There are few Coachella performers as reliable as Gregg Gillis, aka the mash-up DJ Girl Talk, who has played sets multiple years on increasingly larger stages at the desert festival that have always followed the same format: Gills, headband always in place, plus in his laptop and trigger-mixes between songs from seemingly disparate artists (Quad City DJs vs Radiohead), all while slam-dancing among nubile grinders picked right out of the audience as confetti (and propelled toilet paper!) rain overhead.



Anyone who thought Gillis would buck the paradigm for his debut on the Coachella main stage just before Outkast would have been disappointed. The only addition to his stage show was a giant blowup prop and a few short guest spots from rappers he’s featured (including Busta Rhymes, Too $hort and Juicy J) – the latter of which most of the audience could see, thanks to a video glitch that found the jumbotrons flanking the stage broadcasting the cross-field set from legacy rocker Bryan Ferry ("Who's the old guy?" was a sadly-overheard question).

FULL COACHELLA 2014 COVERAGE

No matter: it was as frenetically likeable as ever and served its dance-heavy purpose exactly; for festival goers looking for a dance party blessed with tracks not just from Kanye West but The Who and the Beatles, there's none better.