I awoke around 11am, after maybe six hours sleep, completely exhausted. A part of me dreaded what lay ahead, which of course reads ridiculous when compared to the grand scheme of things and the difficulties many people face, but at 41 and in that moment with my recuperative powers and access to stimulants no longer being what they once were my body wanted more time in bed over trekking back to Indio.
My wife, Senora Bicho, drove us to Coachella, but traffic heading out of Orange County was brutal because that freeway is the main route when heading out of town to Las Vegas or “the River.” Those first 30 miles took way longer than they should. If it was going to be this bad the whole way, it could take four hours to get there. Quitting seemed like an option, but once we hit Corona, traffic cleared up and the freeway home was clogged. Halfway there, we pulled over to grab a bite to eat in the city of Colton at a Subway. The Senora pointed out how tired I looked and I did feel wiped out. The bed continued to call, and with no one I felt compelled to see, I considered it, but we had gone this far, so we soldiered on.
Once we got there, Amanda Palmer, the female half of The Dresden Dolls, was introduced in the Gobi Tent by way of a group of Coachella attendees, who in sports-fan fashion, had letters painted on their backs that spelled out “Amanda Fucking Palmer.” Joined by a cellist, she delivered her plaintive, introspective songs that seem better served listening to alone during sad moments in your life, yet the group catharsis of sharing the music and emotions worked well.
Henry Rollins spoke to those under the Mojave Tent, regaling them with tales of his travels to Vietnamese killing fields where the citizens take comfort in the fact they beat the big, bad Americans and suggestions of his own Middle East Peace Plan in which the Israelis and Palestinians would be bombed with albums by The Ramones, Curtis Mayfield, and George Clinton. Since nothing else has worked, it wouldn't hurt to try it. He implored the audience to travel the world, meet the people in it, and work together to take control from the people screwing it up.
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