Posted on 05/01/2004 8:00:20 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
INDIO, Calif. (AP) - Tens of thousands of music fans descended on this California desert town Saturday, despite sizzling temperatures, for a two-day music festival featuring more than 80 rock, rap and other acts.
Organizers of the Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival anticipated crowds of around 50,000 people on each of the two days of performances on the grassy grounds of the Empire Polo Field.
Fans tried to keep cool as the midday temperature reached 90 degrees by huddling in shade under large open-sided tents.
"I'm drinking a lot of water and trying not to think about it," said Tanya Perez, 22, of Burbank, as she awaited the performances of Radiohead and Beck.
Those suffering from the heat sought relief at first-heat aid centers that provided water and a place to rest and five people were hospitalized for heat-related symptoms, said Ben Guitron, an Indio police spokesman. Six people were arrested for allegedly scalping tickets and for drug and alcohol violations.
The festival, in its fifth year, is one of the biggest showcases of live music in the United States. This year's lineup boasts acts covering a wide range of genres playing concurrently on five stages.
Anthony Consillo, 31, an elementary school teacher, came from San Francisco to see the show. He wore a white-brimmed straw hat and had sun block smeared on his face as he ate ice cream.
"I'm not drinking beer until it gets dark," he said.
Consillo said he was "super-psyched" about seeing the Pixies, a reunited alternate rock group from the 1980s on its first tour in more than a decade.
While some could hardly tolerate the heat, others embraced the sunshine by spreading out on beach towels with limbs exposed.
The first band to take the main stage was the Section Quartet, which plays rock songs on violin and other classical instruments. Among their offerings was a version of Radiohead's "Paranoid Android."
Other acts scheduled to perform over the two-days were The Cure, indie rockers the Flaming Lips, electronica duo The Crystal Method, rapper Dizzee Rascal, and several DJs, including Jane's Addiction frontman Perry Farrell's alter ego Peretz.
Questions were raised earlier this week about whether Radiohead lead singer Thom Yorke would be able to perform late Saturday night at the festival. Yorke reportedly was battling a throat ailment, but event organizers said the band would go on with their performance, which is their only scheduled U.S. appearance this year.
The heat did not keep thousands from dancing inside a tent, where Farrell worked the turntables spinning high-energy techno beats.
Cathy Low, 33, was drenched in sweat and gyrating to the music.
"That's the way it's supposed to be when you go to a dance club or rave," she said, referring to the heat. "I thought it would be really hot but compared to outside it's not."
Saturday's show sold out weeks in advance. Tickets retailed for $76 - not including additional fees - and were going for $400 and up on eBay.
About 6,000 concertgoers planned to spend the evening in sleeping bags or tents in a crowded campground, while others would jam into hotels in nearby Palm Springs.
"I'm not drinking beer until it gets dark," he said.
It gets awful hot in Coachella, We'll see. ;-)
Alternative rock band the Pixies, (L-R) Joey Santiago (guitar), David Lovering (drums), Frank Black (news) (vocals and guitar) and Kim Deal (news) (bass), perform before 1,600 fans at the sold-out Burton Cummings Theatre in Winnipeg, April 14, 2004. The Boston-based rockers were an influential alternative band in the late 80's and have not toured since they broke up in 1993. The first leg of the tour culminates on May 1st at the Coachella Festival in Indio, California. PICTURE TAKEN ON APRIL 14 REUTERS/Fred Greenslade
He must have taken a wrong turn in Albuquerque.
Doh! I drink one, single Kalik, and then I can't read. Man, am I down to brain cell minimums.
The Auto Club 500 today. :-} Lots of fans there today too.
NASCAR stuff on an artsy&musicky thread. :-)
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