Rock-en-Seine 2009 Preview
Friday, August 28, 2009 
The weather is a gorgeous 70°F, sunny with a cool breeze, not a heat wave nor rain cloud in sight. It doesn't get any better than that for the 7th annual Rock-en-Seine festival, which starts today at 3pm. Not only is this one of the biggest rock festivals in France -- 47 bands in 3 days on 3 stages, with over 75,000 attendees -- it takes place in a magnificent setting on the edge of Paris (just across the Seine from the metro station Pont de Saint-Cloud), in the historic park of the Domaine National de Saint-Cloud.
This year's bands (*only concert in France):
Friday 28th August
OASIS (UK)
AMY MACDONALD (UK)
VAMPIRE WEEKEND * (US)
BLOC PARTY (UK)
MADNESS *(UK)
YEAH YEAH YEAHS (US)
VITALIC (FR)
KEANE (UK)
JUST JACK * (UK)
ASHER ROTH (US) *
PASSION PIT (US)
BILL CALAHAN (US)
JAMES HUNTER (UK)
THE TATIANAS (FR)
OCEANA (BERLIN)
GUSH (FR)
Saturday the 29th
FAITH NO MORE * (US)
THE OFFSPRING (US)
BIRDY NAM NAM (FR)
THE HORRORS (UK)
YANN TIERSEN (FR)
CALVIN HARRIS * (UK)
SCHOOL OF SEVEN BELLS (US)
EBONY BONES (UK)
NOISETTES (UK)
KITTY DAISY AND LEWIS * (UK)
DANANANANAYCROYD (UK)
BILLY TALENT (CANADA)
THE ASTEROIDS GALAXY TOUR (DENMARK)
JILL IS LUCKY (FR)
ZONE LIBRE VS CAZEY AND B.JAMES (FR)
CHEVEU (FR)
Sunday the 30th
THE PRODIGY (UK)
MGMT * (US)
KLAXONS (UK)
MACY GRAY * (US)
EAGLES OF DEATH METAL * (US)
SLIIMY (FR)
METRIC (CANADA)
PATRICK WOLF * (UK)
ROBIN McKELLE (US)
LES PETITS POIS * (see below)
SAMMY DECOSTER (FR)
BAABA MAAL * (SENEGAL)
LILLY WOOD & THE PRICK (FR)
HINDI ZAHRA (FR)
VETO (DENMARK)
The worst-kept secret of this year's Rock-en-Seine is that "Les Petits Pois" are actually Them Crooked Vultures, made up of Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters, Nirvana), Joshua Homme (QOTSA, Eagles of Death Metal), and John Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin).
In addition to the bands, there are also "rock" themed art exhibitions, the usual array of food, drink and souvenir stands, and a special tent for kids (far from the noise).
As usual, no cameras, recorders or alcohol can be brought into the festival (you can buy plenty there). Make sure you have cash before you arrive, as there are no cash machines in or near the park (and the ones around the metro station will surely be emptied out in no time), and no credit cards are accepted for payment.
As of today,Friday tickets and three-day passes are sold out, but tickets for Saturday and Sunday are still available.
Stay tuned for photos and reports from the field!
See my photo essays of the last three Rock-en-Seine festivals:
Eagles of Death Metal, Faith No More, Oasis, Paris, Prodigy, Rock-en-Seine, Saint Cloud, music festival | in Around Town, Nightlife 
