The Coachella Pool

2008 Lineup (and Winners) announced...

Brian — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 18:12:00 +0000

The moment you've been waiting a month for has arrived!

Everything changed this year. Last year's winner had a big fall. Two rookies had a strong showing. Portishead actually scored points for a lot of people. The only thing that hasn't changed is my ability to continuously fail to even break into the upper 50 percent. But the contest marches on! Here are the winners...

WINNER! Omar: REM Portishead (46) Underworld The Breeders (40) The Verve (42) Death Cab for Cutie (44) My Bloody Valentine Simian Mobile Disco (26) Rabbit in the Moon Okkervil River Magnetic Fields VHS or Beta (22) A Tribe Called Quest Cafe Tacuba (43) The National (35) Number right = 8 FINAL SCORE = 298	Brad: Coldplay The Verve (42) Death Cab for Cutie (44) Simian Mobile Disco (26) Chemical Brothers Love & Rockets (35) The Breeders (40) Portishead (46) My Bloody Valentin Mogwai Broken Social Scene Animal Collective (34) A Tribe Called Quest Caribou The Knife Number right = 7 FINAL SCORE = 267	Jessica: Death Cab for Cutie (44) REM My Bloody Valentine Portishead (46) PJ Harvey The Verve (42) Feist VHS or Beta (22) The Breeders (40) Band of Horses Dwight Yoakam (40) Autolux (22) Chemical Brothers Moby Rabbit in the Moon Number right = 7 FINAL SCORE = 256	Alex: The National (35) Spoon Death Cab for Cutie (44) Portishead (46) Radiohead Besnard Lakes MIA (39) Okkervil River Les Savy Fav (19) Beirut Caribou Jens Lekman (18) Goldfrapp Stephen Malkmus (36) My Bloody Valentine Number right = 7 FINAL SCORE = 237
Brian: The National (35) Feist Spoon Menomena Band of Horses Okkervil River Beirut Dinosaur Jr. The Breeders (40) Muscles Battles (28) Justice (32) Chromeo (30) The Verve (42) Smashing Pumpkins Number right = 6 FINAL SCORE = 207	Stacey: Radiohead REM Stone Temple Pilots Smashing Pumpkins The Breeders (40) Tegan and Sara (38) MIA (39) My Bloody Valentine Queens of the Stone Age Eagles of Death Metal Rilo Kiley (41) Portishead (46) PJ Harvey Kenna The Mars Volta Number right = 5 FINAL SCORE = 204	James: Portishead (46) My Bloody Valentine Les Savy Fav (19) Los Campesinos! The Wombats Wale Boys Noize (27) The Dodos Kate Nash SebastiAn (10) Justice (32) Foals Chromeo (30) Erol Alkan (20) Muscles Number right = 7 FINAL SCORE = 184	Jen & Lawrence: Are Probably Glad They Sat Out This Year Full Of Upsets, But Are Still Kinda Lame Number right = 0 FINAL SCORE = LAZY

click to enlarge.

Congratulations to Omar, whose unique Cafe Tacuba pick put him ahead by a wide margin, and to Brad for pulling out Love and Rockets' headlining spot for just a few more points than Jessica's third place list. Hope everyone had fun and comes back next year. Winners will receive prizes promptly.

Some further thoughts/analysis... we had a much tighter points race, and higher points overall this year, but the top three all had a lot fewer correct picks than last year's winners. is that fewer leaks, or just weirder band choices?

Also on a personal note, I think future lists will all have to lean a little more heavily on electronic acts, not necessarily the indie-pop or indie-folk du jour. I suppose in my heart I didn't really see Beirut or Spoon playing a festival with such deep roots in rave culture and could have gone with safer bets like Simian Mobile Disco, Calvin Harris, or Dan Deacon, who all got switched out at the last minute. Oops. Maybe '09 will be my year.

Thanks for playing everybody!

2008 Coachella Picks: Portishead and My Bloody Valentine could anger or delight most of the field.

Brian — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 17:05:00 +0000

Well, thanks for sending in your picks in a timely fashion, and thanks to our two newcomers for joining our game from as far away as Northern California and the Southwest. Should be a close fight this year assuming not all of those rumors you've been reading are totally baseless (*coughportisheadcough*). Let the shit-talking begin!

Alex: The National Spoon Death Cab For Cutie Portishead Radiohead Besnard Lakes MIA Okkervil River Les Savy Fav Beirut Caribou Jens Lekman Goldfrapp Stephen Malkmus My Bloody Valentine	Brad: Coldplay The Verve Death Cab For Cutie Simian Mobile Disco Chemical Brothers Love & Rockets The Breeders Portishead My Bloody Valentine Mogwai Broken Social Scene Animal Collective A Tribe Called Quest Caribou The Knife	Brian: The National Feist Spoon Menomena Band of Horses Okkervil River Beirut Dinosaur Jr. The Breeders Muscles Battles Justice Chromeo The Verve Smashing Pumpkins	James: Portishead My Bloody Valentine Les Savy Fav Los Campesinos! The Wombats Wale Boys Noize The Dodos Kate Nash SebastiAn Justice Foals Chromeo Erol Alkan Muscles
Jessica: Death Cab For Cutie REM My Bloody Valentine Portishead PJ Harvey The Verve Feist VHS or Beta The Breeders Band of Horses Dwight Yoakam Autolux Chemical Brothers Moby Rabbit in the Moon	Omar: REM Portishead Underworld The Breeders The Verve Death Cab For Cutie My Bloody Valentine Simian Mobile Disco Rabbit in the Moon Okkervil River Magnetic Fields VHS or Beta A Tribe Called Quest Cafe Tacuba The National	Stacey: Radiohead REM Stone Temple Pilots Smashing Pumpkins The Breeders Tegan and Sara MIA My Bloody Valentine Queens of the Stone Age Eagles of Death Metal Rilo Kiley Portishead PJ Harvery Kenna The Mars Volta	Jen & Lawrence: Are Not Playing This Year Cause They Are Big Fat Lazy Lame Wads. (OH SNAP!)

2008 picks due tomorrow!

Brian — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 05:51:00 +0000

Hope you're having as much fun as I am forum-crawling, crossing out and rewriting guesses in your 15 slots. Just remember, the picks are due tomorrow by midnight.

Once we get all the picks we'll sort through them Wednesday and probably have the lists up here by Thursday morning. That way you can come back and start berating me for my blind loyalty to the belief that somehow my all-time favorite band HUM will reunite for Coachella. Sigh...

Just kidding. OR AM I?

2008 Contest Are Go!

Brian — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 18:11:00 +0000

alright folks, let's kick off this here coachella pool, right?

not much to explain here... the rules are the same as last year. ten bucks, 15 picks, big bands count for more points.

i'd really love to get a bigger turnout this year, so please PLEASE feel free to send this out to any of your other friends, coworkers, pen pals, facebook stalkers, etc. after all, the more players, the bigger the winnings. plus if we can at least crack 10 players, we'd have enough to justify 1st, 2nd and 3rd place, not just winner and runner-up.

final thing: if you're planning to play, please email us at some point, so we can be sure to track you down and make sure to get your picks before the 18th. we'd hate you to spend 10 hours trawling through internet rumors just to miss the deadline because we left for christmas without seeing you.

good luck everybody!... you're gonna need it. jessica's pretty damn sure that this is her year.

Can't Wait for '08?

Brian — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 18:49:00 +0000

as i'm sure everyone already saw, the 2008 coachella dates were announced.

while you're debating whether to camp out, reserve a motel now, or commit to driving home at 3am, don't forget to start thinking about those picks.

the 2008 pool begins very soon.

And the winner for 2007 is...

Brian — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 19:19:00 +0000

The moment you've all been waiting for...

and James takes it by a Digitalism! We'll email you guys offline about awarding prizes, but for now, check out the final tallies and curse yourself for not thinking of this or that band.

WINNER! James: LCD Soundsystem (30) Hot Chip (24) Lupe Fiasco (7) Digitalism (17) Silversun Pickups (10) Arcade Fire (38) Air (34) Lily Allen (21) Bloc Party We Are Scientists (18) Klaxons (10) Lavender Diamond Arctic Monkeys (30) Spank Rock (18) Modest Mouse Number right = 12 FINAL SCORE = 257	Jessica: REM Wilco Arcade Fire (38) Lemonheads The Shins The Decemberists (36) LCD Soundsystem (30) Modest Mouse Silversun Pickups (10) Lupe Fiasco (7) Portishead Hot Chip (24) Sonic Youth (28) Air (34) The Good, The Bad, and the Queen (35) Number right = 9 FINAL SCORE = 242	Lawrence: David Bowie REM Smashing Pumpkins LCD Soundsystem (30) Hot Chip (24) Modest Mouse Arcade Fire (38) Portishead Regina Spektor (25) Air (34) Clap Your Hands Say Yeah Lupe Fiasco (7) Beck Silversun Pickups (10) Rodrigo y Gabriela (17) Number right = 8 FINAL SCORE = 185	Joe: LCD Soundsystem (30) The Hold Steady The Shins Of Montreal Cold War Kids Modest Mouse The Decemberists (36) CSS (11) Band of Horses Air (34) Arcade Fire (38) Islands Hot Chip (24) Silversun Pickups (10) Smashing Pumpkins Number right = 7 FINAL SCORE = 183
Brian: The Decemberists (36) LCD Soundsystem (30) Maximo Park Arcade Fire (38) The Thermals Tapes n' Tapes (9) Voxtrot Hot Chip (24) The Shins Islands Asobi Seksu Raconteurs The Hold Steady CSS (11) Arctic Monkeys (30) Number right = 7 FINAL SCORE = 178	Alex: Air (34) Arcade Fire (38) Bad Brains Beck Bjork (33) Blur Interpol (32) LCD Soundsystem (30) Mercury Rev Spoon Sufjan Stevens Ted Leo The Fall Ween White Stripes Number right = 5 FINAL SCORE = 167	Jen M: LCD Soundsystem (30) Rodrigo y Gabriela (17) Konono #1 (25) Lupe Fiasco (7) Air (34) Digitalism (17) RJD2 Hot Chip (24) Modest Mouse The Shins Klaxons (10) Van She Cornelius Underworld Portishead Number right = 8 FINAL SCORE = 164	Stacey: Morrissey Arcade Fire (38) Gorillaz Silversun Pickups (10) Shiny Toy Guns Nelly Furtado Gwen Stefani The Stooges The Shins Oasis Regina Spektor (25) Lily Allen (21) Cold War Kids Mickey Avalon Muse Number right = 4 FINAL SCORE = 94

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[UPDATE: Just a few more places that found our blog, which I still find highly amusing. A thread on the Coachella forums picked up the game for themselves (minus the complicated math), and another LA-centric blog, Franklin Avenue also mentioned us. Thanks for the links all -- if any of you make it back here, you should enter next year!]

Here I come, penguin.

Brian — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 17:24:00 +0000

Looks like the list of quote/unquote confirmed bands is starting to trickle out, and a lot of us have done pretty well for ourselves so far. Obviously nothing can be decided until we can start assigning points to correct picks, but a few of you are looking pretty hot right now...

If you guys want to help me put together a list here of who's confirmed, we can keep it updated for easy reference and further talking of the smack. Of course since anything can change up until they post, it could still come back to bite someone in the ass.

So far (in no particular order)...

[Update 1: a very long list i will cross post for easy reference from the LATimes.com Buzz Bands blog.]

The preliminary lineup, subject to changes and additions: Tiesto, the Arcade Fire, Interpol, Manu Chao, Willie Nelson, Air, Happy Mondays, Decemberists, Faithless, Gotan Project, the Good, the Bad and the Queen, Paul Van Dyk, Arctic Monkeys, Roots, Jarvis Cocker, Sonic Youth, Crowded House, Placebo, Satellite Party, Stephen Marley feat Jr. Gong, Kings of Leon, DJ Shadow, Kaiser Chiefs, Kokono No. 1, LCD Soundsystem, Nickel Creek, Travis, Damien Rice, Black Keys, Blonde Redhead, Infected Mushroom, New Pornographers, Peeping Tom, Placebo, Rufus Wainwright, the Rapture, Explosions in the Sky, Richie Hawtin, !!!, Benny Benassy, Felix Da Housecat, Hot Chip, Jacks Mannequin, Julieta Venegas, Lily Allen, Lupe Fiasco, Ozomatli, Peaches, Ghostface Killah, Jose Gonzales, Amos Lee, Brazilian Girls, Fountains of Wayne, Regina Spektor, VNV Nation, Coco Rosie, Cornelius, Gillian Welch, Junior Boys, Pharaohe Monche, Roky Erickson and the Explosives, Soulwax, Sparklehorse, the Kooks, Tilly and the Wall, Andrew Bird, Peter, Bjorn & John, the Frames, Gogol Bordello, Comedians of Comedy, Justice, MSTRKRFT, We Are Scientists, Yeva, Grizzly Bear, Amy Winehouse, Avett Brothers, Circa Survive, the Coup, the Cribs, CSS, Digitalism, Erol Alkan, Evil Nine, Girl Talk, Klaxons, the Noisettes, Spank Rock, Tapes 'n Tapes, Fields, Tokyo Police Club, Rodrigo Y Gabriella, DJ Heather, the Feeling, Fratellis, Mike Relm, Silversun Pickups, Busdriver, Brother Ali, Nightwatchman, Bojones, Mika, Pop Levi, Anathallo and Fair to Midland.

Fame: imminent

Brian — Wed, 03 Jan 2007 23:53:00 +0000

Just a quick little note: thanks to Liz at The People's Dance Party" for being the first outsider to notice and link to our little game.

To her and anyone else who stumbles this way: remember us next year and you're absolutely invited to play too. And until then feel free to join in the banter leading up to and following this year's lineup announcements.

No Daft Punk?...

Brian — Tue, 19 Dec 2006 08:12:00 +0000

Alright kids, you pondered, you researched, you narrowed it down and here's what you settled on -- may your 10 dollars be returned to you many times over. Here are the picks!

Alex: Air Arcade Fire Bad Brains Beck Bjork Blur Interpol LCD Soundsystem Mercury Rev Spoon Sufjan Stevens Ted Leo The Fall Ween White Stripes	Brian: The Decemberists LCD Soundsystem Maximo Park Arcade Fire The Thermals Tapes n' Tapes Voxtrot Hot Chip The Shins Islands Asobi Seksu Raconteurs The Hold Steady CSS Arctic Monkeys	James: LCD Soundsystem Hot Chip Lupe Fiasco Digitalism Silversun Pickups Arcade Fire Air Lily Allen Bloc Party We Are Scientists Klaxons Lavender Diamond Arctic Monkeys Spank Rock Modest Mouse	Jen M: LCD Soundsystem Rodrigo y Gabriela Konono #1 Lupe Fiasco Air Digitalism RJD2 Hot Chip Modest Mouse The Shins Klaxons Van She Cornelius Underworld Portishead
Jessica: REM Wilco Arcade Fire Lemonheads The Shins The Decemberists LCD Soundsystem Modest Mouse Silversun Pickups Lupe Fiasco Portishead Hot Chip Sonic Youth Air The Good, The Bad, and the Queen	Joe Lia: LCD Soundsystem The Hold Steady The Shins Of Montreal Cold War Kids Modest Mouse The Decemberists CSS Band of Horses Air Arcade Fire Islands Hot Chip Silversun Pickups Smashing Pumpkins	Lawrence: David Bowie REM Smashing Pumpkins LCD Soundsystem Hot Chip Modest Mouse Arcade Fire Portishead Regina Spektor Air Clap Your Hands Say Yeah Lupe Fiasco Beck Silversun Pickups Rodrigo y Gabriela	Stacey: Morrissey Arcade Fire Gorillaz Silversun Pickups Shiny Toy Guns Nelly Furtado Gwen Stefani The Stooges The Shins Oasis Regina Spektor Lily Allen Cold War Kids Mickey Avalon Muse

[UPDATE: fixed the formatting a little so you can see all the picks at once for better comparison. also, if you want to reference last year's picks to see how different choosing strategies fared, here's a link.]

Let the pool begin - OFFICIAL RULES

Brian — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 21:09:00 +0000

time to kick it off, friends! here are the official coachella pool rules for this year.

1 - it'll be $10 per person.

2 - each person gets 15 picks.

3 - winners are decided by the scoring system mentioned below. we'll split the pot between the top three in a 60/30/10 ratio out of whatever money we get depending on how many people want to play. BUT, if less than ten people play, we will switch to prizes for only the top two: 2nd gets their $10 back, 1st takes the rest. (note: no admin fees are charged. all money goes to the winners!)

4 - the 'score' is determined by the ranks of your picks on the lineup flyer that gets posted the first day they announce (not any subsequent lineup changes). points are assigned to each band going from one point up from the bottom for each day. so we'll tally the 'scores' for each band on the lists, and whoever picked the most big acts right will score highest.

for example: on the example flyer below, 44 points for coldplay, 40 points for nine inch nails, spoon would only be 13, the faint a whopping 34, whereas k-os or zion i would only be worth one point each. it may be safer to get a bunch of small bands right, or you can go for broke and pick headliners for major points!

5 - deadline to get your picks and your money in is Dec. 18th to either jessica or brian. that's one week before christmas, so hopefully we'll catch everyone before they take off for their holiday adventures. since bands are announcing earlier every year, we want to get picks in before you could win by just reading message boards, so good luck!

6 - ***important*** since we (jessica and brian) both want to play, we will not be accepting your lists via email. we want your answers and money in a sealed envelope so we can wait until all the envelopes are collected before we look at anyone's answers (in front of witnesses, of course). don't worry, this is all on the up and up. you can trust us!

7 - we will compile the answers once all the envelopes are collected and post everyone's picks here so we can all have a lively discussion in the comments going while we await the official lineup announcement.

i think that covers everything. if you want in, let us know and start working on your list. if you're in another city, or a complete stranger that just stumbled on this site, you're more than welcome to play, just email me about a snail mail address. remember, the deadline is dec. 18th. also, if you know other music geeks that would like to play (and help increase the $$), feel free to pass this along!

Coachella 2007 Dates Announced

Brian — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 01:57:00 +0000

it's official.

friday april 27th.
saturday april 28th.
sunday april 29th.

three days of rock and roll madness. the 2007 pool to begin soon!