Thursday, October 4, 2018

ACL 2018: First Weekend Saturday Thoughts [EDIT]

Aw man.  I know I said earlier that first weekend Friday may be the best night of the whole weekend, but I don't know, dude.  Metallica?  Nelly?  Chvrches?  Some of these are very exciting.
I don't usually make it out there first thing on Saturday, but in the past I've done that if there were top notch early things to see.  This year I'll probably take the time to go eat and drink well before making my way down to Zilker, but maybe I'll push it to get down there to see Dizzy.  But the early stuff today is not must-see for me.

A few prelude thoughts:

  • The comments for each band are those "One Liner" things that I added to my reviews. It helps me to remember who they are (sometimes) and provides some detail on the kind of music they play.  
  • I've made each band name a link so that you can go read the full review and listen to some tunes if you are unswayed by the One Liner.
  • The first column in each box is the stage where the band is playing (in case you thought I was just playing a weird word association game).
Playlist!





12:00 – 1:00
Miller Lite
PARIS: Soundcloud rapper/singer who needs a new name
Barton Springs
Molly Burch: Torchy tunes with a sad bend but a nice voice.
Kiddie Limits (12:30)
Red Yarn: Kiddie Limits music with a barnyard/animal theme
Tito’s (11:45)
Bells of Joy: Gospel
BMI
Dizzy: Super chilled, dreamy pop from Ontario that I actually enjoy.
Home Away
Slenderbodies: Whispery, falsetto indie pop that still somehow grooves

These early morning offerings are pretty bland.  If I’m there this early in the day, I’d choose Dizzy. Although a few weeks after posting this, I've still been singing one of the slenderbodies songs in my head.  So maybe they're better than I thought.

12:45
Honda
Supa Bwe: Another sing/song rapper without much good to say.
Tito’s Tent
Jackie Venson: Austin blues rocker with a killer guitar.
American Express
Alice Merton: The "No Roots" lady.

Pretty weak hour, so I think I would probably angle for seeing Jackie Venson to see if she is as legit in person as she seems.  Local product too.  Also, I think listening to everyone go crazy for that freaking "No Roots" song, after napping through the first 42 minutes of Merton’s show, would make me crazy.  I witnessed this same thing with Capital Cities a few years ago, with that garbage "Safe and Sound" song, and it made me irrationally annoyed.

1:30 to 2:30
Miller Lite
Durand Jones and the Indications: Retro Soul goodness with a great live sound.
Barton Springs
IAMDDB: Generic mix of rap and R&B from a Brit lady
Tito’s (1:45)
Ikebe Shakedown: Funky instrumental jam outs with tons of horns
BMI
Naked Giants: Highly fun pop punk rock bounce from Seattle.
Home Away
Verite: Moody electronic pop and 1975 covers.

This hour is all over the map.  You can literally just choose the type of tunes you want.  Durand Jones is good, if you are looking for retro soul.  Ikebe Shakedown are super funky and groovy, if you want instrumental groove.  But Naked Giants are probably the best thing in this slot for my money.  I’ll likely go there.

(although I have to admit that I couldn’t recall the style of music for any of these bands, except for Ikebe, when I saw this line on the poster.  Not a great sign for their memorableness).

2:30 to 3:30
Honda
Mon Laferte: Spanish-language music I don't understand
Kiddie Limits
Kupira Marimba: Marimba music for kids to boogie to.
Tito’s Tent (2:45)
Curtis Harding: O.G.-sounding soul man.
American Express (2:15)
The Wombats: Highly fun Brit rock and roll with that Dance to Joy Division hit

On the one hand, Curtis Harding is pretty freaking cool.  I might be swayed to go over there and eyeball his style.  On the other, upper hand, I think I’d likely prefer high energy rock and goofiness of the Wombats.


3:30
Miller Lite
SMINO: Singer/rapper leaning more to R&B soul than hip hop.
Barton Springs
Japanese Breakfast: Great melodic indie rock to go with thoughts of sushi pancakes
BMI
Sweet Spirit: Local pop rock good time
Home Away (3:15)
The Breeders: Alternative rock's girl group from the 90's (yes, you remember "Cannonball").

Kinda tough call here.  Japanese Breakfast is one of the new things I’ve found through this process that turned me into a fan.  But the Breeders are a part of my 90’s alt rock upbringing.  I might make my buddy choose for me.  I think I’m leaning Breeders.

4:30
Honda
Brandi Carlile: Great lyricist walking the line between rock and Americana
Kiddie Limits
SaulPaul: Acoustic hip hop (but also real beats) for the Kiddies
Tito’s Tent
Sofi Tukker: Electronic dance music for the dumbing down of America
American Express (4:15)
Highly Suspect: Excellent alternative rock

This is where Saturday could become your hard rock day.  Interesting the way that the Fest has cooked up a three show run here at the AmEx stage where you could just dig in for a series of mosh pits and head bangs from 4:30 to 10:00.  If it weren’t for Chvrches, I’d be tempted.  Anyway, Highly Suspect will get my vote here, although Brandi Carlile is very very good.

For real, I'm playing the playlist up above as I painstakingly put together all of these little charts, and "Little One" just came on.  I've heard that song 40 times by now, and yet I still broke into goosebumps during the chorus and needed to belt it out.  Definitely doing HS.

5:30
Miller Lite
Blood Orange: Bummer R&B crooner over down-tempo synth beats
Barton Springs
Sharon Van Etten: Perfectly pleasant folky rock that I've already forgotten
BMI
Flor: Surprisingly fun indie pop rock.
Home Away (5:15)
Bazzi: Generic R&B guy made famous by a meme

This one is only hard because most of this is not good music.  I guess, when presented with these four choices, that Flor would be my choice, although I have to confess that before I just looked back at my review, they had slipped entirely from my mind.  At least I could remember that Blood Orange and Bazzi are terrible.

6:00 to 6:30
Honda
Chvrches: Excellent electronic dance pop from Scotland
Tito’s Tent
San Holo: More generic EDM
American Express (6:00)
Deftones: Mid-90's hard rockers with a few great tunes and then some Incubus and screaming sludge.

Chvrches, all day, for me.  A case could be made to go see the Deftones and relive some of my Nu Metal days, but I really want to see Chvrches again.  Also, they have shifted the times slightly, so you could theoretically go see 20 minutes of Deftones and still make the whole Chvrches set.

7:00 or 7:30
Miller Lite
St. Vincent: Quirky electro-indie rock
Barton Springs
Residente: Spanish-language EDM and hip hop from Puerto Rico
Home Away (7:00)
Nelly: THE St. Louis Rapper, as far as I'm concerned, with loads of hits you know

This is a harder call than it should be.  St. Vincent is legitimately good, and from what I have read, she puts on a great live show.  But come on, man, I’d just have to go bump and grind to Nelly.  I don’t think I could live with myself if I missed out on “Hot in Herrre.”  I’m very sophisticated.

8:00 or 8:30
Honda (8:30)
Justice: Old school electronic dance party
Tito’s Tent (2:45)
Silent Disco
American Express (8:00)
Metallica: Metal Gods

It is honestly too bad, because I think I would have enjoyed Justice.  Of all the electronic stuff coming to this year’s fest, they are the most approachable for an old person like me.  That being said, I would not miss out on Metallica.  I know I have been beating this into the ground, but they are seriously great live.  Even if you’re scared, just go anyway and let yourself be taken in by the power.  Also, note that Metallica's set just recently expanded to two hours (instead of just an hour and a half).

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