Coachella Weekend 2 recap: Billie Eilish, Danny Elfman, Phoebe Bridgers, Japanese Breakfast, more!

An art installation at Coachella.
Photo credit: Robert Kinsler

Review by Robert Kinsler

Maria Zardoya of The Marias.
Photo credit: Beth Sarah / Getty Images
For Coachella

Weekend 2 of Coachella 2022 (April 22-24, 2022) offered up so many great performances, it's impossible so soon after the event to proclaim any single performance — or even any day — the best of the event. 

One thing that is clear is how this year's running of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival clearly thrust women into the limelight. In addition to Billie Eilish's incredible headlining set on the Coachella Stage on Saturday night, the parade of top-tier women extended from early-in-the-day emerging acts such as Holly Humberstone, Nilüfer Yanya, The Regrettes, Yola and Giselle Woo & the Night Owls to bona fide favorites Phoebe Bridgers, Japanese Breakfast, The Marias, Beach Bunny and Maggie Rogers. Weekend 2 Coachellagoers even got Paramore lead singer Hayley Williams as a guest during Eilish's turn. 

Here is a recap of my favorite performances I caught at Weekend 2.

Friday, April 22, 2022

The HU performing on the Outdoor Theatre Stage.
Photo: Robert Kinsler

The HU — Mongolian hard rock outfit The HU lived up to their well-deserved buzz with a 40-minute set of electrifying cuts that fused head banging rhythms wrapped in in guttural singing and propelled by undeniable grooves. Founded in 2016 in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, The HU is unlike any group this writer has ever seen and the use of instruments from their native land like the Morin Khuur (horse head fiddle), Tovshuur (Mongolian guitar), Tumar Khuur (jaw harp) and strong presence made for an unforgettable outing on the Outdoor Theatre Stage. "Wolf Totem" was among the otherworldly tracks the band performed with absolute perfection.

Phoebe Bridgers at Coachella.
Photo credit: Getty Images for Coachella

Phoebe Bridgers — Standing out on a three-day bill featuring more than 150 artists isn't easy, but Los Angeles singer-songwriter Phoebe Bridgers did that with her bewitching hour-long set Friday night. Launching her showcase with the lovely "Motion Sickness," Bridgers performed a set that showcased her amazing songcraft and ability to use her musical talents — and those of her amazing band members — to create a soundscape that is fully her own. It didn't hurt that the video projection screen would feature a colorful animated book that would flip pages between the songs and twinkling night sky adding additional atmospheric magic to the setting. Her nuanced and artful performance reached a dramatic close with the explosive finale of "I Know The End."

Other Friday highlights included area favorites Giselle Woo & the Night Owls, English rockers Spiritualized, the soul-meets-pop New York-based Lawrence (featuring siblings Clyde and Gracie Lawrence), rising Los Angeles band The Marias, French singer-DJ Madeon and headliner Harry Styles — the latter who was joined by Lizzo for a version of "I Will Survive." 

Saturday, April 23, 2022

Beach Bunny performing on the Outdoor Theatre stage.
Photo credit: Jacob Mulka / Getty Images for Coachella

Beach Bunny - an early Saturday standout, the Lili Trifilio-led Chicago outfit Beach Bunny offered up a winning mix of melodic punk and power pop on the Outdoor Theatre Stage on Saturday afternoon. Although the quartet was reduced to a trio (the band's guitarist Matt Henkels was not in the lineup for some reason), the group's second-ever appearance at Coachellafest was a success with Trifilio handling all the guitar duties with enough power to help propel their great 45-minute set.

Michelle Zauner of Japanese Breakfast at Coachella.
Photo credit: Julian Bajsel / Getty Images for Coachella

Japanese Breakfast — The moniker for singer-songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Michelle Zauner, Japanese Breakfast was clearly a wonderful discovery for many at the festival. Japanese Breakfast delivered a fully original and joyful set inside a packed Mojave Tent on Saturday afternoon. The diversity of the material included the lovely "Glider" (written for a video game), melodic sortie "Savage Good Boys" and set-ending experimental art rocker "Diving Woman." The yearning "The Body Is a Blade" from her latest album "Jubilee" was one of the most affecting songs this writer heard during the fest.

Danny Elfman at Coachella.
Photo credit: Rachael Polack / Getty
Images for Coachella

Danny Elfman — On Oct. 31, 1995, Danny Elfman said goodbye to his beloved Oingo Boingo via a 3-hour, 40-minute finale at the Universal Amphitheatre in Los Angeles (read my review of that legendary concert HERE). With that well-publicized finale, Elfman dove full time into his burgeoning career as a composer and has since written a slew of acclaimed film scores. Fast forward 27 years to Elfman's appearances at Coachella 2022 and the artist has truly come full circle. On Saturday night, Elfman and an amazing band along with an orchestra and choir performed a handful of Boingo classics as well as selections from some of his most beloved film scores along with new material from his 2021 solo album "Big Mess." This was a dazzling and satisfying run through Elfman's singularly rich sonic universe. Standouts included an amped take on the "Simpsons" theme, a medley of songs from "The Nightmare Before Christmas," and gorgeous symphonic run through "Ice Dance / The Grand Finale" (from "Edward Scissorhands"); it was marvelous to hear Elfman and company run through inspired versions of Boingo classics like "Just Another Day," "Only a Lad" and "Dead Man's Party." The new material was compelling too, especially the decidedly dark "Happy."

Billie Eilish performing on the Coachella Stage.
Photo credit: Andy Boyle / Getty Images for Coachella

Hayley Williams, left, with Billie Eilish in Indio, CA.
Photo credit: Andy Boyle / Getty Images for Coachella

Billie Eilish — Although Weekend 2 attendees didn't get the celebrated Damon Albarn (who appeared at Weekend 1) as a guest during the "Bad Guy" singer's highly anticipated set on Saturday night, they did get to enjoy a guest making her first-ever appearance at the famed festival. "Oh, look! An empty seat. Who is that for?" Eilish asked. She then introduced Paramore's Hayley Williams; they joined forces along with Eilish's brother FINNEAS (the latter who handled acoustic guitar duties) for a powerful take on Paramore's 2007 rocker "Misery Business." Make no mistake; 20-year-old Eilish is already a bona fide star. In addition to her unique vocal and musical style, she is a compelling songstress more focused on nuanced songcraft than glitzy bombast. Sure, her set included dance-minded cuts like "NDA" and "My Strange Addiction," but the gorgeous "idontwannabeyouanymore," "Lovely" and "Getting Older" revealed a greater force at play than the majority of her contemporary hitmakers. 

Other Saturday highlights included rising British rock quartet Yard Act, Disclosure and wonderful R&B singer Amber Mark.

Sunday, April 24, 2022

FINNEAS performing on the Outdoor Theatre on Sunday, April 24, 2022.
Photo credit: Rachael Polack / Getty Images for Coachella

FINNEAS — FINNEAS repeated the power of his previous week's solo set with his appearance on the final day of Coachella. Standouts of his 45-minute set on the Outdoor Theatre stage included the soulful piano-anchored "I Lost a Friend," R&B-meets-rock foray "The 90s" and heart-wrenching "Break My Heart Again." He closed out his set with the soaring Americana mining "Till Forever Falls Apart" and breezy acoustic nugget "Let's Fall in Love for the Night."

Maggie Rogers — Appearing on the Coachella Stage, singer Maggie Rogers' emotive "Light On" and soulful follow-up "Falling Water" really showcased her uplifting approach and soaring vocals. She ended her 45-minute appearance with the driving dance track "That's Where I Am." 

For more coverage of Weekend #2 of the festival, read writer George A. Paul's coverage via Rock Cellar Magazine HERE.