While there has been plenty of discussion about concert lineups in recent times, namely for the fact that they seem to almost purposely leave female acts off the lineup, it seems that the rising amount of solo artists has also drawn ire from many, including One Direction’s Louis Tomlinson.
As you might be aware, the lineup for 2018 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival dropped yesterday, and as expected, the Internet is going wild for it. Most notably, the festival is this year headlined by the likes of The Weeknd, Beyoncé, and Eminem, with music fans either responding with extreme delight, or wretched disgust at the idea of popular artists headlining a popular festival.
However, the festival has since come under fire for a couple of things; for the small font used on the poster (seriously, we’re not here to take a reading test), and for it’s lack of good ol’ fashioned bands. In fact, even noted boyband member, Louis Tomlinson of One Direction, has taken to Twitter to criticise the excess of solo acts on the bill.
Just seen the Coachella line up …. Where the fuck are all the bands !? It’s a festival !?
— Louis Tomlinson (@Louis_Tomlinson) January 3, 2018
“Just seen the Coachella line up,” Tomlinson wrote on Twitter. “Where the fuck are all the bands!? It’s a festival!?” However, plenty of people seemed to agree with him, with his message getting numerous replies, likes, and retweets, the majority of which saw agreement with the pop star.
Love Rage Against The Machine?
Get the latest Rage Against The Machine news, features, updates and giveaways straight to your inbox Learn more
Even just looking at the top two rows of each of the festival’s days will result in only eight bands out of the 21 artists listed. Of course, once you start going deeper into the bill (if you’re wearing your glasses, that is), you’ll start noticing less and less bands, as solo singers, rappers, and producers make up the rest of the listed artists.
Why, even the Aussie contingency is pretty much a solo affair. A cursory look of the lineup shows four notable Aussie acts, including return performers Vance Joy and Alison Wonderland, and first-timers, Tash Sultana and Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever. Just out of this small sample size, we’re looking at 75% solo artists.
While this year’s lineup might be a far cry from the guitar-based, rock headliners of old, which have previously included the likes of Guns N’ Roses, Radiohead, Tool, Nine Inch Nails, Rage Against The Machine, it seems that good old fashioned bands might be on the way out as well. Here’s hoping that we see a much-needed rock revival, and quickly!
Check out Coachella-bound Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever’s ‘French Press’:
