As the famous Coachella ferris wheel turned its final spin Saturday night (April 16) signaling the close of Day Two, the massive talent lineup was festival-goers’ worst scheduling conflict nightmare. With acts like CHVRCHES, Disclosure, Zedd, Ice Cube, Guns N’ Roses, Matthew Dear, Dubfire, Halsey and more bringing their A-game to the dusty polo fields of Indio, California, many artist sets were littered with surprise guest performers.
Here are some of our most memorable highlights from the second day of Coachella.
CHVRCHES
Scottish synthpop trio, CHVRCHES, ushered in the mellow vibes during sunset at the mainstage field, preparing attendees for the eclectic and star-studded roster of mega-talent to come. The live indie outfit performed many tracks off their latest LP Every Open Eye, including crowd favorites “Clearest Blue” and “Leave A Trace” while the band’s frontwoman and vocalist, Lauren Mayberry, kept the audiences entertained in between with cheeky banter about far left topics that left revelers dumbfounded.
DJ Koze
German DJ and producer, DJ Koze, made his Coachella debut at the festival’s designated house and techno arena known as the Yuma tent. While the Hamburg native rarely tours, his productions and performances over the course of his 20-year career have been widely celebrated in the underground dance space, yet his stateside gig last night dazzled new American audiences who weren’t as familiar with his brand. His hard-hitting techno and groovy baselines permeated throughout the pitch-black tent as dance battles and shuffle-offs erupted on the dance floor. Let’s just say, DJ Koze could not have had a more stellar inaugural launch at Coachella.
Disclosure
UK live electronic duo, Disclosure, showcased their plethora of dance pop hits surprising the endless sea of patrons at the mainstage with guest cameos from their sophomore album Caracal. Major artists like Lorde and Sam Smith showed up to a maniacal reception from spectators to perform their respective singles “Magnets” and “Omen.” Aside from the A-list artist features, their stage setup included finely-crafted LED visuals as well as the crowd favorite “When A Fire Starts To Burn.”
Ice Cube
Hands down, Ice Cube’s set was one of this year’s most special performances. The legendary gangsta rapper and Compton-bred MC made it very clear he’s still got it, along with the remaining members of N.W.A. who he brought out for a throwback performance of some of their iconic hits. The most notable songs being “Straight Outta Compton” and “Fuck Tha Police” as dozens of policemen patrolled the hour-long set; the nostalgic moment teleported hip-hop fans back to the group’s rise in the late ’80s. Each surprise proved to be better than the last after Cube introduced his former archnemesis-turned-friend, Common, to the stage as clips of them together in the “Barbershop” franchise played out in the background. The cherry on top of the West Coast hip-hop sundae had to be Snoop Dogg’s guest appearance as his silhouette arose slowly from under the stage to reenact their classic jam “Go To Church” before performing a mini-medley of his own hits, including his collaboration with Dr. Dre on “Still D.R.E.” Overall, the hype was unrealistically high for Ice Cube this weekend, and he far surpassed that proving to critics everywhere (looking at you, Gene Simmons) that his induction into the Rock N’ Roll Hall Of Fame alongside N.W.A. has been a long time coming.