
With just a few weeks to go until the official release of the Bonnaroo 2010 artist lineup, I thought I’d put together a little something for anyone who might be interested. For people like me, Bonnaroo obsessors if you will, the offseason (also known as the 361 days of the year Bonnaroo is not going on) has been filled with speculations, predictions and wishlists from fellow obsessors like myself. Many of these obsessors come together on an almost daily basis throughout the offseason, sharing their opinions and hopes with one another on messageboards like Inforoo and the official Bonnaroo messageboard, which you can find here. My fellow obsessors and I are extremely passionate about “our” festival, as well as very well educated on certain trends the festival typically seems to follow. While prediciting even an accurate lineup may be a shot in the dark, there are actually a few who seem to do pretty well with their bold predictions. So I’m going to go out on a limb here and share with you my predictions.
I’ve narrowed it down to a few different categories.
Possible Headliners
This section includes acts that are either currently rumored as headlining this year’s festival, or are acts still around that certainly are capable of headlining this year, or possibly future years.
Paul McCartney
Roger Waters performing The Wall
The Who
Neil Young
Eric Clapton
Stevie Wonder
David Bowie
Prince
U2
Guns ‘n Roses
R.E.M.
Dave Matthews Band
Soundgarden
Rage Against the Machine
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Jay-Z
Gorillaz
Coldplay
The Killers
Bonnaroo headliner trends typically involve three bands. More often than not, these bands include one “older” band (usually a classic rock artist), one “younger” band (more mainstream rock kind of stuff) and one band that seems to fit the “jamband” slot on Sunday. It’s not always going to end up this way, but history shows that it typically does, although you could argue that it did not go this way in 2008 when both Metallica and Pearl Jam were billed as headliners. Then there was the scheduling setup from 2009. Last year Bonnaroo changed things up by moving the Friday headliner (Phish) to 11 pm, where as in the past the headliners typically took the stage around 9 pm. Not only did they push back the Friday headliner back a couple hours, but they also changed things up by having two bands that you could argue were sub-headliners or something. Both the Beastie Boys and David Byrne (of the Talking Heads) played opposite each other on the festival’s two main stages (What and Which). The Beastie’s set started at 8:30 pm, while Byrne began at 8:45. History also shows that in the past Bonnaroo has never had acts of such calibers play at exactly the same time on these two stages, this late in the day. Rumors recently began circulating that Neil Young would be taking the Beastie’s spot this year, while the Kings of Leon would be taking the Byrne spot on the Which Stage. Seems kind of odd to bill Neil Young anything other than a main headliner, but once again, this is just a rumor, so only time will tell if this is an accurate rumor.
As for that list that you see above, the band who seems most likely to take the Saturday headlining slot appears to be The Who, what with their appearance at the upcoming Super Bowl Halftime Show. Rumor also has it, that McCartney will not tour after this year, so I would think that Bonnaroo organizers would be fools in not being able to land a Beatle this year. Then there’s the whole Roger Waters (of Pink Floyd) slated tour that will last the next two years, playing the music from the classic album, The Wall, in its entirety. I consider this the best album of all-time, and after seeing Waters a few years back (he performed the Floyd album, Darkside of the Moon, in its entirety), I can already expect that this would be the greatest show I could ever witness. My hopes: land McCartney this year, and get Waters in 2011. We’ve already covered Neil, so moving onto the last classic rock icon, we have Eric Clapton. Here’s another artist on my bucket list, but one who seems the least likely out of this group, as the demand does not appear to be as high as the rest. While there have been no rumors of Clapton at ‘roo this year, he will be out on tour this summer. If Bonnaroo happens to land a classic rock artist this year (seems the likely thing that will happen), I would not be disappointed with any of these bands I’ve mentioned.
Then you’ve got the bands and artists that just don’t seem to fit into any one category. I’m talking about artists like Stevie Wonder, David Bowie and Prince. You could certainly call them “classic rock” because it is now 2010, and they’ve all been around for quite some time, but I like to think this group doesn’t exactly fit with the previously mentioned artists. Stevie seems the most likely to happen out of this group, probably because he’s been rumored for months now, while it appears neither Bowie or Prince have plans to do any shows or even tour in the near future. As for Mr. Wonder, I would expect that a headlining slot would be a must, but I guess any slot is possible considering the 6 pm slot the legendary Al Green received last year.
There’s also the group of bands that were amongst the most popular of the 80’s and 90’s. U2 was one of the first rumors, but that has since been played down, due to apparent scheduling conflicts. I don’t quite understand why, because they are only booked one day so far during the weekend of Bonnaroo. They’ll be playing Denver on Saturday, June 12. The fact they are playing here in the states at that time, and also have no shows scheduled close to Tennessee, makes me think that they are a band not to rule out just yet. Perhaps the one band from this group that appears to be the most likely to happen is the Dave Matthews Band. Not just because Matthews has played the festival twice (not since 2005), but he has been one of the most successful touring acts of the past two decades. Matthews and his band also fit that Sunday “jamband” closing spot rather nicely. Moving along. Do you know about three of the most popular bands from the 90’s who are hitting the road once again this year? I’m talking about the reunited original lineup of Soundgarden, the Red Hot Chili Peppers and their new guitarist (longtime member John Frusciante recently left the band) and Guns ‘n Roses. Wait. Did I just say Guns ‘n Roses? That’s right. Forget that probably one of the most hyped up albums of all time was a flop (Chinese Democracy), Axl put a band together and they’re on tour this year, although you can barely consider it Guns ‘n Roses. Had Axl kept his band and his voice, Guns ‘n Roses would be on my bucket list. Not so much anymore. A couple other popular bands from this era, although they are not bands who tour year in and year out, but are definitely bands who have been wanted for a longtime at the ‘roo include Rage Against the Machine and R.E.M. While I’d be fine with either of these bands, I believe they are probably the least likely out of the group. My bets go to Matthews and Soundgarden, with U2 trailing closely behind.
Lastly, there’s the group that actually doesn’t go together very well at all. Jay-Z, Gorillaz, Coldplay and The Killers. I wouldn’t be surprised if one of these acts ends up at the farm this year. But it’s probably not the band you’re thinking. You may be thinking of Jay-Z, but he’ll be off in Europe doing shows (doesn’t rule him out, just makes it all the more less likely). You might be thinking Coldplay. While I’ve been wanting Coldplay at the farm for the past half a decade, I just don’t see it happening. Doesn’t mean it can’t or won’t. I also like surprises. So…Gorillaz are apparently back together and set to work on a new album, but the festival rumor for them this year includes Coachella. Seems likely too. Coachella’s just that type of festival; the kind to bring in recently reunited bands this big. And with Coachella being in California, they seem to be the type of band that would prefer to be there, rather than a small town in the middle of nowhere, Tennessee. That leaves The Killers. You either like them or don’t. While they certainly have the material, I’m just not sold on them being a headliner. But that doesn’t rule out the fact that I think they’d be a great addition. I think they’d fit perfectly late at night, possibly in the slot that Nine Inch Nails had last year, (1-2:30 am on the Which Stage), although NIN is and probably will always be much larger than The Killers.
Unofficially Confirmed Acts
This section includes acts that have been all but confirmed by Bonnaroo themselves – and that’s because they haven’t released the lineup. Appearances from these bands have been confirmed through various sources all over the net.
Kings of Leon
Looks like they could be either a headliner or duel headliner, going up against Neil Young, as previously rumors speculate. Bonnaroo made these guys into what they are today, and Rolling Stone called them the greatest band on the planet of 2009. Maybe Bonnaroo gives back to the Followill boys this year with a big time slot. Although they’re taking six months off from touring this year, the six months would be up right in time for Bonnaroo. Not to mention they’re from Tennessee.
Other bands on this list include GWAR, Dan Deacon, Steve Martin & the Steep Canyon Rangers, The Avett Brothers, The Gaslight Anthem, Mayer Hawthorne and Caravan Palace.
Heavily Rumored
This section deals with those bands who have the most talk going on about them, regarding appearances at the festival this summer. Nothing confirmed just yet, but looks likely. Keep them on your radar.
311
Pavement (reunion)
The Jayhawks (reunion)
Mew
Ryan Bingham
Baroness
Alberta Cross
Noah and the Whale
Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros
Cory Chisel & the Wandering Sons
Lord T & Eloise
Other Possibilities
This section deals with the types of bands and trends Bonnaroo tends to follow. Some of these bands have made appearances at the farm, some numerous times. It also deals with those “buzz” acts that Bonnaroo seems to land every year. Whether they’ll be out on the road, have a new disc coming out or are just emerging into something greater, you know it just might happen because it just feels so right.
The Allman Brothers Band
In 2008, the Allman’s had to pull out of Bonnaroo due to health issues involving Greg Allman. Guitarist Warren Haynes is considered almost some type of god at Bonnaroo, and by having the Allman’s there this year, it would give fans a break from Warren’s main outfit, Gov’t Mule, who have graced the farm a few times the past several years.
My Morning Jacket
Just like the Kings of Leon, here’s a band who owes their success to Bonnaroo. But the love for these guys is much more intense than with the Kings. The last time MMJ played the festival, they did a four-hour marathon latenight show on the Which Stage in the pouring rain, pulling out most of the songs from their catalogue, as well as many covers (they played songs by Kool and the Gang, Bobby Womack, Motley Crue and Erykah Badu), as well as guest appearances from Metallica’s Kirk Hammett, Flecktone saxophonist Jeff Coffin and comedian Zach Galifianakis. Arguably the greatest Bonnaroo set ever.
The Flaming Lips
Here’s one of the other few, intensely beloved bands from the Bonnaroo crowd. Their last appearance at the festival in 2007, saw them land a giant UFO onstage, with Wayne Coyne coming out of the spaceship in his giant plastic bubble and out into the crowd where he put a different spin on crowd surfing. Coyne did say they would return once they had a new album. That time may be this year, but will they be able to top landing a UFO onstage?
Arcade Fire
Even though they’ve only got two albums under their belts, with a third slated for release this year, this band is arguably the greatest Canadian indie rock band ever. They’ve done the festival thing in the past, but have not toured in a few years, and have never played Bonnaroo. I’ve been wanting these two to come together for nearly five years now.
The Dead Weather
Jack White’s played Bonnaroo twice, with the Stripes in 2007 and the Raconteurs in 2008. While many await his return to the Stripes, I’d have to say that its probably his latest project that seems the most likely. And hey, they’re not that bad. After all, this band does consist of members of the Raconteurs and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, not to mention Mr. White.
Some other possibilities:
The Black Crowes
George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic
The Roots
Nas
String Cheese Incident
Explosions in the Sky
Norah Jones
Thievery Corporation
Built to Spill
The Black Keys or Dan Auerbach
Umphrey’s McGee
LCD Soundsystem
STS9
Ray LaMontagne
Regina Spektor
Michael Franti & Spearhead
Spoon
Fleet Foxes
Phoenix
Passion Pit
Os Mutantes
The Gaslight Anthem
Lucero
David Rawlings Machine
The Airborne Toxic Event
Rufus Wainwright
Blitzen Trapper
Los Amigos Invisibles
Band of Heathens
Deer Tick
Girls
The xx
Florence + the Machine
Neon Indian