It’s evolved a lot since an acclaimed but money-losing debut in 1999, but Coachella remains the iconic American music festival two decades later.
As the Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival marks its 20th anniversary this weekend, it’s easy to forget what a rare and unexpected surprise the very first fest was in 1999.
First of all, most of you weren’t there – only 20,000 or so fans “filled” the Empire Polo Field to hear artists such as the Chemical Brothers and Beck, Rage Against the Machine and Tool.
Second, those few who were there had never seen anything like it. Crisp green grass instead of asphalt or dirt. Reasonable prices at the concession stands and sparkling clean porta-potties one could enter without fear of death and disease.
And coming just a few months after the festival disaster known as Woodstock ’99, the mellow, music-loving audience got its fill of alternative rock, electronic beats, and a touch of hip-hop, too.
“Just what was so perfect about it?” mused former Orange County Register music critic Ben Wener in his first-ever desert dispatch. “Mostly that everyone showed for the music. In return, the sounds they received ranged from utterly enthralling to at least engaging.”
To celebrate the 20th Coachella, we looked back at its history and sorted it into five eras in order to present this look at the festival that changed the landscape of how music and art and culture are presented in the United States, if not the world.
No. 1: The difficult early years
As exciting as that first Coachella was, it came close to being a one-and-done. Coachella creators Goldenvoice not only lost their shirt on the festival that first year, they also lost their shoes, their socks, and the pair of pants that had about $750,000 of company cash in its pockets.
It was such a financial hit that the company’s survival seemed at risk, Goldenvoice officials have said, but at the same time that terrible news was offset by the response of fans, critics, musicians and bands, all of whom saw what Coachella had been and might continue to be and wanted more.
There was no Coachella in 2000, and when it resumed in 2001 it was for just one day, shifting from October to April, with Perry Farrell reuniting Jane’s Addiction to headline.
No. 2: Critical acclaim and sold-out weekends
Take a look at Coachella 2004 and you can see a festival that has taken off: Radiohead is there behind its “Hail To The Thief” album on Saturday, taking over the main stage after the reunited Pixies set the Coachella template for beloved bands getting back together at the fest.
