The Real Coachella

The all-star lineup for this year's Real Coachella in downtown Phoenix begs the question: Why would anyone waste their precious time driving 3 1/2 hours to the desert wasteland of Indio, California, just to see a bunch of has-beens and never-will-bes performing at an overpriced festival when they can catch the real deal right here in their own backyard? The Real Coachella is the brainchild of performance artist, musician, and former New Times coverboy Ryan Avery. This year's lineup includes local faves Skinwalkers, Andrew Jackson Jihad, JJCnV, and Stephen Steinbrink. They'll be joined by acts from around the Southwest, as well as a handful of bands associated with the prolific Avery. Oh, yeah, and also some guy named Paul McCartney, who will be warming up the stage for some of the bigger acts on the bill. "Every year, for the Real Coachella, we manage to steal one of the headliners from the fake Coachella in California, and that's what we're doing this year with Paul McCartney," Avery says. "We're pretty stoked about having him play there. We're requesting that he does all Beatles songs." No need to soil the Real Coachella's good name with a bunch of that weak-ass Wings shit, after all.