Coachella Weekend One Brought the Heat With Kendrick Lamar, Lady Gaga, and Radiohead

Jordan Bailey

Weekend one of Coachella 2017 is officially a wrap. With all the highs and lows intact, April 14-16 went off without a hitch (except for Radiohead that is). The heat was on – both literally and metaphorically – as throughout the three days of festivities, artists mentioned the temperature during their respective sets, commenting on how much they appreciated their fans braving the daytime heat which reached the mid-90’s. Coachella also saw a new layout which included an addition of 20 acres and The Terrace, a new Disneyland-style section featuring all things music and non-music. This expansion also saw the stages built further apart to account for the new influx of fans.

Outstanding in the Field is Coachella’s answer to those looking for a taste of new LA during their festival experience. This $225 ticket got fans access to a large-scale meal and cocktail sitting just outside one of the stages. While many purchased this ticket to simply enjoy a respite from food trucks and beer, some found a loophole when they noticed they could purchase this dinner along VIP passes allowing them access to the sold-out event with the benefit of getting a delectable multi-course meal. Fans sipped on a Jameson cocktail with homemade ginger beer and bitters while dining on roast lamb shoulder topped off with an olive oil cake with candied almonds and blood orange.  

Another addition for 2017 was Hacienda del Toro, a new VIP area which housed an exclusive pop-up by Broken Shaker bar from Miami. This James-Beard nominated cocktail bar served up refreshingly homemade drinks to fans who needed it due to these unusually high temperatures. Those who missed out, fear not, as Broken Shaker will open a brick-and-mortar spot in the Freehand Hotel in LA later in the year.

As far as performances go, Radiohead was the talk of the weekend, though not necessarily for good. Amidst a solid performance of tracks both new and old, Coachella’s main stage sound was abruptly and disastrously thwarted by what lead singer Thom Yorke blamed on “Fucking aliens again.” Oddly enough, Radiohead has often warned against society’s complacent allegiance to technology, so perhaps a bit of cosmic karma here. Nonetheless, the gang managed to take it in stride and perform a surprising number of old-school jams including “Karma Police,” “Paranoid Android,” “No Surprises” and even “Creep.” The band’s last album “A Moon Shaped Pool” made a strong appearance, of course. “Daydreaming,” the acoustic-lead “Desert Island Dusk” and a more sensorial version of “Burn the Witch” all made their way into the setlist. While they had to leave the stage twice during this performance, creating an uncomfortable rift with the crowd, Radiohead are no amateurs, and they made sure fans got what they paid for.

Lady Gaga filled the spot Beyoncé was meant to take but was forced to drop due to her pregnancy. Perhaps a tall task for any normal pop-star, but Gaga pulled all the stops from the very beginning with an image of her face containing a protruding snake, followed by the woman herself appearing in a leather-clad dominatrix outfit. Fans were bearing witness to a true pop star in all her glory… but it didn’t seem to last all that long. While hits like “Just Dance,” “Love Game,” “Born This Way” and the Beyoncé feature “Telephone” brought the house down, they were interspersed with new tracks that seemed to fall flat. Her last album “Joanne” wasn’t the most well-received in her catalogue, so when these tunes were played on stage, the crowd seemed to lose interest. She did an EDM version of the sweet, country ballad “Million Reasons” which felt odd but brought the crowd back with “A-YO.” Overall though, Gaga picked through all her various genre-teasers, and the primarily millennial crowd was on board.

Future brought with him his down-south trap stylings to the desert. Those who like vapid radio-ready beats and catchy melodies found his set to-die-for, but fans seeking any semblance of depth and sincerity were left wanting more. As the MC and his crew blazed through hits like “Blasé,” “New Level,” and “Shit,” the side screens featured images of biting dogs, shaking asses and the soft-drink Sprite. Highlights for this set included a feature from Migos who played their hit “Bad and Boujee”. The real climax, however, was reached when Drake made an appearance. It’s uncommon for an artist to bring out a fellow genre artist who’s significantly more popular than them, but Future wasn’t afraid of sharing the spotlight. The two sang their duet “Jumpman” ahead of Drake taking charge for three of his own tunes including “Fake Love.”

Bon Iver returned to Coachella after his 2009 performance left fans wanting more from the experimental folk artist. “22, A Million”, his most recent record, saw him getting even more eccentric, and more experimental, than when he last took the desert stage. This is a concept fans dug in a live setting as the artist played “33 GOD” and “8 (Circle)” on the main stage. His signature voice modulation and intricate electronics blasted the eager crowd’s discerning ears as they grooved along to his deep cuts.

Porter Robinson and Madeon performed together on the main stage ahead of Lorde and Kendrick. These two are what’s right within the world of DJs. Not only are their stylings completely symbiotic but these young men are so talented that it’s almost a shame to lump them into the EDM genre. Their set was free of cheap build-ups but instead consisted of gorgeous melodies, subtle yet sweet vocals, and even an acoustic rendition “Shelter.” Before they left the stage for the last time as a duo, they made sure the crowd knew this was the best night of their lives.

Lorde opened her set in dramatic fashion, as she is wont to do. “Tennis Courts” was up first, one of the New Zealander’s initial hits. This, followed by the Disclosure-produced tune “Magnets” and plenty of Lorde’s signature, albeit oddly compelling and beautiful, dance moves. One highlight of her performance other than her impeccable presence was an elevated stage she placed above her stage that quite literally housed numerous actors/dancers performing throughout her set. Coachella got a special treat as Lorde played a brand spanking new track called “Homemade Dynamite” from her forthcoming album “Melodrama” (June 16), which she prefaced by asking fans to give her “…the best fucking birthday ever.”

Tove Lo played Sunday evening to a crowd full of fans that seemingly knew all the words to each and every one of her catchy pop tunes. She ran through “Cool Girl” and “Lady Wood” from her latest album of the same name, plus the Flume-produced track “Say It,” then finished her set with the song that got it all started, “Habits (Stay High).” Fans were surprised when Wiz Khalifa appeared on stage to sing their tune “Influence.” She also shared some intimacy with fans when she flashed the crowd during a very sexy rendition of “Talking Body.”

Kendrick Lamar was easily the most sought-after performance of Sunday evening, not only because of his very recently dropped album “DAMN.” received instant love among fans, but also because he was the last performance of Coachella’s first weekend. Lamar’s a storyteller by nature, and he came out like a conductor ready to lead the massive crowd across the very desert they stood upon. Lamar kicked things off in the same dramatic fashion his new album does, with an audacious quote from a FOX News talking-head, followed by a nasty drop into the first track “DNA.” This album hit shelves the weekend before this performance, so fans were already familiar with these tunes that Lamar was performing for the first time. The biggest moments during his close-out set were predictable, yet well-presented, and of course, performed. “King Kunta” from 2015’s protest album sent the crowd into a frenzy, followed by the down-tempo, yet still arousing “Swimming Pools (Drank)” which describes how to party in Compton. From there, Lamar segued into arguably his biggest, most lyrically well-recognized hit “Bitch Don’t Kill My Vibe.” The set consisted of performance artists, film segments and plenty of guest appearances as well. Future seems to be everywhere at once including on stage during this set to perform “That Part” with Lamar and Schoolboy Q. Travis Scott joined K-Dot as well for the radio-hit “Goosebumps.” Another highlight was his rendition of “HUMBLE.”, Lamar’s latest smash single. The white-clad rapper was solo for this one, but fans responded with plenty of enthusiasm underscoring the set as a whole.

The Weeknd also made himself known over weekend one, and not only as him and girlfriend Selena Gomez were relentlessly photographed for PDA. Along with his protégé Nav he took the stage together to play their track “Some Way.” Other performers making headlines throughout the first weekend were Phantogram, who’s lead singer Sarah Barthel, alongside their own set, played with Local Natives. The drop-in’s continued as LA-based jazz-funk bassist Thundercat brought out legendary soul singer Michael McDonald to perform “Show You The Way” from Thundercat’s most recent album. Renowned composer Hans Zimmer played scores from films like “Inception” and “The Lion King” while also bringing out Pharrell to perform “Freedom” from “Hidden Figures.” Overall, weekend number one was filled with surprises and less than a week from now, we’ll know how Coachella 2017 ends.

The first weekend of Coachella took place April 14-16 and weekend two continues at the Empire Polo Club from April 21st through the 23rd.