Miracle in the Desert

SCENE

"It's all so overwhelming," summed up HOT HOT HEAT's DANTE DECARO about the alternative frock 'n' stroll circus otherwise known as Coachella, and the Canadian guitarist was just talking about the VIP area. Though the fenced-off section boasted shade, cocktails and a bevy of familiar faces sporting more trucker hats and ass-crack than a Teamsters convention (as well as dressed-down thespians DREW BARRYMORE, CAMERON DIAZ, Camy's ex JARED LETO, JULIETTE LEWIS, ANDY DICK, a bikini-clad MICHELLE RODRIGUEZ and a black-tressed ALICIA SILVERSTONE; rockers TOMMY LEE, TRENT REZNOR and OGRE; and Silver Lake royalty including KEITH MORRIS, SPACELAND's MITCHELL FRANK and JENNIFER TEFFT, THE PURPLE CIRCLE salon crew, and VIDA's FRED ERIC and his very preggers gal pal ROLLER), the more exclusive backstage/trailer area offered an even swankier oasis. Many of our well-connected pals wore a veritable rainbow of wristbands (the coveted colors being blue, green and orange), but our pink press band proved limiting the first day, so on Sunday we opted to work our way 007-style to the promised land, where the upper echelon of hangers-on enjoyed free grub, games and couches galore amid artist's trailers complete with personalized décor (QUEENS OF THE NEW STONE AGE's room boasted vintage deer wallpaper, while RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS were given a mini-yard complete with a blow-up swimming pool) and golf carts for cruising the perimeter of the site — a delightful alternative to hiking from tent to stage to tent. Still, we walked the walk a lot over the weekend: to the film tent, where CLUB BANG's PIPER FERGUSON's NYC music-scene flick Our Time wowed throngs of Yeah Yeah Yeahs­worshiping, spiked-belt babes; to the sweltering Mohave tent, where newbies S.T.U.N. and IMA ROBOT woke up the early risers and THE LIBERTINES got a second chance to rock after being bumped Saturday; and to the Gobi tent, where IAN McKAYE answered questions about livin' la vida straight-edge and why he agreed to participate in an event that charged $80 a ticket. (The answer? Patti Smith once told McKaye that if he's given a forum to express his views, he oughtta take it.) Alas, no unscheduled performers took the stage (Radiohead was the big rumor), unless you count a mo(ck)hawked KELLY OSBOURNE sorta jamming with N*E*R*D. Or was that just a mirage? (Lina Lecaro)