LCD Soundsystem and Guns N’ Roses aren’t the first.
Breakup to make up—that’s all bands do. But when your favorite group inevitably makes its grand reunion, there’s no more fitting stage than the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.
Guns N’ Roses and LCD Soundsystem are the chosen homecoming acts for the annual three-day music fest in March, concluding disbandments of 23 years and five years, respectively. The two epic reunions continue a tradition that includes stunning moments like Tupac’s hologram in 2012, which was joined by (human) performers Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre.
With this year’s Coachella on the horizon, Genius looks back on reunions to remember at the famed festival.
Bauhaus (2005)
English goth rock band Bauhaus defined a genre of music praised and emulated by artists like Marilyn Manson and Nine Inch Nails. It was devastating, then, when the group disbanded in 1983 prior to the release of their fourth and final album Burning From The Inside. In 2005, lead singer Peter Murphy was lowered upside-down onto the mainstage at Coachella, singing their hit song “Bela Lugosi’s Dead.” Appropriately, everyone in attendance flipped.
The Jesus and Mary Chain (2007)
Neil Young once sang “it’s better to burn out than to fade away” and The Jesus and Mary Chain were clearly listening. In 1998, at the apex of its career, the Scottish band went splitsville due to touring fatigue. In 2007, with little explanation and much excitement, the band reunited at Coachella. At the end of their hour-long set, Scarlett Johansson joined the stage to help sing their memorable 1985 hit, “Just Like Honey.”
Wu-Tang Clan (2013)
While Wu-Tang Clan has never officially “broken up,” the legendary rap pack’s show at Coachella in 2013 marked the first time in several years that the entire group shared one stage. Competing with the headlining Red Hot Chili Peppers, Wu-Tang powered through more than an hour of hits from Enter The 36 Chambers, and celebrated late member ODB with a group rendition of “Shimmy Shimmy Ya.”
OutKast (2014)
In 2006, without any formal announcement, OutKast went on hiatus. Andre 3000 became an elusive king of remixes like UNK’s “Walk It Out” and Rich Boy’s “Throw Some D’s,” while Big Boi went on to release a couple of critically acclaimed albums of his own.
Eight years later, on the precipice of the 20th anniversary of their maiden LP Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik, the duo announced that it would reunite for a handful of shows, beginning with Coachella. They ran through fan favorites “ATLiens,” “Rosa Parks,” and “B.O.B.,” and even brought out extended family friends like Sleepy Brown, Janelle Monáe, and Future.
Rage Against The Machine (2007)
On October 18, 2000, after a series of public mishaps, Rage Against the Machine frontman Zack de la Rocha announced his departure from the band. Seven years later, Rage announced plans for a reunion at Coachella. The politically outspoken band explained its decision. “It occurred to all of us that the times were right to see if we can knock the Bush administration out in one fell swoop, and we hope to do that job well.” The band tore the house down.
Mazzy Star (2012)
In 1997, after begging Capitol to release them from their contract, Mazzy Star officially disbanded. Frontwoman Hope Sandoval went on to appear on albums by The Jesus and Mary Chain and The Chemical Brothers, while guitarist David Roback produced and mixed songs for Beth Orton. In 2012, almost 20 years after the release of their seminal album So Tonight That I Might See, the band came back together to play two shows at Coachella, both of which included a heartbreaking rendition of “Fade Into You.”
