Fans express their shock, excitement over Danny Elfman performing at Coachella 2020

What's this? What's this? Danny Elfman is performing at Coachella this year!

"I guess the cat is out of the bag. @coachella 2020! Danny Elfman… Past, Present and Future!" the film composer and former Oingo Boingo frontman said on Twitter following the festival's announcement on Thursday of this year's acts. "From Boingo to Batman and Beyond!"

Elfman's most illustrious work is that with filmmaker Tim Burton in motion pictures including The Nightmare Before Christmas, Edward Scissorhands, and Beetlejuice. His eerie compositions have also set the tone for the Michael Keaton-led Batman films, as well as Men in Black, and Good Will Hunting.

Having the Los Angeles native, 66, at Coachella may not be as offbeat as first conceived. After all, Elfman's early music career included the rock band Oingo Boingo, which he created and led; until recent years when Coachella hit the mainstream, its headliners were mostly alternative bands. Fans can probably expect Elfman's act to be equal parts rock concert and orchestra performance from his popular works, which have earned him four Oscar nominations.

"A band builds slowly. You're playing to 50 people, then 100, then 1,000, then 5,000, and along the way you're building a repertory, and people know what to expect at your concerts. There's really no template for this. What is a concert of your film music supposed to be like?" Elfman discussed with EW a few years back about his performance, "Danny Eflman's Music from the Films of Tim Burton."

Elfman's performance will follow the hugely successful 2017 Coachella set by composer Hans Zimmer, in which an orchestra and special guests helped bring his soundtracks to life at the Southern California desert venue. And while Elfman's name was not the largest on the 2020 Coachella lineup poster, it generated some of the biggest buzz on social media:

Weekend 1 of Coachella is already sold out, but click here to register for Weekend 2 ticket presale.

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