THE NIN HOTLINE

Sunday January 30, 2005

LA Times confirms Coachella rumor

Subscribing members of LA Times' online version got news that Nine Inch Nails is playing Coachella on May 1st.

Coldplay, the most heralded arena-level band from Britain since Radiohead, will headline the opening-day program, which also includes Wilco, Bauhaus, Cocteau Twins, the Chemical Brothers, Snow Patrol, Rilo Kiley, Sage Francis, Mercury Rev, Bloc Party and the Kills on various stages over nearly 12 hours.

The second-day lineup is even more enticing — headed by the return to action of Trent Reznor's Nine Inch Nails, which stood alongside Nirvana as one of the most captivating groups in '90s rock.

The appearances by the graceful, gently melodic Coldplay and far darker and more aggressive Nine Inch Nails are especially timely because both bands will be previewing material from much-anticipated albums. (Coldplay will also be playing a KCRW-FM benefit March 12 at the Universal Amphitheatre).

There's no release date for the Coldplay album, but "With Teeth," the first new Nine Inch Nails album in six years, will be in stores two days after the Coachella show. The CD is a confident, accessible work, far more in keeping with 1994's brilliant "The Downward Spiral" than 1999's striking but sometimes impenetrable "The Fragile."

Many thanks to nickynomad for sharing the news on Echoing the Sound.

Speaking of which, people are already making plans. Why not join the party?