"but the California concert promoter has already released the lineup for the 2026 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, the earliest announcement since the event's inception in 1999. We're expected to know, before the leaves begin to turn, if we want to snag tickets at the "early bird" "discount" price of $650 (Weekend One) or $550 (Weekend Two) to see Kaskade, the DJ my EDM-curious dad once called "Ajax" by mistake (they're both cleaning supplies, after all)."
"For as long as it's been a tastemaker, Coachella has also been a harbinger of poptimism to come; griping about the festival's mainstream pulls and corporate sponsorships is one of the last reliable joys music snobs have in an otherwise algorithmic wasteland. And there is a small thrill that remains in trying to parse the " Zendaya-Is-Mechee" verbiage of "The Bunker Debut of Radiohead Kid A Mnesia." Still, today's announcement felt especially phoned in, as if the organizers threw darts at SNL musical guests."
"It's been a bear market for chill vibes at the Indio festival for the past couple of years. Coachella hasn't sold out since 2023, despite its release dates creeping earlier in the calendar each year. It's now typical to find resale tickets at vastly lower costs than their face value, as travel plans and weather become more precarious. In 2025, temperatures climbed above 100 degrees, becoming the hottest edition since 2012."
Coachella announced its 2026 lineup unusually early, offering early-bird tickets priced at $650 (Weekend One) and $550 (Weekend Two). The lineup mixes mainstream acts such as Kaskade and a Bunker debut referencing Radiohead's Kid A Mnesia, reflecting a pop-oriented and corporate-infused aesthetic. The festival has faced cooling demand, failing to sell out since 2023 and showing abundant resale tickets below face value. 2025 saw record heat with temperatures above 100°F, affecting attendee experience. More than half of general-admission buyers used buy-now-pay-later plans, spreading payments while straining financial flows for the promoter.
Read at Pitchfork
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]