Tuesday, the Hangout 2018 lineup dropped, headlined by Kendrick Lamar, The Killers, and The Chainsmokers. Hangout Fest is promoted by Goldenvoice, and over the years we’ve seen a lot of crossover between Hangout and the Coachella 2018 lineup.
Based on the Hangout 2018 lineup, it’s fair to take some educated guesses on who we might see on the Coachella 2018 lineup, which is two months or so from dropping. If you haven’t already, take a look at our festival rumors and confirmations for some other people we expect are OUT for Coachella 2018.
PORTUGAL. THE MAN
I think Portugal. The Man is a pretty much no-brainer second-line Coachella 2018 act at this point. They consistently deliver some of the best live rock shows out there, they’re constantly on the radio as “Feel It Still” is one of the most played alternative songs of the year, and they haven’t been to the Polo Grounds since 2013. I’d be absolutely shocked if they’re not on the bill this year. They’ve been amazing to see live this year — outside of U2 they were my favorite act at Bonnaroo, and shows at the Palladium, Club Bahia, and Troubadour in the last 12 months or so has proved their consistency to me.
ODESZA
If ODESZA isn’t even a headliner at Hangout quite yet, then that leads me to believe they’ll probably be a second-line act at Coachella 2018, probably the first or second name. They’ve really upped their live production to another level and their album that dropped this year is pretty damn fantastic. They last played Coachella in 2015 and had a 10 PM set in the Gobi. They are a shoe-in to close out the Outdoor Theatre whatever night they play, if they’re booked this year. I highly expect them to be.
TASH SULTANA
It’s about damn time we get to see Tash Sultana at a major American music festival! I expect her to fully play the festival circuit for the first time, and her Hangout 2018 booking more or less confirms my suspicions. She sold out the Goldenvoice-promoted Fonda Theatre in a pretty small amount of time in October and I expect her to get a midday tent slot at this year’s festival. She wowed me with her first LA show at The Echo earlier this year and again at the Fonda.
BLEACHERS
Surprisingly, Jack Antonoff’s successful synthpop band Bleachers have not yet played Coachella, even though they hit the festival circuit pretty hard in 2016. With their Hangout booking, I fully expect them to be one of the acts that crosses over — and crosses Coachella off their list of new festivals. Antonoff has also worked with a ton of top artists as a producer and is known for bringing out guests, it’s about time he takes that element of surprise to the Polo Grounds.
GRETA VAN FLEET
Goldenvoice and Paul Tollett can’t convince Led Zeppelin to reunite, so fuck it — why not just book the band of kids that basically has the exact same sound? Greta Van Fleet have been one of the hottest bands to emerge in 2017 and they’ve sold out multiple Los Angeles shows in a week already. That they’re not even considered a bottom-line band at Hangout 2018 as they make their first festival circuit run proves that Goldenvoice is behind them, and I expect them to play a 2 PM or so set in one of the tents this year.
NONAME
Chicago rapper Noname played FYF Fest 2017 and her booking at Hangout 2018 is a pretty good sign we will see the multi-dimensional performer on the Polo Grounds this year. Her brand of evocative and quirky hip-hop would be a perfect fit for a late afternoon tent set at Coachella 2018.
ALEX LAHEY
Like fellow Aussie musician Tash Sultana, Alex Lahey is a singer-songwriter-rocker who has been buzzing like crazy lately, mostly thanks to her excellent 2017 debut record I Love You Like A Brother. I’m already pretty certain she’s been booked for a number of American festivals, and I have a good feeling she’ll get the call for Coachella 2018 as one of the bottom-line acts. I’m pretty stoked to see her live show next month at The Echo, I’ve been jamming out to her record a bunch since it first dropped.
SUNFLOWER BEAN
One of my absolute favorite acts at Desert Daze 2017, Sunflower Bean is this band that has been around a couple of years but has really hit their stride as of late. They played Firefly 2017, another Goldenvoice festival, and their turnout was pretty solid despite going against a big name playing the main stage at the same time. They’re quite excellent performers, giving me serious Pretenders meets Thin Lizzy vibes.
For what it’s worth, these are all just predictions and I’ve been given no insider knowledge about whether any of these acts will be booked at Coachella 2018. This is also a bit of a hopeful post as I’m a big fan of all of these acts, but there have certainly been a couple of clues that lead me to believe at least a handful of them will play the festival.
