The desert town of Coachella, located 42km from Palm Springs International Airport in California, has a history of attracting music to its rugged mountains and valleys, from the indigenous Cahuilla people who, for 3,000 years, have taught their language and culture through traditional bird songs to 20th-century musical legends such as Frank Sinatra and Liberace, who lived in the area. And, more recently, the Coachella Valley has birthed the United States' foremost music festival, attracting top musicians each year from countries as far as Britain and China. When the indie pop-punk Beijing band New Pants performed their first ever American gig at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in 2011, they knew they were starting at the top. A couple of band members donned traditional Zhongshan suits as they belted out their unique brand of Chinese "post-wave" music, including an edgy song written especially for the event, I'm Not a Gay. The predominantly 20-something crowd roared with approval at their performance, which was the first by a Chinese band at the event. "We were so surprised that people were so passionate and seemed to love our music," said New Pants leader Peng Lei. "We're very lucky because we know that Coachella is one of the most popular music festivals in the world. All the bands we love have played there." The name Coachella is attached to the desert valley located two hours southeast of Los Angeles, best known as home to the San Andreas earthquake fault line and the celebrity hideaway of Palm Springs. Coachella is also the name of the valley's unassuming town of 41,000, and for a variety of grapefruit. But for music lovers the world over, the name evokes a melodic oasis deep in the desert where the biggest names in popular music converge each April for two weekends of non-stop spectacle on six stages. Beck, Morrissey and Rage Against the Machine rocked a crowd of 25,000 at the inaugural Coachella festival in 1999, and the event has exploded since then. Coachella expanded to two full weekends in 2012, and the following year its online ticket sales doubled. This year, a total of 579,000 attendees earned the festival a record-breaking US$78.3 million. With over 150 acts each year covering everything from hardcore rap, indie rock and Latin pop to trip-hop and electronic dance music, Coachella's alumni ranges from Paul McCartney, Radiohead and Daft Punk to Madonna, Dr Dre, Amy Winehouse and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Date palms, mountains and bright pink sunsets create a cinematic backdrop for the festive atmosphere. A makeshift city of tents, booths, stages and portable toilets sprawl across the 31.5-hectacre Empire Polo Grounds located about a half-hour south of Palm Springs. With temperatures at times reaching 42 degrees Celsius and dust storms reaching 55km/h, the Coachella festival by nature is casual, down-to-earth and egalitarian. But only a lucky few get to enter its gates. All general tickets for this year's festival were snatched up in 2 hours and 37 minutes, toppling the previous record of 2 hours and 57 minutes in 2012. So for many, Coachella remains a musical mirage. But don't give up hope just yet: The event's organisers made a US$30 million-plus purchase of 113 additional hectares adjoining the polo grounds and received permission to hold up to three more events there per year for the next 17 years. Organisers are also eyeing an empty landscaped area across the street from the Palm Springs Art Museum for a future 5,000-capacity outdoor concert venue.
