not a hip-hop fan, and while I love reggae, my tastes lean toward far rootsier reggae than this. Solid music, just not my thing - enjoyed some of the songs regardless, and Damien definitely has talent beyond just his family name. The rest of the tents and stages are surpassingly empty for 5:30 PM
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29

Sven Väth

Sven Vath

Sahara Tent - surprisingly empty for 6pm

Never been a big fan of his very euro techno, but I definitely dig some of his tracks so I figured it was worth checking out. Caught about 10mins. Meh.
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30

Duran Duran

Main Stage - crowded but not packed

Never in a million years would I have expected to see DD live but that's festivals for ya.

I hated Duran Duran growing up but actually was kinda hoping to rock out to "The Reflex" for 5 mins. But my friend Dan, a fan, said it best in the comments section below.
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Showing items 1 - 5 of 30

Chemical Brothers

Fistful of mercy

Warpaint

12th Planet