5 Takeaways from Coachella 2026 + 5 Things We Need in 2027
The Coachella Stage Between Sets
I always thought the people who “Bothchella” Coachella were out of their minds, but I can say with certainty 2026 is the first year I wish I WOULD have attended TWO weekends of this annual desert bacchanal.
I came to Coachella for the first time in 2005 as a purist rock fan, but after 18 years attending, this place has been largely responsible for my growth as a music fan in multiple directions and genres—but especially toward electronic music.
This year the conflicts were brutal. The performances were potent. And the vibes, immaculate as always.
Coachella’s Iconic Ferris Wheel
Sahara
Having just wrapped its 25th anniversary last month with the festival’s first sell-out year since returning from the pandemic (and more accurately, since BEYCHELLA when Beyoncé headlined in 2018), promoter Goldenvoice proved it can still curate the rare performances, superstar showcases, guest appearances, feeder system, and overall energy that has placed Coachella at the forefront of American music culture over the last two-and-a-half decades.
People who don’t go to Coachella are most obsessed with picking apart the festival for its headliners, but those massive artists help to subsidize the rest of the festival and allow a ton of mid-sized and smaller artists to have their Coachella moment.
This year was packed with established and emerging perspectives on making noise in all its glorious forms.
I set my record this year, catching 40 acts over four days. Now that I’ve relived most of the Yuma and Sahara/Quasar sets in full on Coachella’s YouTube and edited through more than 2,000 pictures, I’ve had time to reflect on this year’s blessed Weekend 2.
Here are 5 TAKEAWAYS from Coachella 2026:
Aurora and Amalie Holt Kleive of Tomora
Women RULE The Desert
Coachella’s lineups used to be far more uneven in the balance between male and female-driven acts. Strides have been made over decades to be more inclusive, but 2026 was definitively the year of incredible women taking over the desert. Sabrina Carpenter staged her own musical AND featured a Madonna cameo. Karol G brought Colombian trap to Coachella and held the entire Latin world on her shoulders for one electric evening.
Norway’s Aurora—who is half of Tomora with The Chemical Brothers’ Tom Rowlands—was especially magnetic in producing my favorite performance of the festival, but the list is incredibly deep this year, and this is only the acts I saw; I regret I still missed so much:
Eleanor Livingston of Die Spitz in Sonora
Laufey, who I sadly missed, but delivered on my livestream catch-up; plus every female-led act I did see—Wednesday, Ninajirachi, Romy of The XX, Ethel Cain, Die Spitz (HOLY FUCK!), Noga Erez, Kacey Musgraves, Ecca Vandal, Mariqueen Maandig of Nine Inch Noize; Jane Remover; Wet Leg; Tomora ; FKA Twigs; and Sara Landry’s Blood Oath featuring Sara Landry, LP Giobbi, Tokimonsta, Mary Droppinz, Jenna Shaw, Cobrah, Chloe Caillet, Oona Dahl, Bad Girl Baile, Vnssa (and more?!).
To be honest, I think it’s time Coachella do the proper thing and run all female acts in the headline spots. What about:
DUA LIPA
SHAKIRA
RIHANNA
And
Stevie Nicks
With Paramore as a subhead for one of those nights. Quit playing Coachella. LFG.
Dubstep Gets Its Day
If you’re like me and think DNA-SHAKING WUBS RULE, then you were definitely at Levity, Subronics and Griz (who stopped by for a surprise set at the DoLaB on the Friday of W2; the other two played Sahara). It was a coronation in the desert for all three acts—with each drawing some of the biggest crowds of the festival to their respective stages.
Chicago trio Levity brought with them A FUCKING MASSIVE VOLCANO WITH RAINBOW FLAMES and SO MANY LASERS (courtesy of the incredible Corbin Sharpe).
Griz, who I’ve been chasing now for years to see live, ripped it up on the decks and a saxophone. In a sprinkle of Coachella magic, he played two of my favorite songs—Kelly Clarkson’s “Since U Been Gone” and Rüfüs Du Sol’s "Innerbloom"—nearly back-to-back.
AND SUBTRONICS … THAT BEAUTIFUL GENIUS … gave tens of thousands of people a full-body massage with thunderous bass that shook the ground so hard I saw a gopher trying to leave the area after digging up a hole (sorry, lil’ guy). Subtronics,
Subtronics was responsible for my absolute favorite Coachella moment of 2026—also high on the list of greatest Coachella moments of all time—for his triumphant airing of the chorus of Frank Sinatra’s “My Way” directly into what can only be described as the gnarliest, fuzzy-wubby deathbeam of sound and lasers I’ve ever seen and felt. An incredible juxtaposition of time and style.
There’s a reason Subtronics was recently named the most stress-relieving electronic artist in America, according to science, and this is it. I’ve watched my video of that drop at least 50 times since coming back home.
Lastly, I’d be remiss not to mention Japanese DJ-savant You$uke Yukimat$u who melted Sahara both weekends with incredible song selection, twists at every turn, and a surprising bit of dubstep on W2 that came after MGMT’s Electric Feel, Nine Inch Nails’ “The Hand That Feeds,” and Jaimie XX’s “Treat Each Other Right.” I picked up my phone and started recording and didn’t put it down for 27 minutes—that’s how good he was.
Boys Noize in the Yuma
Watch at Least 1 Set at EACH Stage
Every stage at Coachella offers its own programming, yes, but also it’s own vibe and energy.
There were many years where I’d walk through the Do LaB but never stay; now it’s one of my favorite stages. The gigantic main stage with its wrap-around screens is essentially the greatest visual boombox in North America. Sunset at the Outdoor Theater is a can’t miss, always. Sonora has become a consistent incubator of upcoming rock, indie, and electronic talent, while Mojave is the place to see established icons and certified legends in a too-small space they have no business playing.
I went at least a full year without seeing a set in the Yuma or Heineken House and that was a huge mistake.
At Heineken, Mild Minds (aka Benjamin Plant of Miami Horror) warmed up the crowd early Sunday with chill electronic ambiance and sun-soaked grooves from his album “GEMINI.”
That turned out to be the perfect juxtaposition and recovery from German DJ Boys Noize the night before, who—fresh off a crushing performance with Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross at Sahara as part of Nine Inch Noize—threw down so hard in the Yuma with a mix of industrial techno, electro and acid that I don’t regret missing David Byrne this year one bit. (Though I’ve seen him before, or else I would have never missed him. Ever!)
LESSON LEARNED. Always explore, everywhere!
Had I not ventured into the farthest spaces of the festival, I would have missed two of my favorite sets this year.
Don’t Stop Beliebin’
Justin Bieber—CERTIFIED GENERATIONAL TALENT
Justin Bieber is the best R&B singer of his generation—CLOCK IT—and his run from at least 2013 through present day contains some of the best modern R&B songs of any artist’s catalogue. If you think of the song “Baby” when you think of Justin Bieber, I’m telling you, he’s far more than that. He’s a natural progression for anyone who, like me, grew up listening to 90s pop and R&B.
At Coachella, we had the chance to bask in his buttery, warm vocals for a too-short hour and a half. If you heard any of the chatter after Weekend 1, you know The Biebs was (light to medium) roasted for his stage show, which included a portion where he surfed YouTube while vibing with the audience. It was VERY casual—truly low effort when contrasted with the Broadway-like productions and crowd work from Friday and Sunday headliners Sabrina Carpenter and Karol G.
But I enjoyed it. Justin came from YouTube. He grew up on the internet. And I’m sure the 32-year-old father doesn’t feel the same way singing a song like “Baby,” that he did when he was 15 years old. Watching him sing along to a video of his past self performing the song was more endearing than anything.
Just Justin—standing on business—with a too-packed polo field sing-screaming along most of the words and a fireworks finale in the desert moonlight was all that we needed to create one of most perfectly magical Coachella headlining sets I’ve seen in years.
STARRY EYES by Kyriakos Chatziparaskevas
Weekend 2 IS Better than Weekend 1 (at least this year)
Weekend 1 can have the grass and the influencers. Weekend 2 keeps the superior vibes. And, this year, the better weather and guest performances, too!
Madonna, Olivia Rodrigo, Snoop Dogg, and Griz all popped up Weekend 2, and I know I’m missing way more for sure. Weekend 1 did get Jack White as the surprise early afternoon guest spot in Mojave but Weekend 2 got Spacey Kacey Musgraves. I love both. So I’m calling that one even.
I know I started this piece saying I’d love to go both weekends, but if I had to choose, I’d choose Weekend 2 every time.
AND WHAT ABOUT 2027?
Maybe it’s the carryover Bieber Effect, or Coachella just REALLY IS BACK, but this year’s presale already sold out in a few hours a couple of weeks back. With the lineup reveal slated for November (and mockups alreadypoppingup on Reddit), now’s the time to make a wishlist for what we want to see in Indio next April.
Maybe Goldenvoice will take some of our requests to heart—you never know!
Daft Punk and Boards of Canada
I know I said earlier I’d love for an all female headlining roster, BUT, that could wait until 2028 BECAUSE 2027 is the 30th anniversary of Daft Punk’s "Alive 1997” and the 20th anniversary of the ICONIC “Alive 2007.” Missing Daft Punk at Coachella 2006 has been THE BIGGEST REGRET OF MY LIFE, and I’m hoping there’s a chance to rectify that situation in the future.
While we’re on the topic of rare things likely to never happen, let’s talk Scottish electronic duo Boards of Canada. These elusive brothers last released an album in 2013, and before that 2005, but their works have become weird pillars of electronica much in the way Aphex Twin is revered. They’re slated to release a new album, Inferno, May 29, so maybe 2027 is the year.
If Coachella was able to bring Jai Paul out of wherever he was holed up back in 2023, anything is possible.
An In-The-Round Stage
R&B singer Blood Orange did something in Mojave that I’ve never seen another artist do before—he performed in middle of the tent, in the round, with a full band for his entire set (even bringing out Turnstile’s Brenden Yates for “Alien Love Call”). I’m a huge fan of this style of performance because it’s immersive and gives more fans the ability to be up close to their favorite artists.
My group was on the rail for the wildly-insane party that serendipitously headlined Weekend 2 in 2023 when Four Tet, Fred Again .. and Skrillex went B3B in Frank Ocean’s ill-fated ice rink, turning what was supposed to be the latter’s centerpiece for his cancelled headlining set into the stage for one of the biggest in-the-round dance sets ever performed in North America.
I loved every moment being surrounded in that crowd of nearly 100,000 as everyone collectively lost it every time one of them swapped out to move the set forward.
There’s a giant hill in the far part of the campgrounds that was built for Kanye West in 2019 when he performed his Sunday Service set. That could be a great place for it. Or push back farther behind Heineken House if the surrounding infrastructure supports it. All I know is, Excision’s Lost Lands Festival in Ohio debuted an in-the-round stage called The Crater in 2025 and it’s absolutely bonkers.
A permanent in-the-round stage for DJs and bands would be an all-time vibe at Coachella, and there’s no better time than now.
Do LaB’s MACRODOSE stage at Coachella
Stream the DoLab’s secret sets
There’s always been something special in the air at DoLaB, the electronic haven designed by the Flemming Brothers who also created the Lightning in a Bottle Festival. When I interviewed them for my L.A. Times Coachella art story this year, Jesse Flemming told me DoLab, just like LIB, is “not a sit on the couch experience,” which is why they don’t stream the sets. I get that sentiment.
The stage has been Coachella’s best kept secret for years—and that reason has mostly been because they don’t air the sets on YouTube. But every night of the festival they book unique surprise sets for each weekend that people almost never get to see. My friends still talk about the time they walked up on a Skrillex surprise set in the ‘LaB back in 2017. In 2023 I walked up unprepared to get my world rocked by Knock2, who was nearly combustible on the decks. Odesza, another favorite, played W1 the same year. In both instances, I’d love to re-live those sets weekly, but I can’t.
This year, for what I think is the first time ever, we got an official 4K stream of John Summit’s 2026 W1 DoLaB surprise set, WHICH IS HUGE.
Here’s to hoping next year we get them all.
The Coachella Campgrounds
MORE BATHROOM IMPROVEMENTS
I’ve been to Coachella enough times I can list off the progression of the festival’s infrastructure growth with fairly historic accuracy. So it didn’t go unnoticed by me how many new port-a-potties were added to the area between the Coachella Stage and the Outdoor Theater. Maybe a third or double more? Those rows went deep. Which is fantastic because for too long that area’s been a nightmare, especially at night, when two of the festival’s biggest stages are drawing huge crowds for the top line acts.
Next year, my hope is the same thing happens to area between Gobi and Mojave. That, or, even better, permanent restrooms just like they built near the DoLaB, Quasar and Craft Beer Barn several years back.
We also need bathrooms INSIDE of the Heineken House. Unless I’m missing something, you have to exit the fenced off area fully and then wait in a line to get back in if you leave. In an area built around drinking beer. MAKE IT MAKE SENSE?!
Bathroom logic was one of the small number of areas where I felt “The Farm,” home to Bonnaroo in Manchester, Tennessee, did it better. There were more permanent restrooms and trailers, and some campground restrooms were set up with separate areas for No. 1s and No. 2s. That helped to divert a noticeable amount of pee all over everything, as is the usual at most music festivals unfortunately.
In this capacity, Coachella still has room to improve.
The Return of Al Antico Al Vinaio
El Paradiso, Aptly Named
The People (i.e. ME) demand inexpensive yet filling, quality food at Coachella. Never throughout the years did something suffice quite like the $12 half sandos from All’Antico Vinaio did in 2025. They were missed in 2026. That $12 half sando with pistachio pesto and mortadella hit so hard I was still thinking about it forlornly this year.
Truly, it set a new standard in festival fare that has yet to be matched again. Run it back!
