Here is your yearly reminder that ACL is likely not for you anymore. I guess Ill meet you at Being Dead, maybe have some nostalgia with Blink182? Otherwise, lets hope for some undercard announcements in flight.
If you are buying, theyll be available at noonish central over at the website.
Austin City Limits Festival has announced the 2023 lineup. To be honest, I’m down for weekend one. Sure, the headliners are not the ATH cup of tea, but there are real heavy hitters in the middle lineup. I mean Bass Drum of Death, Chromeo, The Walkmen and The Mars Volta? At ACL? OK. Talking my language. In general, we get Death Grips, Poolside, The Breeders, Yves Tumor and Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Weekend Two highlights M83 and Tegan and Sara.
Wristbands are on sale in a couple of hours, but AMEX card holders get early access. CLICK HERE to learn more and shout out to ACL for finally putting the real price of the wristband on the storefront, no more fees and delivery and surcharges at checkout.
So, weekend two is upon us. I thought I’d share some intel for you folks giving this weekend a run at ACL Festival 2022.
Feel free to read up on last weekends recommendations. Aside from Nation Of Language not being here, my advice stands. However, there are some new things coming, either by lessons learned or by changes to the lineup. Let’s talk ACL Weekend Two. Hit the jump for more.
We know ACL may not always be our cup of tea top to bottom, lineups drifting towards tiktok stars and Youtube trends in recent year. That does not mean you won’t be void of awesome goodness and refreshing moments of zen along with a big dose of nostalgia to come over the top and sneak up on you having a good time. Here comes a list of things you should consider if you happen to find yourself with a wristband for Austin City Limits 2022 Weekend One.
Nation of Language – Friday 1pm @ Miller Lite – First thing I will see, they might be my favorite band on the lineup. This duo, now fully fleshed out as a four piece, bring together so much of what I love about synth pop and 80’s wave hits. Songs sometimes build, sometimes simmer darkly, but their set at Levitation last year was so good.
Genesis Owusu – Friday 4pm @ Tito’s – I make it a point to hit the tent midday at some point to see something I wouldn’t normally pursue. Owusu blends elements of R&B, hip-hop, disco slow jams and straight up hype jams. I’m curious. Check out “Whip Cracker” and try to categorize.
Big Boi – Saturday 6:15 @ Honda – Big glasses, bounce.
The War on Drugs – Saturday @ T-Mobile 7:15 – These songs want wide open spaces to expand out towards, find a spot out by the chair line, reflect on the days events. This stage tends to deliver in the later hours somewhat isolated from the crossover of noise as Diplo floods the hill at Miller Lite.
Dehd – Sunday 1:15 @ T-Mobile – A tight trio delivering well-crafted lo-fi pop songs locked down with underlying synths and an ever present catchy chorus. The only bummer is that locals Darkbird and Caleb de Casper are at the same time. That would have been a nice one-two-three punch, but I am going to take Dehd this round.
Buffalo Nichols – Sunday 1:45 @ Tito’s – Carl “Buffalo” Nichols did some moving, both geographically and musically. Where it has landed him is Austin, trying to rebuild the foundation of the blues, a noble effort to connect the history of the music to a new generation. #tenttheory
MUNA – Sunday 3pm @ Barton Springs – Buzz
Spoon – Sunday 4pm @ Honda – Why not?
ZHU – Sunday 7pm @ Miller Lite – Who knows how this will go, but there are some really strong deep house jams by Zhu lately, so go check it out, get your shimmy on and I’ll report back for next weekend.
Here’s a fancy playlist with some of these artists and more —-
If you’re like me and most of our ATH staff, you spend a lot of time buying records, digging through crates, and hell, even making wantlists to plan out your next purchases. I also am not a huge fan of massive crowds and absorbent prices, so that whole big convention last weekend just isn’t my bag. So if you’re a collector who likes to dig, chat with old friends, and also lives on a collecting budget, come on down to Mohawk on Sunday and shop at our (much more chill) vinyl convention. A whole slew of great, all local vendors will be there selling all varieties of both new and lovingly used records. My newly adorned booth, “Ray Ray’s Records and Music Stuff” will have a large selection of recently acquired LPs and 45s along with my vintage collection of hats, shirts, posters, cards, and music collectibles. Everything is reasonably priced with bulk deals encouraged. Come say hey on your way in or out of ACL and take home some Austin magic.
On a random record collecting note, if you haven’t watched this great documentary Record Safari – Digging in the Crates of America on Youtube, it’s well worth your time.
Looking back, no matter how upset we were, cancelling SXSW prevented a potential super spreader event. Now, because of the failed attempt at reopening, we have to continue waiting for life to resume normalcy as other countries start to allow venues and festivals to resume operations. ACL made the right decision. We’ll see you on the lawn next year.
Another Austin City Limits is behind us boys and girls and it’s always a good time to reflect on the music and experiences from the weekend. I considered myself very lucky to spend more time out during Weekend 2 when the weather was a bit cold and then incredible. The rain was limited and refreshing, and the colder weather brought out everyone’s best ACL hoodie. Once again, fun was had by everyone in attendance and the music was killer. Hit the jump for a couple thoughts.
ACL may be done and gone, but our post-coverage will still be trickling in this week as we recap both weekends of fun. When I said my Gimme 5 feature was over, I meant for you to maybe not take me too seriously and expect one or two more. So though the festival is over and this is not a preview, we all love playlists and I’m sure you’ll enjoy this one from Nashville based Judah & The Lion. Hit the jump for their words and songs.
Happy ACL day part 2! For those of us, like me, who couldn’t get away to see much last weekend, today marks the beginning of 3 more music filled days. The weather should be fantastic and some new bands have been added to the already stacked weekend lineup. Today I am finishing off my Gimme 5 feature this year with Toronto based Beaches who play in a matter of hours. So hit the jump and check out their words and picks.
The humidity returned. Record high temperatures were recorded. There was nowhere to hide. It was hot. I guess we have to move the fest back another month?
Day three was pretty chill for me. Plenty of fun shooting to do, though. Going into the fest, Sunday was all about Idles. Instead, I experienced several gems hiding around that powerhouse performance. From mellow to nostalgic to charming, Sunday’s photos include Otis The Destroyer, Thomas Csorba, Faye Webster, Idles, Banks, Third Eye Blind, Kacey Musgraves and a shot of the biggest crowd ever for side stage performance. No, I did not shoot Lizzo as after I checked out TEB and Kacey, the crowd waiting for Lizzo was so huge that making it through before the pit closed was not looking possible without a jet pack. It was crazy.