When the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival announced its 2013 lineup the night of Thursday, Jan. 24, there was no hologram of rapper Tupac Shakur topping the bill, nor a repeat appearance from hip-hop heavyweights from Jay-Z or Kanye West that have dominated the Indio festival’s bill the past three years.
Likewise, there was no sign of the big-ticket legacy rock acts such as Paul McCartney or Roger Waters who topped the lineups the years before that.
But when the official list — with more than 100 acts from around the globe who will descend upon the Empire Polo Club in Indio for twin weekends April 12-14 and April 19-21 — hit the Internet, it was Coachella’s most Coachella-esque lineup yet.
Headlining the event that has become an iconic kickoff to the nation’s festival season are Britpop heavyweights Blur and the Stone Roses, in their the first announced U.S. reunion dates; pleasing French indie rockers Phoenix; and a band that helped define alternative music, the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
All but the Stone Roses, who haven’t played the U.S. in nearly 20 years, have graced Coachella’s stages at least once since the taste-making festival’s inception in 1999.
“It’s one of those lineups where, when you first see it, you’re a little unsure,” said Dave Brooks, managing editor of concert industry magazine Venues Today.
But, the appeal grows the more the lineup sinks in, he said.
On social media, fans of the festival and the bands were discussing the strength and depth of the secondary “undercard” acts, which include cult icons Lou Reed and Nick Cave.
Plus, there are reunions of Los Angeles hip-hop outfit Jurassic 5 and electronic indie rock group The Postal Service, as well as a healthy crop of established artists such as art-rockers Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Orange County punks Social Distortion and iconic hip-hop collective Wu-Tang Clan.
“The have pretty strong hip-hop and electronic bookings this year,” Brooks said.
For the fans of electronic dance music, which Coachella has championed since the festival’s inception, promoter Goldenvoice is offering up everyone from trance legend Paul Oakenfold to Dog Blood, a side project of previous Coachella performers Skrillex and Boys Noize.
Then, there are the dozens of emerging acts in smaller type who could be the festival's headliners of the future.
“It’s such a launch now for any artist,” Brooks said. “You not only get your name on a marquee event, you’re playing in front of a huge audience.”
But music is only part of the Coachella equation — the sun-drenched polo fields are a playground for fashion and art, and an annual vacation for many of its 80,000-plus attendees.
In 2012, the first year Coachella had twin editions with identical lineups, the concert sold out in hours, its fastest sell-out ever.
A month after the 2012 festivals concluded, Goldenvoice released an allotment of advance-sale tickets for 2013, which were also gone within hours.
“I think a lot of people are buying on experience,” Brooks said.
Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. PST Tuesday, Jan. 29 at www.coachella.com.
New for this year, all fees are included in the ticket price for domestic U.S. customers.
* General admission passes are $349 (and are sold out for weekend one without the combination of a camping or a shuttle pass).
* GA passes with a shuttle pass are $399.
* GA passes with a camping pass are $434.
* GA festival passes plus car camping pass (for two people) are $783.
* VIP passes are $799 (only available for weekend two).
* For luxury camping options and other packages, visit the Festival Passes page at www.coachella.com.
Follow Vanessa Franko on Twitter at @vanessafranko
COACHELLA 2013 LINEUP
Friday, April 12 and 19
Blur
The Stone Roses
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Modest Mouse
Lou Reed
Jurassic 5
grinderman
Bassnectar
Dog Blood
How to Destroy Angels
Passion Pit
Tegan and Sara
Band of Horses
beach House
Metric
Local Natives
Of Monsters and Men
Infected Mushroom
Japandroids
Divine Fits
Stars
Johnny Marr
Luciano
Wolfgang Gartner
Nicky Romero
Modestep
Tommy Trash
Thomas Gold
The Shouting Matches
Dillon Francis
Four Tet
Aesop Rock
Alt-J
Jello Biafra and the Guantanamo School of Medicine
TNGHT
Jake Bugg
Earl Sweatshirt
Polica
Sparks
Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra
Purity Ring
Lee Scratch Perry
Dam-Funk
DJ Harvey
Jamie xx
Seth Troxler
Youth Lagoon
Deathfix
C2C
Beardyman
Lord Huron
Palma Violets
ID Echo
Skinny Lister
The Neighbourhood
Sam XL Pure Filth Sound
Saturday, April 13 and 20
Phoenix
The xx
The Postal Service
Sigur Ros
New Order
Hot Chip
Grizzly Bear
Knife Party
Benny Benassi
Two Door Cinema Club
Moby
Descendents
Yeasayer
Franz Ferdinand
Violent Femmes
Simian Mobile Disco
Spiritualized
Puscifer
Cafe Tacuba
Portugal. The Man
The Make-Up
Bat for Lashes
Richie Hawtin
Major Lazer
Fedde Le Grand
Dropkick Murphys
Foals
Ben Howard
2 Chainz
Janelle Monae
Danny Brown
Wild Nothing
Booka Shade
Bingo Players
Allen Stone
El-P
The Selecter
Pusha T
Kill the Noise
The Evens
Biffy Clyro
Theophilus London
Baauer
Zane Lowe
Trash Talk
Birdy Nam Nam
Action Bronson
Jason Bentley
The Wombats
Guards
Mona
Savages
Shovels & Rope
Huoratron
Kurt Vile
Reignwolf
Cassy
2Ball MTY
Kids These Days
The 2 Bears
The Colourist
Vintage Trouble
Sunday, April 14 and 21
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
Vampire Weekend
Social Distortion
Wu-Tang Clan
Pretty Lights
Eric Prydz
Tame Imapala
The Lumineers
Dead Can Dance
La Roux
James Blake
Excision
Grimes
The Gaslight Anthem
The Faint
Hardwell
Paul Oakenfold
Dinosaur Jr.
Raider Klan
OMD
Roni Size
The Airborne Toxic Event
Father John Misty
Tanlines
Rodriguez
Alex Clare
Paul Kalkbrenner
Jessie Ware
Loco Dice
Jamie Jones
The Three O’Clock
Disclosure
Mimosa
Cloud Nothings
Parov Stelar Band
Julio Bashmore
Thee Oh Sees
Dub Fx
Maya Jane Coles
JEFF the Brotherhood
Smith Westerns
Dirtyphonics
Joris Voorn
Hanni El Khatib
Danny Avila
Ghost
DIIV
Little Green Cars
Mord Fustang
James McCartney
Unicorn Kid
Robert DeLong
White Arrows
Deap Vally
Wild Belle
Adrian Lux
Ladies Night
