Ryan Bingham and the Texas Gentlemen (2025)

One Liner: Rough-edged voice in between Steve Earle and Paul Westerberg making great rock-tinged Americana

Wikipedia Genre: Americana, Roots Rock
Home: Hobbs, NM and Houston, TX

Sunday

Thoughts: So, if you were there last year, you know that we should have already enjoyed this show.  But the miserable weather on Saturday in 2024 meant that the Festival had to call an audible and drop out several of the secondary headliners so that everyone could get out of the park before the really nasty weather came through.  Freaking sucked.  My son's buddy had gotten a one-day ticket mainly just so that he could see Bingham, and he got nothing and had to like it.  So, because they have released nothing new since I wrote my post for the 2024 fest, here you go!

Bingham is an interesting dude, in that he's sort of had multiple layers over time.  His 2007 album Mescalito has some of his most popular tunes on it and sounds like a lot of fun.  But he also wrote the main song ("The Weary Kind") for that Jeff Bridges movie, Crazy Heart.  And then more recently he was a very good character in that general terrible Yellowstone soap opera that got all the Republicans in my life hot and bothered.  That's a weird string of events, in my opinion.

Here is a clip of him in the show, playing for the boys in the bunkhouse.

I like that the "happy" song involves killing a man and being buried alive.  That show had some amazing scenery, but some godawful storylines.

I got to see him one time, when he was part of that BS Willie Nelson Mega-False-Advertising-Roadshow thing, where they released a poster showing a pile of great bands and artists playing, and I immediately snapped up tickets.

Does that poster say anywhere on there that you only get four of those artists?  No, dear reader, it does not.  That poster absolutely leads you to believe that you are getting Willie, Stapleton, Sturgill, Avetts, Rateliff, Bingham, Lucinda, and more.  Totally worth a $200 ticket!  So not only was I pissed when I realized we only got four artists, it also sucked because August 22, 2021 was approximately 198 degrees in Austin, Texas.  So, poor Bingham took the stage to a 3/4 empty amphitheater and proceeded to dutifully jam through a solo show while the crowd hid in the shaded areas chugging beer.  I honestly think I saw two songs. 

He was born in Hobbs, New Mexico, but he moved to Midland and then to Houston after that.  According to the Internet, his mom bought him a guitar when he was 16, but it sat in his closet for a year.  Around then he hitchhiked to Laredo to see if he could get a job with his father who was living out there, and he took the guitar with him.  A neighbor taught him a classical mariachi song called "La Malaguena".  Google translate literally will not translate that word. Anyway, he later moved to Stephenville to attend Tarleton State and ride with their rodeo team and play some gigs.  How bad ass is that?  Hitchhiked?  Learned Mariachi song?  Rode on a college rodeo team?  This guy is the shizznit.  After more cool things, he got spotted by a member of the Black Crowes while playing to an otherwise almost empty room in Fort Worth, who offered to help him cut an album.

Like I mentioned before, his 2007 debut album was his biggest hit - three of his top four tracks on Spotify are all from that disc.  This disc was produced by Marc Ford, the guitarist from the Crowes.  Which is cool.  At the same time, he was still riding on the rodeo circuit.  I think my favorite tune is the unbridled rip of "Bread & Water," but at 15.7 million streams it is dwarfed by "Southside of Heaven."  77.3 million streams.

Also a good tune, more of a traditional country track.  "Sunrise" from that album is his second-most streamed at 46.5 million.  The start actually sounds like a Pat Green song to me.  This whole album is really enjoyable.

After that, he kept churning out albums - 2009's Roadhouse Sun, 2010's Junky Star, 2012's Tomorrowland, 2015's Fear and Saturday Night (wait, what is that phrase Zach Bryan uses a bunch at the start of his new album? Fear and Fridays - did he crib part of that from this title?), 2019's American Love Song, and then 2023's Watch Out for the Wolf.  But none of them hit as big as that debut album, except for the Crazy Heart songs.

He has a different look in that video, less road-worn cowboy and more of a coffee shop hipster.  But the combination of finger-picking and those lyrics is just beautiful.  That movie was fuckin' brutal.

The new album is interesting, because it almost has a pop sound to it.  I'm listening to it right now for the first time and the first song has a persistent drumming that feels like it outside any country sound I know.  And then the second track has these ghostly guitar meanderings behind the acoustic that make it seem a little psych.  Definitely a departure from what the Yellowstone lovers are going to expect.  "Internal Intermission" throws in some instrumental rock and roll.  "River of Love" sounds totally like Paul Westerberg.  Oh great, now "This Life" now also sounds like Westerberg.  Is this something other people are saying?  I'm stuck with this in my head now.  Here is that album opener, the top track with 2.1 million streams.  "Where My Wild Things Are."

Is that even a real drummer?  Sounds kind of like a drum track instead.  Good groove though, and the whistling works.

He did a 2023 cover with the Texas Gentlemen of The Toadies' song "Possum Kingdom" that sounds relatively terrible.  I was excited when I heard the opening notes because that whole album rules, but this is close to being awful.  His voice can't hit any of the notes and the band sounds like a junior high School of Rock class struggling to plod through their first performance for Grandma.  Literally could not finish that song.

2019's American Love Song is good stuff, but again, now I can't stop thinking of him as country Paul Westerberg.  Dammit!  "Lover Girl" super sounds like PW.  This is annoying now.  I'm also getting Wilco vibes from some of these tunes.  I could totally hear them playing "Situation Station."

I want to put these tunes into my more permanent rotation - I think his whole vibe is really cool.

Vampire Weekend: The Moody Center: October 17, 2024

I really like Vampire Weekend.  I was excited to get to go to this show, and they definitely did not disappoint.  The fun thing about their live show by now is how many legitimately great songs they have in their catalog, to go along with a really enjoyable new album.  So, you'd be bopping along to some of the new stuff and enjoying yourself pleasantly, before they'd pop up with "Cousins" or "Oxford Comma" or some other older banger and you'd get excited all over again.  I also think that we benefitted from this being the last stop on their tour, so they were super tight on the new stuff.  Sounded great!

That weird Star Wars engine cave thing behind them was definitely a different background than I expected.

The way that their show got weird though was that after an hour and a half or so, they acted like the show was over.  Hell, they even said from the stage "that was the end of the concert," but then they stuck around and took audience requests for covers like they were a bar band in a college town.  It was really odd.  The ones I can remember by now: Blind Melon "No Rain," Rage Against the Machine "Killing in the Name," ZZ Top "Tush," George Strait "Amarillo by Morning," Blur "Song 2."  And what made it both awesome and terrible is that they didn't appear to have rehearsed these songs, so Ezra didn't know half the lyrics, or would just sing the wrong bits at the wrong time.  "Amarillo by Morning" was pretty legit though.  That one felt a little more rehearsed like they prepared it for Texas.  Sadly, they couldn't hear me yelling "PLAY WHIP IT YOU COWARDS" at the top of my lungs. 

Quick Hits, Vol. 348 (Billie Eilish, Wyatt Flores, Adrianne Lenker, Lovejoy)

So today, at my professional workplace, we had a catered lunch that involved a three-song dance number by three women dressed as the Sanderson Sisters from Hocus Pocus.  Apparently, they are professional Sanderson Sisters.  Never knew such a thing existed, but truly fascinating to watch them lip sync some of the dance numbers from that movie while a room full of bewildered lawyers tried to decide what to do with themselves.  Good times.

Billie Eilish - HOT ME HARD AND SOFT.  My God, this album is so boring.  At least with the freaky early stuff it was interesting, if disturbing and confusing and dark, but this is just the lamest pile of torchy balladry and soft lite pop I can think of right now.  I normally don't try to go read other people's reviews while I am writing mine, but I am so curious to see if Pitchfork was somehow fawning over this turd.  Oh thank goodness they only gave it a 6.8.  That feels like where they land on an artist where they feel scared to be honest about an album being sucky because the fans will freak out, but they make it low enough so that people don't get confused that it is good.  Nothing on here stands out as a hit to me, they all just blend together into a smear of synths and whispery vocals.  You can sort of see it in the stream counts too, because although one song of course blasts past the billion stream mark, the back half of the album shows that nobody really wanted to keep the whole thing.  That big song is "BIRDS OF A FEATHER" with 1.2 billion streams.

Just a generic "love you 'til the day that I die" pop song.  I have zero clue why that song has a billion streams.  Should we show the kids that Debbie Gibson once existed?  I wish I had not read the Pitchfork review though, because now all I hear in that is "Last Christmas" by Wham! and it makes it even worse!  No need to save any of this.

Wyatt Flores - Half Life.  This fellas was on the bill for Two Step in in 2024 and I was a big fan of the music leading up to the weekend.  I didn't get to see him because the line to get in took an hour, which I am not at all still salty about five months later.  No sir.  But this is more enjoyably heartfelt Texas country that doesn't break new boundaries and isn't trying to become a Nashville hit, but sounds good.  At times, his voice gets a little plaintive and that can be grating, but in general I enjoy it all.  "Milwaukee" is the top track with 16 million streams.

That bar sort of looked like the White Horse, so I tried googling where the video was filmed.  The super-smart-always-correct AI thing on google now told me it was filmed at Times Square.  Which is completely dumb and false.  Anyway, overall, a good album.  The title track is great (and reminds me of Sturgill with the way it starts), and his cover of the Fray's "How to Save a Life" is spot on.

Adrianne Lenker - Bright Future.  You'll maybe recognize her voice as the lead singer from the very fun band Big Thief.  A month or two ago, I was out for beers with some friends and we were talking about the pros and cons of several of the ACL bands, and one of my oldest friends in the world said that he just finds himself listening to this album instead of all that "upbeat stuff."  So this disc has been waiting for me in my queue for months, just waiting for me to be done with the ACL stuff, but because it is the first album in there I keep firing it up first.  It is kind of brutal in its plainspoken power.  Album opener "Real House" will just nail you with its extremely muted background behind her voice - singing about being in the hospital at age 14, abandoned by her friends, but laughing anyway as she gets a needle shoved into her arm.  Definitely not my favorite album ever, even though some of it is really nice.  The slightly more upbeat - in music if not in title - song "Sadness is a Gift" is the top streamer with 10.4 million.

Definitely sounds more like the Big Thief stuff, and her harmonies are wonderful.  Kind of sounds like Gillian Welch or Nanci Griffith.  Beautiful sentiment.  "Free treasure" also has fantastic harmonies.  Yeah, this is a funky disc.  You go from the bare-bones depression of the opener, but then right in to this sort of snappy observational beauty.  Up and down.

Lovejoy - Are You Alright?  I think this little EP popped into my queue because of that same night, discussing music over beers.  Another friend who generally has my same musical taste said that he had been enjoying this little British band.  Agreed.  This is like an early Arctic Monkeys freakout thing, and its loose and wild and fun.  They add some trumpet to a breakneck rock wiggle that is a good time.  Top track is the second, "One Day," with a surprisingly large stream count.  Three of the tracks on here crack a hundred million!?  That is wild, when, like, nothing on the new Justice album comes even close and they are an established hit?  Crazy.  Any way, 144 million streams for "One Day."

Pretty great yell-a-long line there with the chorus.  They're fun.  I don't know a lick about their backstory, but it is a good time.  All four songs here are enjoyable.  I'll go back for more of their tunes.

Right when I thought I'd have the time to listen to tunes and clear out the queue - Two Step Inn gets announced and now I need to listen to those folks.  A good number are retreads from before, so they'll be easy to write up, but a good number of newby bands as well.  Good times.

Quick Hits, Vol. 347 (Vampire Weekend, MJ Lenderman, Maggie Rogers, Pearl Jam)

Vampire Weekend - Only God Was Above Us.  I think this is really good.  They have always done such an interesting bit of classical-tinged rock music, and this one does not stray at all from that formula, where it feels like any given song could be based on some Bethoven sonata that they have stolen the note progression from, but then added drums and electric guitar and harp over the top of it to transform it into a new animal.  "Gen-X Cops" starts out sounding like one of those mid-career Beck songs.  Can't recall which.  But also, at the same time, some classical movement that my mom probably played on her harpsichord in the living room growing up.  "Mary Boone" makes me think of that Primitive Radio Gods song.  It seems only fitting that the second track on the album is called "Classical."  Full circle, baby.  The top track on here right now is the third one, "Capricorn" with 8.2 million streams.

That smeary, slow-mo bass line is tight.  That video is both cool and sort of terrifying.  Makes me wish I lived in New York during its scary heyday.  But the song definitely has a sadness to it - "too old for dying young, too young to live alone, siftin' through centuries, for moments of your own" is a killer line.  "Connect" sounds like one of their older songs, I can't come up with which, but near the end there is a cascading bit that feels very self-referential.  I very much enjoy the album.  I wish they could be coming to ACL!

I wrote that whole thing sooooo long ago, before I started digging in to the ACL albums.  After ACL, I went back to this disc another 10-15 times and it is really growing on my a lot.  Saw them play quite a bit of it live last night at the Moody Center and it really sounds awesome live.  These are good tunes.

MJ Lenderman - Manning Fireworks.  A critic I like tweeted that this was his favorite album of the year, which surprised me enough to throw it into the queue.  The only reason I knew this dude's name is because he sings the harmonies on that supremely lovely Waxahatchie song.  But this disc is really odd to me because it sounds exactly like Ben Kweller to me.  Like, in one of the songs, I literally pulled up Spotify to make sure that the algorithm hadn't shifted me over to Kweller's tunes.  And I like Ben Kweller, so this is not a diss at all, I just find it really weird how similar they are.  "On My Knees" has a Neil Young/Crazy Horse vibe to the guitars.  Do we think this album title is about Arch Manning running for a 60+ yard touchdown for the Longhorns last weekend?  Or is it more like when you are the one shooting off the fireworks you can be described as manning those fireworks?  I could probably research but instead will just say that we can never know.  "She's Leaving You" is the top track as of now, and surprisingly is just to 2.5 million streams.  My Twitter-verse made me think this was the hit album of the year for sure.

Freaking great song.  Also, that video made me want to cry for some reason.  "Wristwatch" is a good jam too.  This is a very good album that I will keep around.

Maggie Rogers - Don't Forget Me.  We just got to see her live show in support of this new album, and it freaking jammed.  She sounds amazing, and she turned these tunes into meteors falling from the heavens.  This disc does a great job of showcasing her strengths - powerful belting pop, slow-burn beauty, and a kind of cheeky irreverence the whole time.  The title song ends up being the top streamer - I figured it would be one of the more up-beat tunes, but that's the way the algorithm crumbles.  20 million streams.

This is one of those slow burn beauties.  Those pancakes look sad as shit, Maggie.  What are you doing?  Has a sort of Norah Jones vibe going on in there, but just a really nice tune.  The whole disc is good - I really am starting to believe that she is the future pop star we need to crush the crappy Dua Lipa-type garbage.

Pearl Jam - Dark Matter.  I considered writing an entire post about just this album, because it has grown on me in such a way that I really love it.  The stream counts do not agree with my burgeoning smittenness, but whatever.  The song that randomly makes me want to run through a brick wall is "Waiting for Stevie."  Something about the way the guitars open with this little light riff, and then the drums just grab me by my face and shove me into a kiss from an angel.  I don't know who this Stevie fellow is, but I like him a lot.  The drums at 2:35 are the absolute business.  Apparently, the title for the song is because they wrote this tune while Vedder was waiting for Stevie Wonder to show up for a session that would turn into "Try" on Eddie's 2022 solo album.  Freaking gimme all of it.  The top song though, is "Dark Matter" with 15.4 million streams.  Here is what I said about it previously: "Fuck yeah.  The drums in this are so fucking brawny and badass.  I played this about 5 times in a row the other day in the car and it made me feel like a God.  My wife hates it too, so just perfect."

SO BRAWNY!  The thing that I really love about this album is that it just sounds like freaking Pearl Jam.  I love freaking Pearl Jam.  So, the more they can just sound like rad Pearl Jam songs, the happier I will be.  Rather than hearing them detour into some new sound of style.  Nah.  Pummel my face with love.  "Running" is fun.  "Wreckage" is beautiful.  This album is my stuff.

The Avett Brothers: ACL Live at the Moody Theater: 10/16/24

October generally becomes a music smorgasbord - between ACL music festival and all of the shows that the Fest spins off, there just end up being other tours that always seem to swing through town right now.  Well, this one was a little confusing to me, in that it makes you ask why in the hell they weren't on the ACL poster?  If they are scheduled to do an ACL TV show taping during the Festival period, then just add them to the lineup and let's increase the pleasure of the Fest?  Weird.

Anyhoo, this show was stupid good.  My wife loved it, and she is honestly a pretty damn hard grader when it comes to live music.  Her key attribute that she loved was that the whole set felt fresh and interesting the whole time - one song was country, the next was rock, something funky and loose, the next was a little folky acoustic thing, with violin and cello and stand up bass all thrown about in the midst of those things.  So, you never got a rut of sameness, it felt like a fun adventure with these guys guiding us along.  Like, "Love of a Girl" was a blast of Old 97's ish rock and roll that was deeply fun.

The Avetts are one of those bands who I kind of shunt to the side for long stretches.  I really like their tunes, but when I'm pulling up something to play around the house on or a drive, it is just almost never going to be them.  But then I hear a set like this one, where I am repeatedly smacked over the head with how great they are with lyrics and tune, and I realize how foolish that is.  They do a great job of telling wonderful little stories that are relatable and clever.  Singing about being poor but in love, cheap coffee, being a country kid getting your feet bitten by fire ants, or the girl on the bus.  I have seen them play live before, but something about this venue really made the lyrics nail me between the eyes.

Great stuff!  This is an old one from 2015, but you'll get the idea.

Maggie Rogers: Moody Center: 10/9/24

Y'all.  I bought these tickets on a lark because I knew that my girls liked her (and I definitely like her), and they were on mad sale from Live Nation a few months ago.  One of those great $80 all-in price for 4 tickets deals, where you don't get killed with extra fees and garbage.  They were for nosebleed seats, but whatever, in the building for the price of a Whataburger meal.  

But this show was legit - she is legitimately a real deal bad ass star.  I was blown away by this show.  My sixteen-year-old looked over at me about three songs in and was like "you are so cheeky right now," and I asked her what that meant.  She said "you are smiling so big that your cheeks are so big."  So totally true.

Rogers said a few times during this show that this was her first arena show ever.  You never would have known.  The concert started with some sort of recorded, spoken intro thing while you could see the band members taking their places, and then as the opening riffs of "That's Where I Am" started bleeping and blooping their way into the air, she rose out of the smoke at the front of the catwalk like a disco-ball clad goddess.  From then on, she was all over the place, dancing and jumping and running and singing the absolute hell out of her songs.  I knew she had a strong voice, but it was a lot in person.  She also rolled up to a piano, by herself, at the end of the catwalk later for some banter and a few acoustic songs that were really neat.  As she sat down at the piano, she struggled to get a stick of incense lit, and was like "dammit, I really want this smoke to blow across my face for the camera, hold on."  Very endearing and real.  "I Still Do" was beautiful on that piano.

She did a nice mix of the old and new, and it really made me appreciate her new songs even more.  But definitely some of the major classic hits sounded amazing.

Oh, and the price was even more worth it because the venue ended up closing off the top rows of the venue so that it would feel more full, and so they gave us four seats in the Dell club area.  Swanky!  Fantastic show, even after having seen her twice before that.

ACL 2024: Heat

I was curious about the heat this year.  Feels like the kind of thing where every year I gripe about it being hotter than ever, but I know for a fact that one of the years was outrageous.  I can remember the lines at the snow cone stand in 2015, second weekend, being insanely long because we all thought we were going to die of heat.  But I looked it up, and according to Austin Monthly, the hottest days were mostly long ago.

Although, that image is sort of BS because in 2019 there were two day 3s.  Which one?  But still.  107?  Hot damn.  I thought we were miserable at 92 during weekend one.  But then second weekend hit this year and Sunday popped up over 100 again.  No freaking thank you.

I wonder if they could ever move the festival back?  Like, could they do the first two weekends of November?  Seems like a winning idea to me.

ACL 2024: Weekend TWO: Sunday Schedule and Thoughts!

I have tried to reduce some of the bloat in these schedule posts so that you can just get the goods.  As usual, you can click the name link for each artist below to see my full post on them and find out more about each artist.

Here we go - Sunday, Weekend TWO:

12:10/12:15/12:30

Miller Lite	Daiistar: My favorite new thing (and also a kinda Britpoppy psych rock thing)
BMI	Hudson Ingram: Jack Ingram's son making legitimately solid Harry Styles-ish pop rock
IHG (12:30)	Rickshaw Billie's Burger Patrol: BIG DUMB RIFFS
Tito's	The Moriah Sisters: Powerful belting for the Lord
T-Mobile (12:30)	Molecular Steve: Super catchy rock with a little slice of psych in there from a collective of Austin folks

Man.  That is honestly a killer lineup of fun ass local music.  Like, if you could send me to an afternoon show that was all of these (except for the gospel, sorry God) then I'd easily pay money to go jam that set.  Daiistar feels like a band that should be huge, if only the pandemic hadn't ruined everything.  Ingram feels like something our kids would worship if they only knew.  Rickshaw brings out my inner caveman and makes me want more music.  And Steve was my jam for almost a week, despite the need to keep reviewing other bands.  Super good.  I guess if held to a fire, I am going with Daiistar, but legit this set of bands is all winners.  Screw the NFL, those rich a-holes don't care about you.  Come watch rad bands.

12:55/1:15 (the times are so weird, sorry this gets difficult to parse)

Honda (12:55)	Richy Mitch & the Coal Miners: One monster, if short, hit, and then a pretty good set of indie rock tunes
AmEx (1:15)	Daniel Seavey: Solo boyband guy doing solo boyband pop stuff

Seriously feels like music is missing here.  Cmon.  We want more bands!  Put one of those from the early hour here!  Give me more exclamation points!  After hearing some music in passing, would choose the oddly named Richy. !!!

1:30/1:40/2:00

Miller Lite (1:40)	Dustin Kensrue: Ex-hardcore guy making country/Americana tunes now
BMI (1:40)	Emily Nenni: Pitch perfect classic country tunes
IHG (2:00)	Petey: TikTok star through wholesome funny videos also makes pretty solid synth rock
Tito's (1:30)	Kalu & the Electric Joint: Funky African-tinged rock and roll flavor from some local fellas
T-Mobile (2:00)	Malcolm Todd: Super lo-fi bedroom pop/rock guy that I already can't remember

Sorry, I know that is an awkward group of bands spread out over times, but there are not normal start times anymore.  Very staggered.  But this hour is tough.  Maybe Petey would be entertaining, or Kalu?  Kensrue was actually pretty nice despite my apathy for his old band.  I will tell you though, do not go to Malcolm Todd.  That was jenky as hell last weekend.

2:25/2:45

Honda (2:25)	Misterwives: That band with the infectious disco-ish Reflections song from 2017
Tito’s Tent (2:45)	Glass Beams: Funky Khruangbin Vibe with Middle Eastern flourish
American Express (2:45)	Flipturn: Great indie rock pleasantness with a distinctive voice over the top

I was kind of into all three of these, but did flipturn last weekend and it was fun as hell.  The lead singer's voice is more chill in the live version.  But any of these is cool.

3:25/3:45

Miller Lite (3:25)	Medium Build: New album is nice Americana, old stuff is less interesting bedroom pop indie
BMI (3:25)	Amira Elfeky: Dark, goth-y nu-metal stuff like Evanescence seems to me
IHG (3:45)	Myles Smith: Vibey, folky soft rock that is lovely if not very sticky
T-Mobile (3:45)	Bakar: Top tier vibe guy making surprisingly enjoyable indie rock

Last weekend, I said to choose Bakar, but I wholeheartedly choose Myles Smith now.  Freaking fun show.  Well, he also does some touching, deeper tunes, but even those had me dancing.  Dude is awesome.

4:25/4:30/4:45

Honda (4:25)	Orville Peck:  Weirdo, formerly anonymous, dude making country curious tunes
Tito’s Tent (4:30)	David Shaw: The Revivalists singer making similar tunes without the normal band
American Express (4:45)	Cannons: 80's tinged synth pop formed from Craiglist

All three of these should be really great.  I am certain that I will end up with the Revivalists guy, but I really have enjoyed listening to Orville Peck.  He's great.  Last weekend, I did Shaw and he is fantastic.  Such a good singer and performer, even in that hot ass little tent.  My buddy is scared that it all means that the Revs are breaking up, but I refuse to believe it.

5:25/5:45/6:00

Miller Lite (5:25)	Jess Glynne: Strong, soulful voiced Brit singer over dance beats
BMI (5:25)	The Droptines: Alt-country and good lyrics are still alive and well
IHG (5:45)	Kevin Abstract: One of the main BROCKHAMPTON guys aiming for more singing and less rapping
Tito's (6:00)	San Holo: More generic EDM
T-Mobile (5:45)	That Mexican OT: Cool mix of Tejano culture and southern hip hop

Pretty sure for this hour you could walk onto the stage with any of these folks and just hang out as they sing a personal message directly to you.  Because every other person in the park will be crowding into the AmEx zone to get ready for the next hour.  For good reason!  Here is what I think - Glynne has an amazing voice and I'd bet her show is fun.  The Droptines are talented and should grow out of their little corner of Texas.  San Holo in the Tito's Tent will probably be fun as hell.  That Mexican OT is definitely different from anything else here this weekend, and ought to be a good time.  If I had to choose, I might say the Droptines.  But also, what I did last weekend, and the right call, if to head your ass to the Amex stage and get as close as you can.

6:25/6:45

Honda (6:25)	mike.: Ex-baseball player stud, previously called Mike Stud, doing mediocre Post Malone cosplay
American Express (6:45)	Chappell Roan: Feels like the future mega-star act of the year

Fascinating the way that Chappell ran everyone off out of this hour - only the dopey last minute addition of mike. can act like there is someone who could compete with her.  You can read my review of last weekend to hear the full statement, but Roan was absolutely a great time.  Nothing was more fun all weekend long.  She'll never again be a non-Headliner, unless she quits music entirely, so go see what your kids are singing about.

7:25/7:45

Miller Lite (7:25)	The Red Clay Strays: Up and coming Americana and country rock from Alabama
IHG (7:45)	Qveen Herby: Very generic pop rap with a clever bar here and there
T-Mobile (7:45)	Dom Dolla : EDM guy

Man, what the hell.  Weekend One had Kehlani at the Miller Lite stage while we got up front for Sturgill.  And, no offense to Kehlani fans, that was lame as hell.  We could have had the RCS going over there, that would have been perfect for an appetizer.  Damn.  Seriously feels like we missed out.

HEADLINERS:

Honda (8:25)	Sturgill Simpson: Fantastic torchbearer of the type of Country I love
Tito's	Silent Disco
AmEx (8:45)	Tyler, the Creator: Very odd rapper, singer, and weirdo

Sturgill is the easy call for me.  We did that last weekend and it was volcanic.  He jams out like a classic rock band with slight southern country leanings.  Also, I really do not enjoy Tyler.  My middle kid left his show after 2 tracks saying it was just uninteresting.  And she lives for the rapper mosh pit.  But also, I have to say again that these setlist times for the headliners is bullhonkey.  1:15 from Tyler for the end of the Fest closer?  He can't even put together a two hour set?  Disappointing.

ACL 2024: Weekend TWO: Saturday Schedule and Thoughts!

I have tried to reduce some of the bloat in these schedule posts so that you can just get the goods.  As usual, you can click the name link for each artist below to see my full post on them and find out more about each artist.  Sadly, last week included a link to CAAMP, because I was really digging their chili, and then they like went to rehab or something, so you'll get nothing and like it!  Here is Jungle instead.

If anything is messed up in here, blame the late-night tequila I enjoyed while continuing to write after a full weekend of ACL, after trying to catch up on work.  My bad dog.

Here we go - Saturday, Weekend One:

11:55/12:05

Miller Lite	Joe P: Straight-forward guitar rock that sounds great, despite the weak name
BMI	Jordy: Pure pop that unflinchingly looks at his life being a gay man
IHG	Being Dead: Crunchy, fuzzy, local psych rock goodness
T-Mobile	Jonah Kagen: Poor man's Noah Kahan

Starting before noon makes for a crazy long day, so I don't know that you'll ever find me here this early.  That being said, this is an honestly amazing hour.  Like, I thought that both Joe P and Being Dead are things that I would pay real money to go watch other than with the Festival.  And the other two are also enjoyable (for me, Kagen more than Jordy, but diffrent strokes and all).  

The UT/OU game doesn't start for a few hours anyway, come in here and check Being Dead.

12:35/12:40/12:50 (why can't we just have a single start time?)

Honda (12:40)	Billy Allen and the Pollies:  Excellent alt-country band from Muscle Shoals (but fronted by a soul singer)
Tito's (12:35)	The Tiarras: Local trio of sisters singing in English and Spanish
AmEx (12:50)	Goldie Boutillier: Shape shifting gal seeking out the winning formula in a pop-influenced alt country

I think the Pollies would have been my jam if I had discovered them back in the day.  In this new iteration, with a soul singer blaring in the forefront, they are not as good IMO, but I think I'd still aim that way.

1:25/1:35

Miller Lite	Nico Vega: Riff-heavy rock and roll featuring the funny dude from Ant-Man
BMI	Jon Muq: Absolutely lovely indie rock from a golden-voiced Ugandan living in Austin
IHG	Valencia Grace: Unmemorable pop singer with a nice voice that can Adele at times
T-Mobile	Geese: Wild NYC art rock with a few too much dissonance for my taste

I am honestly mad about this hour.  No lie.  Jon Muq has an amazing backstory and a few excellent songs, but Nico Vega involves a famous person and sounds pretty rad.  I'd have a hard time there.  Also, I really wish that was Goose and not Geese.  Eggy turned me on to the jam love in a way I had not previously recognized.

2:05/2:10/2:20 (they really don't line up the bands anymore...)

Honda (2:10)	Movements: Strained yelping on the otherwise rocking emo tunes isn't it for me
Tito’s Tent (2:05)	Bob Schneider: An Austin institution still churning out great lyrics and well-crafted little pop rock songs
American Express (2:20)	Lola Young: Strong voiced Brit singing hard-edged and confessional pop

Man, Bob Schneider rules.  We got to see him this summer at Antone's, and that is a legit fun time.  In the Tito's Tent, working the crowd?  Gimme.

3:05/3:10/3:20

Miller Lite (3:10)	Say She She: Three classically trained singers over the top of Nile Rodgers funk
BMI (3:10)	Emei:  Olivia Rodrigo rip-off and other bad pop experiences
IHG (3:20)	Spinall: Nigerian DJ funking it up with his Afrobeats
Tito's (3:05)	Balthvs: Khruangbin copycats from Columbia

T-Mobile (3:20)

The Beaches: Poppy garage rocking ladies

Wild hour full of fun weird things.  The Beaches are my choice out of this hour, saw them last weekend and it was a blast.  Maybe needed some subtitles for the lyrics, but the raw fun of their music was fantastic.

4:10/4:20

Honda (4:10)	Teddy Swims: Soulful tattoo monster who went from YouTube covers to one huge hit
Tito’s Tent (4:20)	Elyanna: Arabic pop that is otherwise pretty generic
American Express (4:20)	CAAMP: Folksy Americana with a bunch o' banjo and several legit bangers Eyedress: Kinda jenky bedroom pop heavy on the new wave synths and basslines

I forgot to remove the highlight from the AMEX stage last weekend, and the wife was more annoyed at me than I expected when we went to Teddy instead of Eyedress.  It is Teddy Swims time.  CAAMP cancelled their show.  Freaking sucks for sure.  Swims has an amazing voice for sure, even if his brand of soul/R&B/quasi-country isn't tops for me.

5:10/5:20

Miller Lite (5:10)	Remi Wolf: Former American Idol contestant who loves vocal effects despite a strong voice
BMI (5:10)	Braxton Keith: Young guy doing classic-sounding Nashville country
IHG (5:20)	Wave to Earth: Really lovely South Korean indie pop/soft rock (that seems weird to be here)
T-Mobile (5:20)	Hermanos Gutierrez: Instrumental guitar magic

Man, you should seriously see the brothers do sweet guitar things.  My friends last weekend were jenky about it, but they seriously ruled.  It is not going to make you dance, or mosh, or do most of the normal 5pm concert things, but the vibe is impeccable.  

6:10/6:20

Honda (6:10)	Benson Boone: Sounds like a boy band refugee, with a strong voice and great lyrics
Tito’s Tent (6:20)	Grand Funk Railroad: Homer Simpson's favorite American band jamming out since 1969
American Express (6:20)	Khruangbin: Funky instrumental goodness

I still don't understand how Khruangbin is a headliner of a major festival, but whatever.  I'd choose them here.  That being said, know that my friends called them a, *gasp* "jam band" as they noodles and funked their way through a killer set of more impeccable vibe tunes.  One friend went to Boone and was very impressed by his flips and vocals.  Grand Funk has some good old hits, but it's one of those Frankenstein bands with rando members now.

7:10/7:20

Miller Lite (7:10)	Jungle: Grooving funk soul
IHG (7:20)	Vince Staples: Great flow from an odd rapper with critical love
T-Mobile (7:20)	Renee Rapp:  Pop bubblegum from an actress-turned-belter

Here is the deal.  I bet you want to see Dua Lipa and so right now you think you should skip this hour and get close.  Jack with his time machine is here to tell you that you should definitely go watch Jungle or Vince Staples, and then you can walk over and see some of the generic MTV music awards ass dancing from the screens (but you won't hear it because Pretty Lights is turned up to 11) and then bounce.  That is the right call.  But not Rapp.  That is not good.

HEADLINERS:

Honda (8:10)	Pretty Lights: Honestly enjoyable electronic background music
Tito's	Silent Disco
AmEx (8:20)	DUA LIPA: Disco pop bubblegum somehow at the top of the ACL poster

So, I watched Lipa last weekend.  Did not love it.  You can see my more fleshed-out quotes in my review of last weekend, but it was mediocre for me.  And Pretty Lights was insanely loud and pummeling in a way that did not interest me.  I had two friends tell me that sitting way back for Dua was awful because Pretty Lights was so loud that they couldn't hear Dua.  Be forewarned if you wanted to watch something else and then truly enjoy Dua.  You need to make a choice. 

It would have been so great for one of the Friday night headliners to be here so that there was something to look forward to.  So, I guess my advice up above stands.  Or else do some wicked drugs and do Pretty Lights.  Or just resign yourself to seeing a hot lady rub all over herself while powerfully singing bad nu disco.