Coachella 2011: The dates have been set, so let’s start speculating

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The summer festival season has nearly come to an end. We here on the West Coast have another major event on the horizon with San Francisco’s Outside Lands, but then it’s time to start filling the piggy bank for 2011’s festival season. Goldenvoice unveiled Tuesday the official dates for Coachella 2011, and Indio hotels are standing by for the three-day weekend beginning April 15.

Coachella is coming off its best-attended fest yet, as the 2010 edition, headed by Jay-Z, Gorillaz and Thom Yorke, with many, many, many others, drew 75,000 people per day to register a sellout. The summer festival is thriving, even as other facets of the touring biz have struggled. Chicago’s Lollapalooza swelled in size in 2010 as well, and our pals at the Chicago Tribune noted the fest drew about 80,000 per day.

But that’s all business stuff. It’s time to start the ‘Book Blur in 2011’ campaign. Or OutKast. Or Kanye West.

-- Todd Martens

P.S.: Dear Goldenvoice, many of us here are a little jealous that Lollapalooza had Chicago chef Graham Elliot Bowles curate the food options. Can we one-up them on the West Coast, perhaps? How about Rick Bayless? He’s got a foothold in L.A. now, and that would be a slight blow to Chicago pride. Thanks.

Photo: Screenshot: www.coachella.com