Several groups to reunite at Coachella

04/26/2007 12:30 PM, AP


One look at this weekend's lineup at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and it may seem like you've traveled back in time to the early 1990s.

Led by a much-anticipated reunion of the politically charged Rage Against the Machine, the festival in the desert east of Palm Springs will also feature Crowded House, Jesus and Mary Chain and the Happy Mondays, all of whom have decided to get back together.

"Coachella has always been a festival I've never been to but admired from afar," said Neil Finn, the lead singer for Crowded House. "It has a very eclectic lineup and doesn't lump genres. It's a beautiful way to relaunch the band."

This year's event, expanded from two to three days, kicks off Friday and is expected to attract more than 50,000 concertgoers under sun-baked skies with temperatures nearing the century mark.

Finn said he and fellow founding member Nick Seymour decided to record some new tracks following the death of drummer Paul Hester, who committed suicide in March 2005. The group, best known for such hits like "Something So Strong" and "Better Be Home Soon," enlisted former Beck drummer Matt Sherrod and will work again with Mark Hart, who was a member on the band's later records.

Crowded House fans at Coachella can expect to hear some new tunes from "Time on Earth," which will be released in June.

"The music feels so vibrant and seamless again," Finn said via phone last week. "There is a distinctive power to the lineup. It feels effortless in many ways."

The last time Rage Against the Machine performed, in 2000, the country was changing political hands.

Singer Zack de la Rocha went on to pursue a solo career that never fully developed and guitarist Tom Morello, drummer Brad Wilk and bassist Tim Commerford joined former Soundgarden vocalist Chris Cornell to form Audioslave (Cornell quit in February, citing "personality conflicts" and "musical differences").

One of the last performances for the band, known for its socialist ideologies and fusing hip-hop with hard rock, was the Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles. At the time, de la Rocha said in a statement that he decided to leave because the group's decision-making process had failed.

The much-anticipated reunion also provides some sentimental value for band members. Rage performed at the first Coachella music festival in 1999, along with Beck and Tool, when a mere 25,000 people showed up.

Rage will close out the festival Sunday night. Other performers include veterans such as Bjork and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, along with buzzed about newcomers like Lily Allen and Mika.

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