Name: Peeping Tom
Genre: Experimental
Day: Friday

Wikipedia sez: “Peeping Tom is an experimental collaboration album by Mike Patton. It was released May 30, 2006 on Patton’s own record label, Ipecac Recordings. The set was pieced together by swapping song files through the mail with collaborators like Norah Jones, Kool Keith and Massive Attack.”

When reading about Peeping Tom, I had a bit of a smirk as I read that they were booed off the stage three times on three separate dates when performing as the warm-up act for The Who. Headed by ex-lead singer of Faith No More Mike Patton, Peeping Tom are experimental if experimental means a metal guy singing over hip-hop beats. Sure Mike may be happy with this album, but personally it really doesn’t work, with a really messy sound due to everything sounding out of place together. I can see why they were booed.

Likelyhood of Seeing at Coachella: No thanks.

Read on to view Peeping Tom live videos…

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Name: Peaches
Genre: Electronic
Day: Friday

Wikipedia sez: “Merrill Beth Nisker (b. 1968; Toronto, Canada), better known as Peaches, is a electronic musician. Her songs are mainly concerned with sex. She lives and works in Berlin. Before she became “Peaches”, she was an uncertified private elementary school teacher and librarian. She plays almost all the instruments for her songs, programs her own electronic beats and produces her records.”

Peaches is nuts.? You may not be able to gather that from listening to her music, but watching her live performances where she constantly jumping around like a crazy lazy, stripping, spitting blood at crowd members and dancing behind an infatiable penis. Now the music she makes isn’t amazing, but based on what I have seen of her - she is more about the experience then the music. Sure it’s a gimmick, but at least it’s an entertaining one.

Likelyhood of Seeing at Coachella: Eh maybe, I’ll see if I’m in the mood.

Read on to view Peaches live videos…

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Name: Paul van Dyk
Genre: Electronic
Day: Sunday

Wikipedia sez: “Paul van Dyk is one of the world’s leading trance DJs and producers. Van Dyk hosts a show on Radio Fritz every Wednesday at 20:00GMT(7pm Londontime + 1). In his latest gigs, he blurs the line between DJing and live performance engineering by utilizing two PowerBook laptops sporting Serato Scratch LIVE and Ableton Live software, enabling a more full-featured club experience more akin to a concert than a standard night out at a dance club. On-the-fly remixes and compositions are just some of the capabilities of this new performance method.”

It feels like Paul van Dyk has been around forever, and it probably is because he actually has been. He is one of the first names I remember seeing on various mainstream radio remixes in the late nineties, and his live trance work stands by itself. The guy is really heavy on deep base that rocks your ears off your head, Chopper Read style. I imagine whatever tent van Dyk plays in will be super packed, so I might stay away from this one.

Likelyhood of Seeing at Coachella: Nah.

Read on to view Paul van Dyk live videos…

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Name: Ozomatli
Genre: Funk
Day: Saturday

Wikipedia sez: “Ozomatli is a multiethnic ten piece band, playing primar Latin, hip-hop, and rock, formed in 1995 in Los Angeles. They are known both for their extreme vocal activist viewpoints and their wide array of musical styles - including salsa, jazz, funk, reggae, and others. Ozomatli take their name from the Nahuatl word for the Aztec astrological symbol of the monkey, which is also a god of dance, fire, the new harvest, and music.”

Since I was a Jurassic 5 fan I found Ozomatli when I searched for anything and everything J5 related. While it would be easy to dismiss at Ozomatli as a live cross of Jurassic 5 and The Roots when performing songs like Saturday Night, it couldn’t be further from the truth. They mesh guitars with trumpets, drums with turntables and rap with latin soul to blend together harmonious sounds. As a bonus, they have been known to perform live encores in the crowd at festivals, something for Coachella perhaps?

Likelyhood of Seeing at Coachella: Yeah, why not.

Read on to view Ozomatli live videos…

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Name: Of Montreal
Genre: Indie
Day: Friday

Wikipedia sez: “of Montreal is an American indie pop band formed in Athens, Georgia, fronted by Kevin Barnes. It was among the second wave of groups to emerge from the Elephant Six Collective. The band was created by Kevin Barnes (and named after a failed romance with a woman from Montreal). Barnes was the only member of the “group” prior to his relocation to Athens, Georgia. There, he met Derek Almstead, later of the Circulatory System, M Coast, Elf Power, etc., and Bryan Poole, who also performs as The Late B.P. Helium.”

I really got excited when I listened to the first of Montreal song on the Coachella music player (Suffer For Fashion), because instantly it hit me. It’s new wave! But with with live guitars! Then I listened to a few other of their songs and found that I had just lucked out on one track. of Montreal are odd because you feel good listening to their upbeat tunes (think Dressy Bessy) but once you start paying attention to what lead singer Kevin Barnes is actually singing you realize how gloomy his lyrics actually are. It’s okay, but not for me.

Likelyhood of Seeing at Coachella: Not for me.

Read on to view of Montreal live videos…

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Name: Noisettes
Genre: Indie
Day: Friday

Wikipedia sez: “Noisettes are an indie rock band from London comprising singer and bassist Shingai Shoniwa, guitarist Dan Smith, and drummer Jamie Morrison. They recorded their debut EP Three Moods of The Noisettes during this time, which was released in April 2005 on London indie label Side Salad Records. This led to signing internationally with Universal Music Group, who released the EP in the US on the Low Altitude imprint. Their next single, “Iwe” was released via the Transgressive label, followed by “Scratch Your Name” on Mercury/Side Salad Records; since then all releases have been on the Vertigo Records label.”

I think I can safely say that Noisettes wouldn’t get the attention they get if it wasn’t for the quirky voice of lead singer Shingai Shoniwa, because if it was a dude singing for ‘em they would be even more forgettable then they are now. Thanks to the blow up of English indie a lot of bands have got attention - some good, some bad, some average, and Noisettes fill the average group out thanks to their bland, inoffensive rock tunes. There are plenty of artists to spend time on at Coachella, so I won’t bother with these three.

Likelyhood of Seeing at Coachella: Nah.

Read on to view Noisettes live videos…

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Name: Nickel Creek
Genre: Country
Day: Friday

Wikipedia sez: “Nickel Creek is a Grammy Award-winning American acoustic music trio with roots in bluegrass, which is now sometimes described as “progressive bluegrass” or “progressive acoustic.” The band is composed of three permanent members: Chris Thile (mandolin), Sara Watkins (violin), and her brother Sean Watkins (guitar). The band’s fourth guest member has been less permanent, although he is always a dynamic part of their performance. This position is currently filled by Mark Schatz (string bass), and it has previously been filled by Scott Thile, Edgar Meyer, Byron House, and Robert Trujillo. Over the band’s three official albums, Nickel Creek’s musical style seems to have shifted from contemporary bluegrass to the incorporation of indie rock elements, covering songs by Radiohead, Pavement, Elliott Smith, Bob Dylan, and even Toxic by Britney Spears, which has become a crowd favorite at their shows. However, the core influence of bluegrass remains evident in all three albums.”

I lost count of how many versions of the Toxic cover I found on YouTube. It’s a cute version too, but at the end of the day it’s forgettable like most covers. Nickel Creek make bluegrass music, nice peaceful sounding music that you could fall asleep to at times (Tommorow is a Long Time) or get fired up and dance with a partner to (The Fox). I don’t mind the odd country track at all, but with so many acts that I already want to see on Friday, I doubt I will want to see country’s version of Me First & The Gimmie Gimmies perform at Coachella.

Likelyhood of Seeing at Coachella: Probably not.

Read on to view Nickel Creek live videos…

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