Coachella 2022 Recap
by Lana Fleischli
Hello to anyone and everyone reading this,
I haven’t been able to write in a bit and my mental health hasn’t been in the best place to write; however, writing makes me happy, so for this article, I wanted to reflect on none other than Coachella!
As I have recently been able to go to more shows and am inspired not just by the music but also by the artistry, I think it’s a good idea to reflect on more aspects if possible. Coachella is an event that I have had the immense privilege of going to since I was little. I do not take this lightly and I want to address the privilege I’ve had, because it’s such a fun experience and I feel very lucky to have gotten to go.
I stayed with my friend and my grandparents and our whole group consisted of my friend Claire, a family friend Juanita, her friend Anh, and somehow also my mom’s attorney Ryan (he showed up at one point and just spent the weekend with us).
I like Coachella not in spite of, but because of its mainstream-ness. It gives me a chance to see artists I like, but also see artists that I probably wouldn’t pay to see, but with free passes, it’s worth checking them out! I end up being surprised by many artists and from recommendations or accidental stops at random stages, I get to learn about artists that I will soon love. This happened to me notably in 2019 when I was with mine and my mom’s friend Natalie and she took me to see HER. I had never listened to HER, but I have been listening ever since.
For the rest of this article, I am just going to reflect over the most memorable shows I saw this year. Claire really wanted to see Carly Rae Jepsen– yes, the “Call Me Maybe” girl. I sighed a fake jokingly dramatic sigh and said that I would go for her. I was shocked at how much I enjoyed her show. As an artist, she has pivoted from her ultra pop music to still poppy, but with an indie flare that was interesting. Her voice is amazing, and I adored her stage presence. She grabbed the audience.
Omar Apollo singing “Tamagotchi” on the Coachella Stage.
Omar Apollo was also a fun show to watch. He recently released his new album Ivory and I gave it a listen. It is an album filled with ballads in Spanish and then suddenly– a song about the Japanese toy Tamagotchi comes on and it was a shock to me. I showed this song to my friends because I really couldn’t tell if I liked it or not. It is totally random and weird but I kind of love it. Is it so bad it’s good? I love Omar Apollo’s other music but this song really stood out to me. This interest was furthered by seeing him play Coachella, because when it came on, the graphic became intensely about this Japanese toy. The crowd was having so much fun watching him play, especially when he played “Tamagotchi.”
Another highlight was IDLES. They were kind of insane in the most incredible way. They really took advantage of the stage to be exactly who they are. At one point, they did a medley of random “classics.” Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You,” along with Carly Rae Jepsen’s “Call Me Maybe” and “Sign of The Times” among many other wild cards of songs that I personally would not expect to hear at a punk show by French Canadian white men. I loved this show. It was shocking and fun, and I have to listen to more of IDLES.
Run The Jewels has a special place in my heart and I just love them. Their show was so fun for me because they told personal stories and as an audience member, I could feel how connected they were with their music. They also included their families. Killer Mike brought out his kids and dog at the end of the show for a picture on the stage and it was so heartwarming. Their stage set up was simple and striking. They had their classic hand in the shape of a gun pointing at the fist as sculptures of some sort hung above them. (If you have trouble visualizing, look at any of their album covers.)
We later caught Phoebe Bridgers and to be frank, I bawled. It was so emotional for me. Her voice was beautiful and her quirky personality came out a bit, which was funny. She had lovely visuals that made me nostalgic for a “simpler time.”
After that we watched Daniel Caesar, we swooped through Harry Styles and then caught the end of King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard.
That was just Friday! So on Saturday, some highlights for me were Caroline Polacheck with a beautiful stage presence, Arlo Parks whose soft voice makes me feel safe and warm, BROCKHAMTON, and Billie Eilish.
It was BROCKHAMPTON’s last show ever. All of the members wore jackets that said “All Good Things Must Come To An End.” They had an installation of a giant gorilla that danced along to their music and they seemed to be having so much fun, but overall, it was a bittersweet goodbye to the collective.
Run The Jewels
Billie Eilish’s show was also incredible. She has such a presence and really owned the stage. It was easy to tell that she really prepared for her headlining set, having her brother and producer Finneas front and center for an acoustic segment, bringing out Hayley Williams of Paramore, and at one point she ended up in a lift and rotated around the whole crowd. It was a picture perfect moment.
On Sunday, we caught the end of Fred Again… who had the entire tent and the 100 foot radius around it dancing, a bit of the filled-up stage called the Sonora where Current Joys played, and then caught Doja Cat who, as expected, brought her A Game complete with backup dancer and outfit changes, people were dancing to every song.
Personally, I had an amazing time at Coachella and any chance to see music is worth it. I liked getting to see bands that I generally wouldn’t be able to see or wouldn’t give a chance. Festivals give me a space to expand my music knowledge and listen to bands that I maybe wouldn’t see normally.