Still in it’s infancy, Coachella has come a long way from it’s humble beginnings. Previously held in the blistering heat of the summer, Coachella, which takes place in the desert clime of Indio, California, left concertgoers satisfied with the music and irritated by the heat.

The inaugural Coachella was overshadowed by the tragedy of Woodstock 1999, a complete disaster characterized by lack of water, riots, fires, violence and an early closing. As a result, camping was banned at Coachella until 2002. That year saw more independent acts on the lineup – Pavement, Spiritualized, At The Drive In and Perry Farrell of Jane’s Addiction headlined.  The festival was held over a two day period with a modest attendance of 25, 000 people (I was obsessed with Phish at the time and had no interest in Coachella tickets unfortunately). At this point Coachella couldn’t generate enough profit to return the following year and prospects for the happening looked bleak.

In a sudden change of heart, festival organizers decided to give Coachella another go in 2001 rescheduling the festival to mid April when the desert heat is more bearable and, in my opinion, quite pleasant – Coachella tickets were well worth it that year! Held in the two day format  once again, headliners included Blonde Redhead , Fatboy Slim (see my anthem below), The Roots, Weezer and Sigur Ros.

2002 saw the addition of camping; a temporary home to 10,000 festival-goers, the campsite included a karaoke lounge, general store and showering truck (seasoned festival goers try to rough it but believe me, a nice cool shower after a sweltering day is better than winning the lottery…maybe).

After gaining countrywide popularity, Coachella implemented the three day festival schedule in 2007, this special year saw the reunion of Rage Against the Machine (see more information on Coachella reunions on the Coachella Reunions page)  and sought after headliners like Red Hot Chili Peppers, Bjork and Arcade Fire. For more information on past Coachella lineups, see the Coachella Schedule page.

This year’s Coachella promises an even larger repertoire of performers, a more elaborate  camping area for those who want to rough it and even better art installations – a yearly interactive component. So keep yourself informed by visiting this web site frequently, as information about Coachella, the Coachella Schedule and Coachella ticket info will be updated as soon as they become available.