For the Love of Lists — Coachella Pros and Cons

These days, going to a concert is a special occasion for me, when, just five years ago, it used to be as common place as grocery shopping. I won't go into the whiny reasons why, but you know I could. So, the notion of one of the year's biggest music festivals opening its gates just two months and a two-hour drive away gets me as excited as Christmas. But will it happen? Here's how the Coachella facts work themselves out...

Pros:

1. Jay-Z — I'm not crazy about the new album (I prefer Aziz Ansari's "Hate." And, "Young Forever," really?). Still, friends at the Austin show raved about it and I want to see his live show for myself.

2. LCD Soundsystem

3A.-3B. Grizzly Bear & Beach House — Their Solana Beach show last fall was great, but my mood that night wasn't. I need a do-over!

4. Passion Pit

5. Hot Chip — I saw them a few years ago and danced until I literally had to sit my weary knees down (in the balcony, alongside a bunch of unenthused chaperoning moms)

6. Yo La Tengo — Remember when I posted this?

7. Miike Snow

8. Spoon — I never gave them much thought until after I moved out of Austin. Now, I can't seem to catch a show to save my life.

9. Thom Yorke??? — I'm going to pretend I know what the question marks are about and just go ahead and list this one as a pro. There have been rumors about a new Radiohead album. Maybe yes, maybe no. Until then, I need a way to soothe the fact that I've never seen Radiohead live. (Okay. I am not counting their opening set for Natalie Merchant and R.E.M. at South Park meadows...that was another lifetime ago, pre-OK Computer.)

There are those that I listen to that I'd pass on just because I'm not sure the fields of Indio are the right venue — The Whitest Boy Alive, Mew, Charlotte Gainsbourg. I just saw Vampire Weekend (one in a surprisingly small crowd at a Long Beach show), I've seen Little Dragon twice in a year and I'm seeing the Dirty Projectors later in the month. Then, there are bands I've once loved that I can't imagine are really still potent — De La Soul, Sly & the Family Stone, Talvin Singh.

Cons:

1. Port-a-potties.

2. Showering in a trailer.

3. Camping. They're actually trumpeting about how they have car camping now, versus tent or open air, I presume. They even added not one, but two exclamation points behind the fact.

4. Heat, of the desert variety.

5. A field full of dirt.

5. $269!!!

Advantage: Cons

Oh, wells. There's always Pitchfork TV.