Coachella for poor people, part 5

Here’s another bunch of Saturday bands peforming at Coachella.

Saturday, April 18

The Bloody Beetroots (DJ set) (Sahara Tent, 6:00-7:00 pm)

Electro / Punk / Tropical – Italy | MySpace

Bob Rifo, originally from Italy, is the main force behind The Bloody Beetroots. He has a classical background and is influenced by punk and 80s New Wave. He mixes electro, punk, acid house, and hip hop. Live, he’s joined by Tommy Tea. Not for the faint-hearted. European tour after Coachella.

Tinariwen (Gobi Tent, 6:15-7:05 pm)

Roots Music / Rock / Blues – Mali | MySpace | official site

African “desert rock” strongly influenced by both traditional music of their own homeland and artists like Santana, Bob Dylan, Led Zeppelin, and Jimi Hendrix. It’s a fascinating mix of blues, rock guitar riffs, and something uniquely African. It really works!

James Morrison (Mohave Tent, 7:20-8:10 pm)

Soul / Rock / Alternative – United Kingdom | MySpace | official site

An English singer-songwriter with smooth, soulful vocals. Decent band too. Influenced by Stevie Wonder, Otis Redding, Van Morrison, and Al Green. After Coachella he continues a 4-month U.S. and European tour.

“Broken Strings” on YouTube

TRV$DJ-AM (Sahara Tent, 7:20-8:20 pm)

DJ / Dance | MySpace | official site

(from their MySpace page): “With two turntables and a full drum kit, drummer impresario TRAVIS BARKER and world class DJ AM expose music enthusiasts to a threatening new performance style.” They incorporate everything from hip-hop to rock to music from the 80’s. Pretty strange. They’re unique; I’ll give them that.

Junior Boys (Gobi Tent, 8:45-9:35 pm)

“Visual / Pop” – Hamilton, Ontario, Canada | MySpace | official site

An electronic/pop duo from Canada (currently Jeremy Greenspan and Matt Didemus), they’ve released three albums and one EP, most recently “Begone Dull Care” (2009). After Coachella, they’ll be touring the U.S., Canadian, and Europe through mid-June.

Turbonegro (Mohave Tent, 9:50-10:40 pm)

Punk / Rock – Oslo, Norway | MySpace | official site

More metal sounding than punk, at least to my ears (from the first few tracks on MySpace). Not bad, but I haven’t really hit on anything I’d say is “special” – for me, anyway.

Glass Candy (Gobi Tent, 10:00-10:50 pm)

Freestyle – Portland, Oregon | MySpace

An electronic band formed in 1996 by Ida No (vocals) and Johnny Jewel (drums, programming; he also plays in the Chromatics). Influenced by freestyle music, Krautrock, hip-hop and New Wave. Some of it has a definite 80’s feel, and at times, the vocals are somewhat reminiscent of Nina Hagen and Lene Lovich).

Gang Gang Dance (Gobi Tent, 11:15 pm)

Big Beat – New York, NY | MySpace | official site

An indie experimental band with interesting vocals and a rather unique sound. Some rap, some electronic. They’ve performed shows with Sonic Youth, Massive Attack, Animal Collective, and TV on the Radio. Their latest album is “Saint Dymphna”, released in 2008 by independent label The Social Registry.