The Coachella lineup came out earlier this month, and per usual, music critics across the country have boasted their loathe and love for it. But as the double weekend at the polo fields of Indio marks the beginning of festival season, it’s our job to inform you about what’s happening and who’s who on the lineup. This year, Long Beach makes an impressive appearance on the bill adding to the festival’s overall diversity. It’s not often Orange County and Long Beach bands get booked to play major festivals like this, so it’s a pretty big deal. Here are the top four bands from the OC and LBC that will be playing in Indio this April.
The Vandals: Paving the way for bands like Blink-182 and the Offspring, the Vandals are perhaps one of the most important bands to come out of the OC. Considered one of the founding fathers of Orange County’s punk scene, the rockers became notorious during the ‘80s and early ‘90s for their antics around town. And I’m sure that’s putting it lightly—I mean, they even have a song titled “Costa Mesa Hates Me.” With songs so heavily rooted in OC culture, it’s hard not to connect and comprehend what they’re talking about. As Coachella typically isn’t known for booking vintage OC punk bands, it’s pretty stellar that they made it onto the bill—definitely a spot well earned. Needless to say, this will be the set where good vibes and fun times will be had by all.
Mr. Carmack: Although he’s technically from San Francisco and now resides in LA, Aaron Carmack had a several year stint studying music at CSULB before he dropped out and began sharing stages with Djs like Cashmere Cat and Diplo. His sound provides a genre spanning picture of the electronic landscape, as he artistically swirls psychedelia, hip-hop, and dreamy R&B—a truly unique sound to come out of LBC. Now booking massive festivals like Ultra South Africa, Coachella and this year’s recently announced Lightning In a Bottle, the Long Beach transient is currently soaring in the blue skies of success. So, despite the fact Mr. Carmack isn’t exactly from the LBC, it’s easy to feel proud about sharing the same stomping grounds.
Cold War Kids: The Long Beach based and Fullerton- bred-band helped light the path for the indie rock scene long before the clean-cut, sweater-wearing quartet gained fame (and before the word “indie” became an adjective that people use to describe everything). Defining their persona by stitching together passion soaked shows in small OC venues, the band has experienced phenomenal success, regardless of playing the biggest festivals in the universe. Unlike most indie bands who depend on festivals (like Coachella) to put their band in the public eye, the Cold War Kids play festivals because it’s a space for them to do what they love: Jam the fuck out. Having played Coachella in the past (and not just any kind of set—a magical sunset performance!) it’s almost guaranteed that the OC natives will leave you drooling for more.
Vince Staples: The 22-year-old rapper from Long Beach adds a specific flavor to this years Coachella line up. And honestly, without Staples on the bill, the line-up would be missing something. It would undoubtedly lack the particular intricacy and intelligence he brings not only to rap, but to music as a whole. Gaining remarkable respect from critics and other rappers after the release of his first album Summertime ’06 last June, Staples has become exactly what his name portrays: A staple. He’s become a permanent and influential entity in music who has the potential to move mountains—and it’s likely that he will.
