Coachella 2023 Day 3 round-up: Frank Ocean and Björk show their class
Over the past weekend, the Colorado desert was home to the first weekend of the Coachella Festival, a staple of the musical calendar since starting in 1999. This year, the event was headlined by Frank Ocean, Blackpink, and Bad Bunny, but there were many other surprises that occurred in California over the span of the festival.
On Friday, Wet Leg captivated their audience with hits from their eponymous debut album on the Mojave Stage, proving they are no fad. Other highlights from the opening day include a surprise set by Blink-182, their first since Tom DeLonge rejoined the band after departing in 2015. As well as breaking out their hits, they also aired new tracks from their forthcoming ninth studio album.
Meanwhile, Gorillaz welcomed a series of guests, including Slowthai, Bootie Brown, Thundercat and De La Soul, during their celebratory set. On Saturday, Charli XCX stormed the Coachella Stage to perform an electric performance of pop hits, spanning from her breakthrough hit, ‘I Love It’, to the Caroline Polachek remix, ‘Welcome to My Island’.
Elsewhere, Boygenius made a political stand with Lucy Dacus, telling the crowd: “I don’t know if you’ve been checking the news and seeing what’s been going on in Florida and Missouri and some of the other places, but trans lives matter, trans kids matter.” She added, “We’re gonna fight it. We love you,” before Phoebe Bridgers chimed in, “And abortion rocks. And fuck Ron DeSantis.” Additionally, over a decade after breaking through, Jai Paul finally took to the stage for the first time on the grandest stage.
Catch up on the biggest moments from the festival’s final day below.
Frank Ocean confirms his new album
After years away from the stage and not releasing any new material since Blonde in 2016, Frank Ocean returned to headline the final night of Coachella. During the set, he explained to the crowd that he’s been busy working on new music, Ocean did not reveal the details of the new record.
Ocean was set to take to the main stage at Coachella at 10:05pm, but he did not make his way out until after 11pm. Eventually, Ocean took to the stage and told the audience, “I wanna talk about why we’re here … because it’s not about the new album… not that there’s NOT a new album.”
He also explained his deep connection with the festival and explained: “My brother and I came to this festival a lot. I feel like I was dragged by him sometimes because I didn’t want to get a respiratory infection… I would always come here, and one of my fondest memories is watching Rae Sremmurd with my brother… and Travis [performed] in that tent.”
Björk enlists the help of 864 drones
Björk can count herself as unfortunate not to have topped the bill at Coachella. The Icelandic singer took to the main stage before Frank Ocean and treated the performance like she was the headliner. During the career-spanning set, Björk lit the sky with 864 drones and created a beautiful visual display that matched the music.
“I wanted to share with you excitedly that i was joined with 864 drones tonight !!!” Björk later explained on Instagram. “The show tonight was orkestral which is me, all about simplicity [with an] orchestra playing a selection of my songs,” she continued. “So in honour of Coachella magnificent festival … I asked a drone company, Studio Drift, to join us.”
Alex G shines in the desert
Over the last decade, few have consistently delivered as often as Alex G, who took to the Sonora Stage at 6:00pm on Sunday. While the audience was less substantial than other sets at the festival, the indie musician tore through his performance and hit single, ‘Runner’, proved to be one of the highlights from the entire weekend.
In total, Alex G played 14 tracks prominently lifted from his ninth studio album, God Save the Animals, released in 2022. While fans of the Pennsylvanian singer who prefer his earlier work would likely have been unhappy about his reliance on newer material, this was a bold statement from the musician who is determined to be forward looking.
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