The Struts: Emo's: October 29, 2018

I never got to see Queen.  Or T. Rex.  Or really any of those classically bombastic bands who make flair and glitter and eye makeup and arm capes a significant part of their show.  But now I feel like I've seen something in the same wheelhouse.  These guys bring a great show full of huge songs and high energy.

Before I get there though, I have to note that we caught the last song of Thunderpussy, the aptly titled "Thunderpussy," and it was freaking great.  I reviewed them for ACL, but never got there in time to see their shows at the fest, but that particular song is some deeply rocking stuff.  Very good.  And then they were followed up by Emily Wolfe, who I saw a few years ago at Sound on Sound, and she was super impressive last night.  Local gal, with the most basic of accompaniment (drums and bass), but she could make that fat black guitar freaking talk.  I was definitely surprised at how good of a guitarist she has become.  Funny thing, they kept telling her to play another song because she had more time, and she seemed genuinely annoyed about it.  I was enjoying the tunes, so I was glad for the bonus time.

Now, as for the main event.  The lead singer of the Struts, Luke Spiller, strutted and paced and bounced and pointed and whirled and did everything in his power to hype up the crowd from the start of the first song (the relatively weak, new "Primadonna Like Me").  The drummer and the bassist did a good, workmanlike job of keeping the tunes going, and the guitarist threw down some good guitar heroics (although he sometimes looked stoned out of his gourd on 'ludes or something, just standing there in his Nashville hipster hat staring at the crowd or like vacantly smiling).

Generally a good setlist, although they played a lot of tunes from the new album, which has only been out for 10 days, meaning that those songs weren't nearly as fun for the majority of the crowd who didn't yet know them.  Or maybe just me?  But when they broke out the classics from the first album, it got rowdy in the crowd.  Likewise, when Spiller sat at the piano, and therefore removed himself from the center of the stage, it sucked some of the energy from the room.  His power is his stage presence.  And like 8 flashy and exciting costumes that he switched out throughout the set.

Because I'm an old man and now will apparently randomly cry at the drop of a hat, I have to mention the moment during the show when, in the midst of a cover of Bruce Springsteen's "Dancing in the Dark," he paused to bring two young twins onto the stage (I'm going to guess they were 12) to dance and sing with him.  Pretty awesome.

And overall, the show was fantastic.  They genuinely rock out, with fabulous guitar work and fun sing-a-longs.  Felt very much like a group event of people there to have some fun.  Very eclectic crowd too, from kids to gray hairs to frat guys to tat-and-pierce aficionados.  Saw t-shirts ranging from Motorhead to Public Image Limited to Ke$ha.  And while I wasn't up on the new tunes, a lot of folks in the crowd knew every word.  Good stuff.

Now, my beefs with the show are two-fold.  
First, the volume was way too damn loud.  I know, "if its too loud then you're too old."  But for real, even with good earplugs in, my left ear is ringing this morning.  And the problem isn't hearing damage or whatever (although I should probably be more concerned about such things), the problem is that you get a shit mix of the music when everything is up to 11.  The vocals get washed out, the bass disappears entirely, and you can't even tell if the crowd is singing along.  I'm not saying it needed to be quiet or anything, but a touch of nuance would make for a better experience for everyone.

Second, there was a little too much dead time in the show where Spiller was trying to exhort the crowd into participating.  A few too many call-and-response pieces, a few too many can-this-side-of-the-crowd-yell-louder-than-this-other-side-of-the-crowd bits.  Those are all well and good - I'm sure Spiller has watched the Queen show at Live Aid and knows how well Mercury could get the crowd going on those call-and-response bits, but once is surely enough on those.

But those quibbles are minor in comparison to the joy of getting to see a fun band rising in a good, small venue.  Fully enjoyed the night.

Quick Hits, Vol. 189 (Lord Huron, Old Crow Medicine Show, Smoke DZA, The Sherlocks)

Lord Huron - Vide Noir.  I'm just a sucker for this band.  I loved their live show a few years back at ACL so much that I went back the second weekend to see them again.  And while few would accuse me of being in love with indie folk in general as a musical style, I'm a big fan of each album from these fellas.  Its got a touch of Americana mixed in with the indie rock, and it clicks so well for my brain.  "Ancient Names" is good, "Wait by the River" is cool, "The Balancer's Eye" has a swagger and rock-forward sound that I dig, the title song has a cool groove and middle eastern twang, but "When the Night is Over" is the hit so far, with 9.7 million streams.

Got that lounge act slow sway going, and his great voice over the top.  "Never Ever" makes me think of the new Killers album.  I'm in.  Keeper.

Old Crow Medicine Show - Volunteer.  Ever since "Wagon Wheel," I've found these guys to be a pretty pleasant brand of Americana-soaked bluegrass.  This album sticks to that good formula, although its a little forgettable, to be honest.  The most memorable song I can think of right now is the one that sort of sounds like Jimmy Buffett, "A World Away," with some coral reefer style harmonica and a vocal tone that seriously matches Buffett in my mind.  It's not the best song.  And now that I have it in my mind that he sounds like Jimmy Buffett, I can't freaking shake the comparison.  All the songs sound like Buffett making new music with a country band.  Help!  The top track on the album is "Flicker & Shine," with 525k streams. 

It's the album opener, and its fine, but you know my theories about album openers from established bands.  It's only the top track because a bunch of people gave it a shot and then said nah about the rest of the disc.  This sounds like something the Carolina Panthers will use in commercials to get the rednecks in their fanbase psyched for another first round playoff loss.  I like "Old Hickory," and "Elzick's Farewell" is a good bluegrass breakdown instrumental jam.  Yeah, these tunes are fine, but I won't hold on to this album.

Smoke DZA - Not for Sale.  Have no clue where this album came from in my queue, this guy's name doesn't sound familiar at all, but its legit solid rap.  Classic sound.  Interesting tidbit from Wikipedia: "Smoke DZA decided on his moniker after being influenced by Chris Tucker's character Smokey from the movie Friday and the acronym DZA stands for "Dream Zone Achieve""  That last part is highly stupid, but anytime that someone pays respect to Smokey, I'm down.  The guy is from Harlem, and apparently grew up emulating Biggie. (but I'd say that "The High" sounds like Schoolboy Q).  The raps are fine, but the beats are supreme.  The laconic Montclair's sample used on "The Soul" is very cool, and the "The Mood" and "The High" both also have cool samples and smooth vibes.  "The Mood" is the top track, with 1.7 million streams.

What is that sample from?  I mean, I can look it up online and know that it is something called "Sunrise" from a group called The Originals, but it was previously used in another rap.  Feels like its a Jay-Z song, but I can't come up with which one (nope, looked it up, from a Scarface song).  I also dig the line from "The Lifestyle" (which has a trapish beat instead of the boom-bap that is most of this album) about dirt bikes and Sturgis.  That takes some weird levels of knowledge to put together and I dig it.  And that's another one that sounds like Schoolboy Q.  Anyway, I like it.  In this age of garbage rappers, I appreciate his accessible flow and good beats.

The Sherlocks - Live for the Moment.  Now, here is that Arctic Monkeys album I wanted to get with Hotel Tranquility Base.  Fun, jumpy, Brit rock and roll tunes, with a few nice ballads (see "Turn the Clock") but mainly high energy jams.  "Heart of Gold" gives you the "wooooaaahhhhhhoooooowaaaaaaoooooooh" singalong that you know you need, deep in your soul.  The album opener ("Will You Be There") is that kind of brash pop rock kick that the Arctic Monkeys used to mine for gold, before they mellowed into auditory melatonin. "Nobody Knows" fades into an Oasis sound in the end.  But my favorite tune is "Chasing Shadows," with 2.7 million streams.

Weird thing, the official video has a slightly different version of the song, it kind of adds an echo to the vocals as though it is a live song, when I'm pretty sure its not actually a live version of the song.  Weird.  Wait, actually, that's not the album version either.  Or at least the Spotify version is cleaner sounding (and better).  Super weird.  Anyway, you can get the point from that version - driving rock and good lyrics about confusion and trying to figure out your place in the world.  The title track of the album is also very good - this is a great album overall.  You should check it out.

Quick Hits, Vol. 188 (Pusha T, Kanye West, Nas, The Carters)

I started this one back when ACL postings were in full swing, so it got delayed for a long time.

Also, I read this Ringer article back then, and it stuck in my craw a little bit.  The first thing that has bothered me about the article is that it seems to premise itself on a bedrock fact, that XXXtentacion is good.  So the article discusses how it was a difficult choice for people to decide to like him despite his criminal actions outside of his purportedly great art.  But in actuality, his music SUUUUUCKS.  Nothing redeemable about it.  And the writer goes through a bunch of the other trash popcorn rappers and seems to give them some gravitas as well.  Is this true?  Am I actually blinded by my age and preferences to something that is actually awesome?  Because those guys all sound like idiots with nothing to say but flamboyant personalities to get clicks over tight beats.  

The article further mentions that all of these new albums came out from the dinosaurs of rap and they have been ignored.  Not so fast?

Pusha T - DAYTONA.  Being that this is the Internet age, and a huge controversy must erupt every six seconds, this album was originally released to some fervor because the cover image is a photo from Whitney Houston's drug/paraphernalia-strewn bathroom from the hotel where she died.  Kanye apparently paid $80,000 to license the photo for the cover of this album.
Also notable, and the subject of some teeth gnashing I read on Twitter, is that the album is only 7 songs long.  Personally, I think that rules.  Pushing back against the garbage dump rap albums of the present time, where the artist just releases anything and everything on a 3 hour album, which helps get their streaming numbers up, but dilutes the good songs in favor of the mediocre (or just plain bad).  So I already like the spirit of the album.  21 minutes.  7 songs.  Tight.
Album opener "If You Know You Know" is the most streamed, at 25.4 million, and it has a mighty fine beat.

Which is the good part of these tunes.  I'm a fan of Pusha, loved the old Clipse stuff and have liked his solo albums, but the best part of these tunes is that Kanye brought out the good stuff for the beats.  "The Games We Play" has a cool sample loop that is all sorts of laid back and chilled.  Lyrically, Pusha sticks with the old drug dealing lines and a few disses of Drake (which spawned a whole other line of diss songs back and forth between the two), and overall sounds good.  I could do without the Rick Ross and Kanye guest verses, personally, but over all I like this set.

Kanye West - ye.  Blurg.  Another 7 song album.  23 minutes long.  Which I very much appreciate, because it means I don't have to hear this dreck for a long time.  The opening track "I Thought About Killing You," is just a dive into his purportedly tortured brain, and going on about how much he loves himself and how he's just being super honest because now he thinks he should kill you because of his suicidal thoughts.  Weak beat, worthless lyrics.  
And that carries on through the rest of the album.  Weak beats (which is amazing, that he gave all the good beats to Pusha right before this album came out?  Did he want it to suck?) that end up just making the whole thing boring.  "Ghost Town" is the best one, and its so slight that it feels accidental - actually, hearing it again, it sounds like a beat (or a portion of a beat) that he used before and now just stripped bare and re-used.  And then if you take the time to slog through it and listen to the lyrics, you realize that this is just meandering lyrics that just kind of amount to him talking at you instead of crafting some sort of narrative or theme.  
"All Mine" has the crown for streams, so let's go for it - 151.7 million streams (which, I'll just note with disappointment, is more than all but two songs on Graduation, Late Registration, and College Dropout).

Bad sex puns and horrible lines like "Ayyy, none of us would be here without cum."  And then he makes a poorly worded, clunky swipe at Nike in favor of Adidas (presumably still because they make his overpriced shoes).  It's just jenky.  I mean, his first albums were full of the most clever, carefully woven, triple-meaning word play stuff, and this is just thrown together, lowest-common-denominator stuff about thicc asses and leftover sex metaphors from Sinbad's 1990 comedy special.  Just so disappointing to see someone who appeared to be so talented in the past give up on trying.

Nas - Nasir.  Another in this line of Kanye West produced, seven track albums.  And less filler, more killer, with a nice 26 minute run time.  But, another disappointment.  
The first two songs have super dope beats and interesting lyrics - "Not for Radio" has this cinematic, sweepingly rolling beat that rules, and the sample from Slick Rick in "Cops Shot the Kid" is super cool.  But then the album drops off, especially with the lyrics.  "Everything" somehow clocks in at 7:33, on a short ass album, and is one of those meandering, treacly Kanye West songs where he sings too much, the beat just disappears for minutes in order to allow for said overlong singing, and they get into stupid lyrics about conspiracy theories and whatnot.  "If I could change anything, I would change everything."  SOOO DEEEEEEEP!  
"Adam and Eve" is currently more popular on his list of songs on Spotify, but "Cops Shot the Kid" has more streams at 11.9 million.  However, after jamming "Cops" again just now, I think that my actual take on that song is that it is annoying.  At first, it seems super cool that they used that sample, but then it spikes its way into your brain and you realize that its clever but not actually good and its annoying and you want to die.  On the other hand, the sample in "Adam and Eve" is perfect for Nas to sound classic.  10.7 million streams.

Yeah.  Again, I like the beats in some of these songs, but this whole project just sounds uninspired, like it was thrown together at the last minute and just treads back over well-worn subjects quickly tossed together to get a final 7-song set out the door.  Too bad.  I won't hold on to this.

The Carters - EVERYTHING IS LOVE.  Jay-Z and Beyonce went crazy with this one, releasing NINE songs on an album, which by now seems overly decadent and insane.  Nine whole songs?  On one album?  How can it all fit?  38 minutes, so another tight set of tunes.  Anyway, this was a surprise release this summer, and is actually available on Spotify, so I get the opportunity to hear it (unlike the rest of Queen B's music, that is hidden on Tidal). 

I very much enjoy the first track, the sultry, sexy, groove of "Summer," with very little involvement from Jay and a lovely vocal from Bey.  The big hit of the album, partially in light of the video filmed entirely in a private showing of the Louvre, is "Apeshit."  101.1 million streams, and nothing else even cracks 20 million.

I mean, its kinda cool to hear Beyonce getting all raw with some rap bars and all, but it feels sad and shitty for her to chase the garbage Migos sound and jump into line like that.  Be Bey, yo.  The video is very cool, and the beat/flow is cool like other current popcorn rap, but lyrically?  Feather-lite.  Too bad.  Overall, I like the feel of this album.  As with much of Jay-Z, I find myself nodding my head and grooving to his flow and the thump, but then if I listen to the actual lyrics, I'm disappointed.  "713" is like that, as is "LoveHappy."  And I think these two complement each other well.  Whatever, I like it.

Janelle Monae: Moody Theater: October 8, 2018

Have you ever seen s a smile so perfect, so electric, so real, that it burned its way into your brain and is still a resounding memory a day later?  Monae uses her perfect little smile like a weapon, a sneaky, laser-focused ray of pure sunshine to wash over the crowd at any moment.  I don't think I've ever seen one like it in person.

This show was amazing.  I had seen her the day before at ACL Fest, but in the small, intimate space of the Moody, for an ACL TV show taping, it was so very cool to see her from up close, to really be able to watch the mastery of her dance moves and her costumes and her endearing interactions with her dancers.  The music is great too - a funky version of R&B and rap (her track "Django Jane" is hard anyway, but seeing her sit down in a huge, gilded throne and spit it while lounging like a bored queen is something else).  She had amazing backup dancers who fully appear to be having a fun time on that stage, and her band is great.  She uses echoes of Prince, James Brown, Michael Jackson - the kinds of performers who gave you a legitimate show every time, with eight costumes and choreography and an obvious desire to involve you in the show and make it a well-orchestrated party.  After seeing many bands in the past few days who just throw up their name on the screen in the background and play their tunes, this was refreshingly awesome.

She also invited people up on stage to dance, one by one, to "I Got That Juice."  My wife and I both commented that our faces hurt from smiling after that segment of the show.  It was hilarious and fun to see these random people give it their all (or medium level all, in one girl's case) on a TV show that will be played for decades.

The thing that we walked out the show talking about was her voice.  I mean, its one thing to have a good voice that stays in tune when you are on an album, when producers can use all of their digital tricks and tweaks to perfect just about anything.  But its a totally different experience to watch someone jump around on stage and dance her way through a number while still nailing all the notes in multiple registers.  I've become a large fan of this stuff.

This song didn't pop to me when I first heard it for the ACL preview, but since then, its message of being happy and satisfied and feeling good has stuck with me.

That little rapped bit about three quarters of the way through, where she laments her memory of childhood slights, but knew even then that she was the shit.  During the performance, she goes on to compliment several people in the audience for something special about them - an afro, pink braids, a t-shirt.  The whole thing felt special.  She likely does it at every show, and its just a thing, but I don't care.  I like that.

Go see this lady.

ACL 2018: Second Weekend Review

What a great weekend of music.  Back to reality, right?  

My sinuses are clogged with dust and grass.  My eyes are still filmy and fuzzy.  My neck is sore (thanks Metallica!).  My ankles are sore (thanks Chvrches!).  My left ear has a nice constant ringing.

But was it all worth it?  Absolutely.  Saw some great music and spent some good times with friends.  Also saw some really poorly done music that was disappointing, and missed out on a bunch of stuff I wish I could have seen, but let's focus on the good here.

Transportation:

• Saturday, we decided to go with Lyft the whole time and see how that worked out.  $17 to get from my house to the Crown & Anchor for lunch and football games, then $13 to get from there to the park.  Afterwards, we walked up the hill to Deep Eddy to have a beer and wait for the surge pricing to die down (and Deep Eddy was totally packed, which wasn't cool) and then paid $24 to get back up to north Austin.  So, definitely cheaper to just pay to park somewhere close to the Fest, but also nice to not even worry about having to drive.
• Sunday, my buddy and I did the free bus shuttle from downtown.  Yet again, getting on and off was quick and super easy.  I thought it would be miserable, but actually very convenient.

Food:

• Went back to the empanada stand again, despite knowing full well that they wouldn't be good, and received the same dry meal as last time.  I just hate waiting in the lines, so I go to the short lines and end up with dry empanadas.
• Was also disappointed in the Mighty Cone.  The issue is the tortilla - just a bad, cold, dry flour tortilla.  The chicken was good, and the slaw was tasty, but the tortilla blows.  Which is crazy, we have so many places that make legit tortillas here, how can this still be a problem.
• Peached Tortilla's bahn mi tacos were super good.
• Taco Deli's fundido tacos were also just as good at the park as they are in the store.  Dang yummy, and they had a thing of the Dona sauce to drown them in.  Yummo.

Tunes:

• Reignwolf.  Totally awesome show.  He did crazy stuff with his guitar that made me rethink how an electric guitar is played.  Like doing chunks of the show one-handed while using his other hand for a drum stick or the microphone.  Or playing the guitar like it was a stand up bass.  Wild, but damn good rock and roll.
• Alvvays.  Another good show, I loved it all over again.  Just sparkling and bright pop rock tunes played well.
• David Byrne.  I'm still annoyed that my friend split up from me to go see Sir Sly instead, but this show was fabulous.  He did the same deal as last week, with the grey suits and the big band of people jamming out around him, and its so great to have someone who planned out an entire show, with costumes and choreography and forethought - instead of 90% the bands who just step out onto the stage and play their tunes while the light show does all the work.  Byrne is amazing.
• Manchester Orchestra.  Also awesome.  Much harder than I expected from listening to their tunes beforehand, they threw down a legit grunge-tinged rock and roll show.  The crowd was super into it as well, which always helps.
• Brockhampton.  Third time to see these guys in the past week, and while it was another good show of high energy and fun tunes, I don't need to see them again for a little while.  All three shows were almost exactly the same, down to them asking the crowd if everyone is OK like 20 times per show.  YES, DAMMIT, WE'RE OK!  But their tunes are highly fun to jam to in a crowd.  Good stuff.
• Paul McCartney.  Another insanely good show.  I can't stress enough how fun it is to hear Paul freaking McCartney sing some of the greatest pop songs of all time.  And the whole crowd, just happily singing along to classics like "Blackbird" and "Can't Buy Me Love."  And Paul was funny up there, kind of mugging for the people and yelling back at them and just kind of playing along.  Still awesome on the bass, the guitar, and the piano.  So glad I got to experience that twice.
• The Wombats.  Better than expected.  I knew I'd like the Joy Division song, but they really brought a lot of energy and excitement to the early portion of the day.
• The Breeders.  OK.  I kind of wish I had bopped over to catch Japanese Breakfast instead.  They sounded good, but I'm just not that into their new album.
• Brandi Carlile.  I am so bummed out that Highly Suspect cancelled their show at the last minute because of some injury in the band.  SO BUMMED.  But, it meant that I could go see this great show instead, after multiple people had told me that she was a must see.  It was a very good show.  Her own music is lovely, and as usual I got nice and uncomfortably damp in the eyes during "The Joke," but then at the end of the show she brought out Pearl Jam's Mike McCready to jam on some Led Zeppelin, and it was AWESOME.
• Chvrches.  This might have been my favorite show of the whole weekend.  We ended up very close, like 5 people back from the barrier, and so we were right in the mix of people who loved these songs and were pumped to be there.  Which always amps up the excitement of the show, when the folks around you know every word and are ready to jam out.  They played everything I wanted to hear, sounded great, and it just clicked perfectly.  Awesome show.
• Metallica.  Another top notch show, with a great (but not perfect) setlist of the hits (I would have liked to have heard "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)" and "Fuel"), and all of the dudes in the band still absolutely rule at their jobs (we're going to act like the attempt to cover "Whiskey River" never happened).  My neck is still legitimately sore, two days later, from the uncontrollable need to thrash around during those songs.  I'm ready to do it again!
• Parquet Courts.  Surprisingly great.  I could have used a little less yelling in the vocals, but the music underlying the songs was super fun and well-done.  I've become a fan.
• X Ambassadors.  Meh.  Their crowd was GIGANTIC, like shockingly large, but we stayed way over to the side to have a beer and hear a little bit of this.  It wasn't terrible, but wasn't anything I'd go out of my way to try to hear again.
•  Shawn Mendes.  Shockingly good.  I mean, the guy can really sing, and he definitely knew how to work the crowd and get the girls screaming.  Crazy part to me was how many older (like 25-ish) ladies were also screaming their heads off and dancing.  Some of the slow songs were pretty lame - although I know they aren't aimed at my loins - but when he played the faster songs or the hits, it was pretty fun.
• Arctic Monkeys.  I'm still super confused about what these guys are trying to do.  Is it a purposeful attempt to drive people away from loving their music?  They opened the set with one of the yawn-tastic new tunes, and then did the same when they came back for the encore later on.  I mean, talk about letting the air out of a crowd.  I can't think of another headliner I've been to at ACL that had that many people walking out during the show, it was a pretty constant stream coming past me (I was center stage, about 100 feet back, in one of the big mud puddles in front of the sound stage).  However, I will readily admit that hearing "Arabella" and "R U Mine?" and "I Bet That You Look Good on the Dance Floor" ruled.  Those parts were extremely good and fun.  I just don't understand what is wrong with making a whole show be good and fun instead of only little slices in between boring funeral lounge music.

I'm exhausted all over again just going back through it all.  A lot of new cool experiences and good memories from another weekend in the Park.  Now I need to go take a nap and clear my sinuses.

ACL 2018: Second Weekend: Friday Thoughts [EDIT]

Weekend Two, baby.  For the first time in years, this will be my primary weekend this year, which will be fine (I keep trying to convince myself).  I just fear that all of the grass will be dead (edit, it is very dead.  And in front of the Amex stage?  Total mudpit as of last Sunday).  And Greta Van Fleet and Nelly will already be gone.  And East Side Kings will have run out of Poor Qui Buns (edit, they stopped even having them on the menu!  Life has no meaning!).  And we'll get another torrential rain that will cancel Sunday (60% chance for rain as of Tuesday).  OR the weather will suddenly cool off and it will be the greatest ever weekend of ACL (high of 78, baby!), one that Sir Paul himself will write a song about to be played by his gravestone on a loop.  Yes, that is the positive vibe I'm going to adopt.

Friday, baby!  Opening day of the weekend!  Last year, I took my buddy to Freedman's for the pre-show lunch and drinks, and it ruled.  But Freedman's is closed (R.I.P.) so I need to come up with a new spot.  Pool Burger would be tight, have a few Tiki drinks and then just wander on down towards the park?  Or maybe Loro?  Hmmm.  Already excited about that part of the day.  Even if it means missing a few bands at the start...

[MORE EDITS to this!]  Two more artists have been removed from the poster - Cuco because he got into a car wreck, and Borns because he apparently groomed young girls so that he could sexually assault them (or something, sounds creepy AF).  Of course, fans on social media are all pissed off, as though Borns was the ONLY REASON they were coming to ACL, which is stupid.  Anyway, I've adjusted the schedule yet again to show these changes.  WHICH SUCK, by the way, because they moved a bunch of stuff around, and now you can't see both Big Thief and Alvvays, and some other issues...

As I did last year, I've changed up the preview format so that you get hour-by-hour thoughts and layouts.  Previously I had ranked all of the bands and that was insane, and also completely useless, because who cares if Sofi Tukker is my 83rd favorite band?  What you need to know is a choice during each set, where the artists are actually duking it out on the poster.

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).
• 2:45 and 4:45 and 6:45 are tough calls.

Playlist!  This is mainly going to be the bands I recommend, with a few extra songs if they are notable or I couldn't make a definitive choice of bands.

Let's get down to it!

11:15

Miller Lite	Curtis Roush: Chilled grooves from a member of The Bright Light Social Hour
Barton Springs	NOTHING
Tito’s	The Gospel Stars: Gospel
BMI	The Blancos: Brooklyn dudes singing platitudes over hip hop beats.
Home Away	NOTHING

Ooooh, I had forgotten about how crappy the Blancos are!  Delicious to remember that garbage!  Nothing in this is going to make me burn to leave the office early on Friday, although Curtis Roush would be my choice if you were already going to be there at the opening bell.  Just go chill on the grass (or what is left of it by second weekend) and enjoy some relaxed tunes.  I think this means I'm not going to the park first thing anymore.

12:00 to 12:45

Honda (12:00)	Alice Merton: The "No Roots" lady.
Tito’s Tent (12:15)	Fatai: Powerful voiced coffee house tunes from Aussie Voice finalist.
Kiddie Limits (12:30)	School of Rock: Kids jamming cover tunes based on what they learned at private lessons
American Express (12:00)	Natalie Prass: Funky indie singer songwriter with a great voice

Easy choice.  Natalie Prass is very fun.  I know others think I'm dumb to not love listening to Merton force the word "roots" into my ears 342 times in 3 minutes, but I choose not to suffer through that.

12:45 – 1:45

Miller Lite	Ben Kweller: Piano heavy indie rock in the Ben Folds vein
Barton Springs	The Coronas: Irish indie rock that belongs on a CW drama
Tito’s (1:15)	Ravyn Lenae: R&B lady from Chicago with a little freakiness.
BMI	Nicole Atkins: Crooner who apparently sounds like a Brill Building singer
Home Away	Magic City Hippies: Kind of crappy white boy funk pop

My two original suggestions for this hour are gone now.  No more Lewis Capaldi (Strong-voiced blue-eyed soul from Scotland).  Big Thief got moved from here back to 2:45. Cuco (Terrible Spanglish indie bedroom slow jams) is out entirely.  As this article shows that he was in a car wreck last night and is cancelling the rest of his tour.  

Ben Kweller got added in here, and then The Coronas and Magic City Hippies got moved back into this space.  So now this is a totally different hour of music.  I guess, from these choices, I'm going to go with Kweller.  Kweller is a good time!  This was a harder decision with Kweller against Big Thief, but now not so much.

I heard good things about the Coronas after weekend one, FYI.

1:45 – 2:45

Honda (1:40)	Reignwolf: Real deal blues rock and roll with raw guitar shreddage
Tito’s Tent (2:15)	Duncan Fellows: Surprisingly fun indie rockers from Austin
Kiddie Limits (2:30)	Ralph’s World: Kiddie Limits silliness
American Express (1:45)	Bishop Briggs: One hit wonder with that "River" song, and some forgettable other alt-pop

Personal opinion here.  I know a lot of people will want to do Bishop Briggs because she has that one really big hit song.  I would counsel against that.  I think Reignwolf will be the best of this group, although I also enjoy Duncan Fellows and would likely enjoy that show too.

2:45 to 3:45

Miller Lite (2:40)	Alvvays: Top notch indie rock with pretty vocals and that Archie song
Barton Springs	Big Thief: Chilled out indie rock with high quality lyrics.
BMI	Sasha Sloan: Sad electronic indie you can relate to.
Home Away	NoName: Super chilled Chicago lady rapper

With the shuffling of artists, this gets even harder.  I don’t want to see Sasha at all, but the other three are all solid.  I saw both Alvvays and Big Thief first weekend, and I really enjoyed both shows.  That being said, if I had to pick between the two (and I do), I'm going with Alvvays.  Their show was perfection last weekend.  And they made fun of Ted Cruz (as Canadians do).

Also, NoName just put out a legit enjoyable new album, so you're not going to go wrong listening to her relax your soul with some chilled out raps.  

3:45 to 4:45

Honda (3:40)	Sir Sly: One alt-rock radio hit and a bunch of fun danceable rock.
Tito’s Tent	Golden Dawn Arkestra: Psych instrumental freakout jam music, but with horns
Kiddie Limits (4:30)	Lard Dog & the Band of Shy: Kiddie Limits silliness
American Express	David Byrne: Talking Heads singer still making funky, weird rock

Another hour that got shuffled.  Borns (One good album of psych rock pop, then one less good album of synth pop) was supposed to be this hour, but has been removed.  Sir Sly moves into that slot, which is too bad.  I heard them playing from afar last weekend and it sounded good.

But, that being said, its David Byrne all the way.  And its too bad, because both of the other guys are pretty solid.  David Byrne's set weekend one was freaking weird and totally awesome.  He puts together a legit performance and it was very cool.  Like, it made me realize how fun it is to have a performer doing something other than just standing up there playing their songs.  Make it a performance!  Super cool, highly recommend.

4:45 to 5:45

Miller Lite (4:35)	Lily Allen: Raunchy, but funny in lyrical realism, British pop star
Barton Springs	Jungle: Grooving funk soul
BMI	The Arkells: Old Arkells = good alt rock; New Arkells = generic indie dance rock
Home Away	Manchester Orchestra: Very good indie rock, in between Iron & Wine and Gaslight Anthem.

With Greta Van Fleet removed from this hour (in favor of Lily Allen), this hour gets a little more interesting for second weekend.  There is no easy choice.  Allen is raunchy and funny and likely puts on a very entertaining show of pop.  Jungle is very cool and Manchester also has a clean, classic sound that I very much enjoy.  If the Arkells would guarantee only playing their old stuff, then I’d choose that.  As it is, I think I’d probably choose Manchester, but would be open to taste testing the other two.

5:45

Honda (5:35)	Khalid: El Paso's favorite surprise high school star now doing hooks on major hits.
Tito’s Tent (5:30)	Gryffin: More generic EDM
American Express	The National: Depressing ass music loved by many people I like

It’ll be a game time decision for me to choose trying out the pop R&B stuff from Khalid or the depression indie from the National.  I’ll likely choose the latter, but we’ll see.

Full disclosure, I just tried the new National album a few more times today, and its growing on me.  Like a sad tumor of depression, but its worming its bummed out way into my brain.

{EDIT] I heard Khalid from the side of his stage as I waited for BROCKHAMPTON last weekend, and it didn't sound that great.  Seemed kinda boring.

6:45

Miller Lite (6:35)	BROCKHAMPTON: Self-described as THE WORLD'S GREATEST BOYBAND!  Off-kilter, fun hip-hop from a large crew.
Barton Springs	Father John Misty: Most interesting lyricist at the Fest
Home Away	Hozier: Massively popular Irish blues rock who needs to release another album

This one got easier now that BROCKHAMPTON has set up an after show, so that I can still go see them without ruining my chance to see either FJM or Hozier.  Now, that choice is still super hard, as I’ve seen both and they are both amazing live shows.  If you aren’t doing the After Show, then go see BROCKHAMPTON.  If you are doing the After Show, or hate original and fun rap for some reason, then I think I’ll say Father John Misty.

[EDIT] I kind of broke my own rule here, and did BROCKHAMPTON despite already having tickets to the Saturday night show.  They were awesome.  I was deep in the middle of the crowd, and my old ass jumped around and yelled incoherently with 10,000 kids between 13 and 20.  Very entertaining.

7:45

Honda (7:35)	Odesza: Chillwave electronic tunes.
Tito’s Tent (8:00)	Silent Disco
American Express	Paul McCartney: The Beatle

Although I’ve heard good things about Odesza’s live show, you have to choose the Beatle.  Also, if you go to Silent Disco while Paul McCartney is playing, then something is wrong with you.  At least, if you go to Odesza, walk over to the other side when the set is over and sing along to "Hey Jude" with all of us.

[EDIT]  Dude.  McCartney was fabulous.  His set list was top notch and he sounds great on both the guitar and the piano.  Very good show, I'm pumped to get to see him twice.