The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival is a supreme test in scheduling. There's simply no way to catch everything worth seeing and hearing, given that the festival offers more than 80 acts on five stages.

Do you watch Sigur Ros or Damien "Jr. Gong" Marley? My Morning Jacket or Kanye West? She Wants Revenge or Daft Punk? Sleater-Kinney or Bloc Party?Those are the types of problems that a music fan loves to have.

Once again, the Coachella festival presented an absolute smorgasbord of musical talent during its two-day run (4/29-30) at the gigantic Empire Polo Fields in Indio, CA. Some 70,000 plus fans turned out each day to see such major headliners as Depeche Mode, Franz Ferdinand, Cat Power, Tool, Scissor Sisters, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Matisyahu and Digable Planets.

The talk of the town centered on Madonna, who was making her debut appearance at the festival. The Material Girl is about ready to kick off her own mega-tour, but she was savvy enough to make time for Coachella first.That's the kind of juice that this festival has in the biz. Folks like Madonna really want to play Coachella and they are willing to rearrange their schedules to do so. Some acts are even willing to go to more extreme measures on Coachella's behalf. For instance, Massive Attack made its first stateside appearance in more than eight years at Coachella. Also, Daft Punk played its first live show in some six years in Indio. Going into the weekend, the two days seemed pretty evenly stacked in terms of talent.

Saturday was going to be a better time for hip-hop heads, given that Kanye West was on the bill, and Sunday would be a bigger thrill for hard rockers, thanks to Tool. Both days, however, looked like winners for music lovers in general. And that's exactly how it turned out. One of Saturday's true highlights wasn't one of its most heralded. Lyrics Born, performing fairly early in the day on one of the smaller stages, delivered a knock-out set of tunes from 2003's great "Later That Day," many of which were later remixed on 2005's equally fine "Same !@#$ Different Day."The San Francisco Bay Area has received much media exposure as of late due to E-40 and the hyphy hip-hop movement, but Lyrics Born, an Oakland-based rapper, showed again with his set that he might be the most talented MC in the "Yay Area."The most talented rapper in the entire entertainment business, however, is probably Kanye West. The fantastic Mr. West delivered what was arguably the finest show during Coachella Day One. Using a dynamic string section and more charisma than should be legal, West had the crowd jumping to such selections as "Jesus Walks" and "Gold Digger."Although hip-hop fans have heard these pop-smart tracks a zillion times by now, West's best tracks aren't getting old in the slightest. Those previously mentioned tunes, as well as an armload of others, keep getting better and more powerful each time they are played. Plus, no rapper does a better job in translating his music from the studio to the stage than Kanye. A truly impressive outing.

Sigur Ros, which immediately followed West on the main stage, was nearly as impressive. As the sun began to set and a nice breeze cooled the sun-baked music worshipers, this Icelandic band delivered its patented blend of uniquely intoxicating music. In an industry where everybody seems to be trying to sound like someone else, Sigur Ros is one of the few bands that boasts a truly unique sound. Part of that has to do with the lyrics, which are sung in the band's native Icelandic dialect as well as in a made-up language that the group has deemed "Hopelandic." But, mostly, it has to do with the sound, which shares as much in common with classical music and, well, whale noises as it does indie rock. In contrast, Cat Power, one of the most buzzed about performers of 2006, didn't quite cut it. Her show had its moments, but she also seemed a bit distracted and overwhelmed by the magnitude of the setting. It's easy to venture the guess, however, that she would be much better in a more intimate setting.Depeche Mode closed the main stage offerings on Saturday in expected fashion. The synth-pop trio wowed its longtime fans, as well as converted a few thousand newcomers, with memorable renditions of both old and new songs. New songs such as "A Pain That I'm Used To" and "John the Revelator" proved to be even more powerful than many of the old fan favorites. This band clearly isn't ready for the senior-citizen rock-star circuit yet.

On Sunday, Ted Leo and the Pharmacists kicked off this critic's viewing schedule with a set that bristled with punk-rock energy and Who-alicious '60s-garage-rock 'tude. It was amazing that Leo was able to deliver as much energy as he did, given how draining the midday sun was in the desert."I would so gladly change places with James Blunt right now and be in one of those [expletive] tents," he said, squinting in the blistering sun and sweating profusely on one of the outdoor stages.It was almost too hot to dance at this point in the day, but that surely didn't stop fans from moving their feet to the sounds of Matisyahu. The artist (born Matthew Miller) mixed reggae, hard rock and hip-hop as toasted his way through tracks from his latest release "Youth."The vibe changed considerably once Sleater-Kinney took the stage. The riot grrl-inspired trio rocked hard enough to make one wonder why Ozzy hasn't thought of booking the band for Ozzfest. The dueling guitars and vocals of SK's Corin Tucker and Carrie Brownstein were superb as usual, but Janet Weiss' drumming, both ferocious and tuneful, seemed particularly inspired on this afternoon.

After catching a brief bit of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, the majority of the crowd made its way over to one of the DJ tents to watch Madonna perform a very brief set. It was a mob scene over there and most of the audience surely couldn't see what the Material Girl was up to on stage. Still, it was Madonna, the one true legend on the festival's bill, and that made the whole thing worthwhile for most fans. She sounded pretty strong as she worked the kinks out for her upcoming tour by playing a number of her new club tunes. Most people will remember Coachella 2006 for being the one that featured Madonna. That's unfortunate in a way, given that Tool definitely brought the most paying customers to the house.The band put on its regularly heavy show, complete with dramatic lighting and wacko videos, and got this crowd ready for the release of "10,000 Days," which hits stores on Tuesday (5/2). There's a saying that one needs the right tool to do the job. Along those same lines, organizers need the right band to close a festival. Tool, without a doubt, was that band.