Skip to content
News

Who Is and Who Isn’t Playing Coachella 2013: What We Know

mick jagger, morrissey, coachella

Coachella’s official 2013 lineup announcement is expected sometime in the (very) near future, which means the hearsay-devouring speculation cycle has kicked into overdrive. To help you wade through all the non-committal B.S., SPIN has cobbled together everything we know about this year’s bill so far.

The Postal Service will probably be there.
Billboard reported today (January 21) that the now officially reunited Postal Service are set to deliver their digi-pop tunes on the Indio stage, just in time for the tenth anniversary of the duo’s only studio album, the newly platinum-certified Give Up.

Bat For Lashes will almost certainly be there.
As Consequence of Sound points out, Natasha Khan reportedly let slip earlier this month (during a performance-slash-Q&A with Flavorpill) that she’s going to bring The Haunted Man and more to Empire Polo Grounds this spring.

No, the Rolling Stones won’t headline.
Weeks of rumors that the Rolling Stones would lead the Coachella 2013 lineup have proved to be just that. The NME got Mick Jagger to confirm that the Stones will not be playing the festival. “We’re not gonna do Coachella, ‘cos it’s too early,” Jagger said. “There was a rumor we were gonna do that one, but it’s very early, Coachella. It’s April or something, isn’t it? And we’re not gonna be ready to go by April.” Rolling Stone first reported the news last week, citing a source close to the English rock icons who said the band wouldn’t appear at either of the So Cal fest’s two weekends (April 12 to 14 and April 19 to 21, respectively).

Speculation that the Stones would lead the annual showcase ran wild over the last few weeks. Back in December, fans noticed that an April 12 gig in Indio, California labeled “Coachella 2013” was uploaded to the band’s mobile app, but the date was subsequently removed without any comment. Following that, Coachella organizers seemed to make a winking reference to the premature announcement on January 3 by posting a Facebook photo of what appeared to be a smooth, round rock sitting on the festival grounds (the stone hadn’t gathered any moss — get it?). Billboard later reported that the object in question was actually just a polo ball — a reference to the event’s location, the Empire Polo Grounds.

And the Smiths still won’t reunite, vegan options be damned.
Another beloved British act to cross off the list of hopeful guests? The Smiths. Morrissey has yet again denied a plea from Coachella promoters to reunite with his former bandmates, the Huffington Post reported last week. The millions-generating festival once offered to go completely meatless in an effort to convince the emphatic vegetarian to play with Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr (who, coincidentally, has a new album to promote right now), but not even a PETA-friendly menu could sway the Mozzer.

The Daft Punk speculation was pretty much DOA.
Reports circulated that Daft Punk were going to bring their Tron-friendly light show to the desert after an email alert from ticketing site Songkick claimed they’d be headliners (via Pretty Much Amazing). The NME later deflated that dream, reporting that Daft Punk won’t play any concerts for the entirety of 2013.

But what about Phoenix and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs?
Phoenix and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs were also mentioned in that Songkick alert. Both bands have new albums on the way, which make a high-profile festival gig likely, but as of now there’s been no official word on whether either group will end up on the final bill. Phoenix has already plotted a return to the States at the New Orleans Jazz Fest, which almost conflicts with Coachella’s dates. Fortunately, the two fests happen on different weekends.

Any other notable maybes?
Yes — Grizzly Bear and the xx. Both bands have recently revealed upcoming North American tour dates, and both have shows booked for April 15 and 16 (Grizzly Bear in Big Sur, CA; the xx in Tempe, AZ and Las Vegas, NV) that aren’t too far from Indio.

The rest of the already-confirmed artists:
The following acts are pretty much guaranteed to play Coachella 2013: Father John Mistry, as per our S.S. Coachella coverage; British singer-songwriter Alex Clare (via Rolling Stone); Israeli rocktronica duo Infected Mushroom (via Your EDM); dubstep DJ Kill the Noise (via Billboard); German EDM star Paul Kalkbrenner (via PureVolume); the Dirtybird Players Club tour collective (via SPL Agency); folk lifer Sixto Rodriguez (via Willamette Week); the Underachievers (via Twitter); and Vintage Trouble (via Facebook).