Seizing on a strategy formed last year, Coachella [ tickets ] 2005 featured the return of several '80s alternative legends--including New Order and Bauhaus [ tickets ]--big-draw bands like Coldplay and Nine Inch Nails, and a cast of supporting indie hipsters that would make even the most jaded Puma-wearing hipster proud.

Day One at Coachella (4/30) put a premium on songwriting, particularly on the main stage, where Wilco [ tickets ], Weezer [ tickets ], Keane and Coldplay plied their trade. A hushed, rapt audience of 30,000 is striking to be sure ... and that happened more than a few times. Still, the rockers were not left wanting, as acts ranging from The Kills to Razorlight definitely left ears ringing.

Whatever happened to the loud, drunk jerks that show up at these festivals? Coachella's organizers have banished them to the back of the bus in favor of an older, more subdued crowd. And on Day One, at least, it was perfect chemistry.

Wilco
Without uttering a word, Jeff Tweedy and his revamped Wilco--now a taut five-piece--began their set with "The Late Greats," a song lamenting that "the best band will never get signed." With a set that went no further back than 2000's "Summerteeth," Tweedy and his mates did way more rocking than talking during their 70-minute performance. Still, the introverted frontman, whose bout with painkillers forced the band from last year's Coachella lineup, admitted that he's doing much better now. Said Tweedy, "I don't even like festivals--but this one's good." Then, appropriately, the band played "Handshake Drugs." Wilco seemed to hit its stride on "Muzzle of Bees," with its pretty, lilting, acoustic rhythm. The pulsing "Shot in the Arm," was a revelation. Like their Grammy winning album "A Ghost is Born," Wilco's set effortlessly cruised between Crazy Horse-style guitar heroics on songs like "At Least that's What You Said" to beautifully thoughtful balladry, such as "Jesus, etc.," perhaps the most heartbreaking song ever played at Coachella.

Weezer
Dressed in a geeky, plaid jacket and dark trousers, his trademark spectacles held firmly to his nose, Weezer singer/guitarist Rivers Cuomo was all things art-school boy-genius. The group, whose latest release hits store shelves May 10, delivered a mixed-bag of greatest hits and new stuff before a dedicated field full of fans. Included in the set were several new songs, among them the new album's first single, "Beverly Hills." Weezer's hyper-cool hipster "flying W" logo hung over the center of the stage, its lights bouncing up and down, as the band plainly delivered "Island in the Sun," "Buddy Holly" and a balls-to–the-wall rendition of "Hash Pipe." With his good looks and firm sense of irony in place, could Cuomo be the next David Byrne?

Bauhaus
Sticking to the return-to-the-'80s model established at last year's Coachella festival with the Pixies, this year, organizers brought back Peter Murphy and Bauhaus. For the opener, "Bela Lugosi's Dead," Murphy hung upside down in a bat-like pose as he sang. With his flaming blonde hair and black clothes, Murphy looked like a Goth version of Christopher Lloyd from "Back to the Future"--and he was just as much the oddball. Midway through the set, Murphy exclaimed, "This is not a rock show." Later the singer announced, "You can tell them you were here!" In between, Bauhaus offered "Stigmata Martyr" and "In the Flat Fields," but the set's pacing, while starting out hot, lagged with a collection of mid-tempo songs that seemed to drag things down. Unlike the Pixies' raucous '04 set, Bauhaus stumbled a bit, but the die-hards probably couldn't have cared less. They were just glad to see the seminal Goth act back together again.

Coldplay
Chris Martin, the face of Coldplay, was in a cheeky mood throughout his group's 80-minute headlining set. Martin vamped on lyrics--adding the line "40,000 people watching us" to "Politik"--joked often and even asked the crowd to take photos of the stage simultaneously. (It must have looked cool onstage from Coldplay's vantage point; out in the tight, crowded field, it just seemed like a goof.) "Clocks" and "The Scientist" were excellent--tight and much-adored. Several newer songs made their way into the set as well, including the new single off the forthcoming "X&Y," "The Speed of Sound." One striking tune, "Til Kingdom Come," written for Johnny Cash, featured drummer Will Champion on piano while Martin strummed an acoustic guitar. It's clear the group is eager to start playing their new material. Even Coldplay's encore included a new song, introduced by Martin as, "The best song we've ever written." While the track sounded very U2 with all its talk of "heavy hearts" and "being alone," Martin's assertion may come under fire, as one of the encore's final songs, "In My Place," could make a better case for the title.

Sage Francis
A year ago, Sage Francis played a midday set in the festival's smallest tent with just a CD player. This year, the Florida-born rapper was manning the second main stage after sunset--and he even brought along a pair of MCs and a DJ. Opening with "Escape Artist," off "A Healthy Distrust," the rapper delivered an animated and energetic show. His audience started out thin, but--as it did last year--his brash style attracted many a-passerby. By the end of his set, the bald-with-beard Francis, wearing a militaristic, olive-green jacket, had dissed the new Pope, Florida and Jay-Z (sample lyric: "I like 99 rappers but Jay-Z ain't one!"). On "Dance Monkey," Francis left the rapping to his sidekicks while he flailed and wiggled center stage as if he was having a seizure. Crazy? Maybe. Regardless, his was a spicy, memorable set that, if nothing else, got the indie rapper noticed.

Bloc Party
Bloc Party packed the Sahara Tent with die-hards and curious rockers. By the end of their devastating set, all comers were believers. Before one beat-heavy number, the band's singer, Kele Okareke, announced, "Are you ready to turn this place into a club?" And then drummer Matt Tong's jubilant beat delivered on the promise, as lights careened around the stage and bodies bounced in the oversized, white tent.

Cafe Tacuba
The Mexico-city bred Café Tacuba fuses ska and salsa for a singular sound. Before them was a loyal crowd of fanatics who responded to the band's every whim. Songs ranged in mood and grandeur from the loud, booming "Chilanga Banda," to the somber closer "Dejate Caer." All in all, there was plenty of rocking, and Tacuba was one of the only bands whose audience included a crowd-surfing Spanish wrestler.