My Bonnaroo 2013 Wish List

I know that it's only January 1st, but that also means that it's the first day of a BRAND NEW YEAR OF MUSIC FESTIVALS! Now if you know me at all, you know I go absolutely bat shit crazy during music festival season. It's the most wonderful time of the year! Sorry Santa, this year I'm sending my wish list to the geniuses at SuperFly who somehow manage to make Bonnaroo better every year! Sure, it's a little more corporate now, but that means I don't have to wait in line for eight hours to enter the festival grounds (though those long waits accounted for many entertaining memories of their own). It also means that I might just might get free showers this year . . . Please tell me this is true.

So anyway, with the new year comes my top picks/predictions for this year's festival, or just folks I'd love to see make an appearance. I've already got my tickets so my hopes are already high apple pie in the sky hopes. And with a little luck, some of these rumors will turn out to have some validity. Oh please, please, please!

Daft Punk (Hope and Wish)
These guys are regulars in the festival rumor mill. Do I actually believe they'll show face this year? Well no, and I'm not just saying that because of the helmets, I'm saying it because the Daft Punk duo is a lot like a pair of unicorns. Fun to imagine seeing, but in all likelihood it's just out of the question. I think I would actually give my left tit to see these Robot Rockers at Bonnaroo this year (please don't hold me to that, my left is the favorite tit). Daft Punk introduced me to EDM as a middle schooler. I remember listening to "Discovery" with my little brother when we were kids, never knowing that we would one day appreciate these artists and hell, the entire genre really, for what it is!

WHY IT COULD (though probably won't) HAPPEN: Multiple sources have claimed that Daft Punk will be releasing their much anticipated new album this spring, and there was a supposed leak released by the music event site "Songkick" that sent notifications to Daft Punk fans that they would be playing shows in the US this Spring/Summer. Let's just hope they choose Bonnaroo over Coachella, or do both!

Phoenix (Top Pick/Prediction)
Okay so maybe I have a thing for French dudes? But seriously, you have to give it up for Phoenix, a group who has been effectively leading the indie scene since the late 90s. They've done a remarkable job melding with the times, creating vibrant, exciting music that you swore was only a product of the 2000 electro-pop movement. But no, these guys have it now, the same way they had it then. And who doesn't love 1901?

WHY IT COULD HAPPEN: Songkick is also an instigator in this instance, having alerted fans that the band would be playing Coachella this April. That said, it's been a few years since Phoenix made a pit stop at Bonnaroo, and with the band's manager, Daniel Glass, stating that the new album was slated for an April 2013 release, a North American tour this summer sounds pretty damn feasible.

Green Day (Prediction)
I'm a little wishy washy about this one. Now don't get me wrong - Dookie is still to date one of my favorite albums of all time. I attribute every near high school car wreck to my distraction while listening to Billy Joe's angsty tunes. For the nostalgia alone, I think these guys would be great to see at Bonnaroo. I have to say though, I've just not been a fan of anything these guys have released after say 2000. It's just not good, and then you do a crappy Broadway show to boot? It's hard for me to keep rooting for you. Either way, just know when "Walking Contradiction", "Longview" and "Brain Stew" are performed, I will effectively lose my mind.

WHY IT COULD HAPPEN: Green Day just embarked on an ambitious project, releasing three new albums in 2012, Uno! Dos! and Tre! each coming out one month after the other. Now is as good a time as ever to get back on the public appearance bandwagon. After Billie Joe lost his shit at a show in Vegas earlier this year, he found himself in rehab for substance abuse. Good on him for taking control, and with that, I think we will see quite a few festival appearances this summer in an effort to clear the air and please the fans.

 The Rolling Stones (Prediction)

I'm confident The Stones will play Bonnaroo and several other festivals this summer. They have been absolutely on fire with their recent tour, selling out massive houses across the country. Mick has been in the public eye making SNL appearances, among other things. It's a big year for these guys. THEY ARE THE EFFIN' STONES.

WHY IT COULD HAPPEN: Apparently their Mobile App showed a Coachella date which was quickly removed, which makes me think the festival circuit is on their to-do list this summer. Also, Bonnaroo tends to feature at least one headliner that comes from a classic rock genre. It doesn't get anymore classic than that - these guys just fit the bill!

MORE TO COME . . .