Coachella 2012 may be four months away, but the time to buy a festival pass is now.

Well, Friday morning, to be exact.

Those not lucky enough to snatch up a pass or two back in June (when tickets were sold for one week) will have to bet on Friday's 10 a.m. PST sale time.

Each weekend pass (either for Apr. 13-15 or Apr. 20-22) will cost $285 a pop, with options to upgrade to VIP level ($665) and other varieties, plus service charge.

On Monday night, Goldenvoice, the official promoter of the annual desert fest, announced the full line-up for the 2012 edition.

Psst . . . pass it on, read Coachella's Facebook and Twitter pages, along with the familiar poster.

The Black Keys (who played last year), Radiohead, Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg will headline this year's festivities over two identical weekends.

Other noteworthy acts include: M83, Frank Ocean, Mazzy Star, Bon Iver, Jeff Mangum, Feist, Santigold, Arctic Monkeys, the Shins, At the Drive-In, the Weeknd and Egypt 80.

Before you come up with a grand plan to save money for a ticket, or beg your closest friends to sponsor you, here are five things to know about Coachella 2012:

Sign up early:
If you're planning to be one of the thousands of ambitious ticket buyers who will hit the refresh button over and over again Friday morning, sign up for your Coachella.com ticket account on Thursday evening or earlier.

Since Monday's line-up announcement, the Web site has crashed several times, preventing hopeful festivalgoers from finding out more information about tickets, hotels, shuttles and other desert-related items.

Choose your weekend:
According to Coachella promoter Goldenvoice, the weekend passes will not be interchangeable. That means a pass to the first weekend will not admit you to the second, and vice versa. Want to experience the festival first? Or catch the headliners when they really close the festival for good? Choose your weekend wisely.

Plan your shows, but don't be ambitious:
Choosing the right show is right up there with choosing the right weekend.

Chances are, you are not a fan of every single artist listed on the Coachella bill this year. And chances are, you still won't get to see all your favorite acts at the Empire Polo Club. To spread out the crowd, organizers carefully plan which big act is playing on which stage.

Last year, fans of Robyn AND the Kings of Leon were not able to see both shows in full. And while the stages were within running distance of each other, fans of both acts missed a chunk of each show, or watched a full show while missing the other.

So be prepared to miss a favorite act or two, and hope to catch them at smaller, cheaper venues.

Coachella 2012 will be reunion central:
After careful planning, let's hope At the Drive-In won't play at the same time as Refused, Jeff Magnum, Mazzy Star or Pulp.

Posting for the first time in two months, the El Paso band took to Twitter to comment on their Coachella appearance.

ATTENTION! To whom it may concern: AT THE DRIVE-IN will be breaking their 11 year silence THIS STATION IS . . . NOW . . . OPERATIONAL, the band wrote.

Bring your own water bottle:
With temperatures reaching 98 degrees Fahrenheit last year, most opted for water over beer. (If you're camping, well, that's another story).

Thanks to festival organizers, water is free if you bring your own empty bottle upon entering festival grounds. Coachella 2011 had at least four Hydration Centers. Expect long line-ups for the H2O, but it's definitely worth it (and will fuel you for the rest of the hot day).

The full line-up for Coachella 2012 is shown below. Tickets go on sale at 10 p.m. Friday, Jan. 13 at Coachella.com.

Also Read: Coachella 2012: Black Keys, Radiohead, Dr. Dre & Snoop Dogg to Headline

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