Bourbon & Beyond 2026 - Line 8 (Violent Femmes, Maddox Batson, Maoli, Lindsey Stirling, Noah Cyrus, St. Paul & the Broken Bones)

Violent Femmes

One Liner: Seminal, sneering folky punk with more than just Blister in the Sun 
Wikipedia Genre: Folk punk, alternative rock
Home: Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Day: Friday

Thoughts:  C'mon man.  You know this one.

I can remember butchering these lyrics as "twister" in the sun as a child, and my favorite part of it was when it went really quiet and we all got low to the ground at camp dances, so that when they rip back in with the LEMMEGOWWWAAAAHHHN! we could all jump up and yell along and freak out.  Great times.  Funny thing though, I know a handful of these other songs, but I definitely never bought one of their albums or really got into any of it.  But "Blister in the Sun" (324.6 million streams) is a stone cold classic, "Add It Up," "Kiss Off" and "American Music" make me think of high school theater and building sets while jamming those and feeling very cool while counting off the items in "Kiss Off" before yelling "everything everything" with the rest of the nerds.  Pretty great.

Ten studio albums!  That feels like a lot!  But I guess 1983 was a really freaking long time ago by now, even if it feels to me like it should just be a few years ago.  That first album features "Blister in the Sun," "Gone Daddy Gone," "Add It Up," and "Kiss Off" and it went platinum. The whole album still sounds awesome. They kind of remind me of Devo with their weirdness that is still tuneful and fun.  I've listened to some of the recent stuff, and its fine, not as good to me as their OG stuff, but they apparently can still do the thing.

This is cool: "They were discovered by James Honeyman-Scott (of the Pretenders) on August 23, 1981, when the band was busking on a street corner in front of the Oriental Theatre, the Milwaukee venue that The Pretenders would be playing later that night. Chrissie Hynde invited them to play a brief acoustic set after the opening act."  I'd absolutely go see this - sign me up to sing their five top tracks right now!

Maddox Batson

One Liner:  If Justin Beiber was country adjacent and sucked even worse
Wikipedia Genre: Country, pop, rock (huh?!)
Home: Birmingham, Alabama
Day: Saturday

Thoughts:  Oh no.  No no no.  Like a Justin Beiber for country fans?  I'm 0:36 into "Girl in Green," which is his currently most popular song on Spotify, and this makes me want to die.

He was the kind of kid who was posting little covers to TikTok to try to get some clout, and a cover of a Sam Barber song blew up for him.  After that, his debut single also went viral and so Warner Brothers snapped him up.  They sent him out on a sold-out headlining tour across the US in 2024 and got to perform at CMA Fest.  

I have to stop this from entering my ears anymore.  Here is the most streamed tune, called "X's" and it likewise makes me sad to exist.  10.6 million streams from people who hate themselves.

Oh, the video made it even worse.  Much worse.  Oh God.  I hope I never hear that song again for the rest of my life.

Maoli

One Liner:  Country-adjacent reggae from a Hawaiian
Wikipedia Genre: No Wikipedia, but reggae
Home: Maui
Day: Friday

Thoughts:  My brain thought about Mitski when I first saw that name, and then was like no, that is "male aioli," which is really freaking gross and maybe I need to wean my brain from the Internet.  I don't even know what to do with the first song, like, if Bob Marley wanted to make a bad country song?  What are we doing here?

I don't know who asked for that, but take it back.

Oh, well now I learned something.  Maoli is one of the indigenous names for native Hawaiians.  This guy is apparently a native of "upcountry Maui" - his web bio says the following: nine independent albums, 15-year recording career, a "fixture across the Pacific islands and beyond."  I do not believe you.  I kept it rolling for a while, and its just bad reggae.  Every song has that organ bubble sound of the off-beat strike, which gets really freaking old after a few songs.  I REMEMBER STIR IT UP TOO, MAOLI!  I was hopeful for "If I Said You Had a Beautiful Body," but its all the same.  No thank you.

Lindsey Stirling

One Liner:  Someone eventually would try to mix classical with EDM and here we are
Wikipedia Genre: Electronic, classical, dubstep (wtf)
Home: Santa Ana, CA
Day: Friday

Thoughts:  Really hopeful for this one after two bad ones in a row.  Well, her most popular song is a Christmas classic mainly on violin, so maybe she can play the fiddle...  Oh God.  Line 8 is freaking cursed, y'all.  The next most popular song is Dubstep EDM plus fiddle?  Come on.  I had to hear this, now you have to as well.

If Evanescence joined with Skrillex and Boyd Tinsley.  I had to skip the rest of that one.  I can only do so much in the service of the music, y'all.  Unfortunately, this appears to be her thing - techno and classical violin.  It gets better, marginally.  When there are no overwrought lyrics, and it is just like a classical violin tune mixed with dubstep, I can kind of see the idea.  But when she covers "Radioactive" with the Pentatonix people, then you can call the FBI to have her arrested for war crimes.

Her YouTube videos are apparently very popular - over 3 billion total views - and she made the quarterfinals of America's Got Talent in 2010.  While still in high school, she wrote a solo violin rock song that helped her to win the state title of Arizona's Junior Miss.  Also, her Wikipedia entry is like 80 pages long, and includes a section detailing all of her violins, which are each named shit like Ace, Starlight, Excalibur, and Pickles.

My daughter walked into the home office as this was playing, wrinkled her nose, and was like "what are you listening to?"  It does not have the 17 year old girl vote, apparently.

You know what, my initial reaction was negative, but this is definitely something different and I think she is a pretty damn good violin player.  It is exhausting to listen to while trying to work, but I might go see what it looks like in person.

Noah Cyrus

One Liner:  Miley's little sister
Wikipedia Genre: None (which is odd), but this is folk and pop
Home: Nashville
Day: Saturday

Thoughts:  Yes, this is Miley's sister and Billy Ray's daughter.  I previously wrote a deep dive about her for the 2022 ACL that you can read here.  "July" is still a lovely song, and the version with Leon Bridges whips ass.  The original has flipping 1.3 BILLION streams, and the Bridges version another 305.3 million.  I definitely like the folky side of her more than the poppy side.

St. Paul & the Broken Bones

One Liner:  Soul re-dux powerhouse
Wikipedia Genre: Southern soul, soul
Home: Birmingham, Alabama
Day: Friday

Thoughts:  My deep dive on these cats was back in 2016, when they last came to ACL.  You can read it here, but I want to listen to their newer stuff as well.  It is, however, entirely unremarkable in comparison to what I said before.  These guys make great retro soul rock and nothing has changed with their new tunes.  It is fun.  They are a fun live show.

Bourbon & Beyond 2026 - Line 15 (Noah Rinker, The Stews, Couch, Hey, Nothing, Bryan Martin, Penelope Road, SG Goodman)

Noah Rinker

One Liner: Low key singer songwriter country
Wikipedia Genre: No Wikipedia, but this is Americana, country, singer-songwriter
Home: Shaver Lake, CA
Day: ... 

Thoughts:  Wow.  Never heard this name in my life, and yet he's got three songs with more than 23 million streams.  He's got the sound of the new wave of Zach Bryan acolytes - Wyatt Flores, Dylan Gossett, Sam Barber, etc.  It honestly sounds really good.  he claims that his musical influences are John Mayer, Tyler Childers, and Kings of Leon.  I'd say that his lyrics are really good.  Clever without being too clever, like some crappy country people can get.  He grew up right outside of Yosemite NP, which would be a really cool place to be raised.  He started playing guitar at age 11 and has honed his songwriting ever since.  3 EPs, no albums yet.  His top song has 38.3 million streams, which I think is impressive.

Come on.  A big old yellow lab and a campfire?  This dude knows what he is aiming for.  Really pretty song though.  I like this guy - I'm going to send this stuff to the wife to enjoy.

The Stews

One Liner: Fraternity bros ripping out some rock and roll
Wikipedia Genre: No Wikipedia, but this is rock and roll, southern rock, jam-adjacent
Home: Auburn, AL
Day: ... 

Thoughts:  I was really hoping that this band was going to be a group of stewardesses in their little 1970's stewardess outfits.  I got ripped off, its just some bros.  But they are some bros on the rise.  Literal bros - two of them met through their fraternity.  They got their start out of Auburn, playing small clubs in the southeast, but since 2022 they've played a bunch of big halls and Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, and more.  My first read on them by listening to their most popular Spotify tunes is that they sound a little raw, like they really are just a bar band from a college town.  But their 2024 full-length album (Chicken Fight) is pretty good - has a Kings of Leon rock and roll sound (which is sort of funny after the last guy said KOL was an influence).  If you have heard Dexter and the Moonrocks or Backseat Lovers, this sort of has that vibe.  Some sources online are calling them a jam band, but I don't hear that at all.  They maybe have some solos and whatnot, but this is not a noodle fest.

Their top song is from an early 2021 EP called The Stews, and the song is named "Make It Out."  You'll hear that college band rawness here, except they have now released a new 2025 version called "Radio Edit" - I guess they are hopeful about the radio!  

But if you run through that 2024 album, you get a much more polished and rock-forward sound.  I like the new stuff better.  I'd go check this out.  

Couch

One Liner: Softly jazzy pop for people who live in lofts
Wikipedia Genre: soul pop, funk pop, jazz pop, retro pop (all the pops!)
Home: Boston
Day: ... 

Thoughts:  What a great band name.  I can't believe it wasn't already taken by some mid-90's stoners who just named the band after the thing they were sitting in.  We got a Car Seat Headrest before a Couch?  So wrong.  But, if you are in the mood for some soft rock and jazzy little tunes, I have the spot for you to settle in.  Kind of reminding me of one of the ACL bands last year who I was very excited about, and then when I saw the show I was terribly bored.  Lucius. Maybe kind of Lake Street Dive too?  Her voice is lovely, the groove is funky, it ought to all be there for the enjoying.  But I don't listen to Norah Jones much anymore for a reason...  Top track, by quite a bit, is a 2019 single (their third overall song) called "Easy to Love."  12.7 million streams.

A nice sentiment and a good little groove.  Feels like the kind of band it would be fun to "see" while you sit in the shade and drink beer with your friends and sort of semi-notice that music happens to be happening.  Although , the first song on their 2025 album kind of brings the heat - "On The Wire" can get me doing some white man overbite dance moves here at my desk.  They have some covers that are kind of entertaining - "Toxic" or "Vienna" being the two obvious selections.  I think I will probably let these guys do their thing without me.

Hey, Nothing

One Liner: Truly great emo-indie by two younguns who harmonize with feeling
Wikipedia Genre: No Wikipedia, but indie
Home: Atlanta
Day: ... 

Thoughts:  Luckily for me, I already wrote a post about these cats - they were at ACL last year.  You can read that more complete post here: All Play and No Work: hey, nothing  Go check that out and enjoy.

Bryan Martin

One Liner: Generic rockin' country with trucks and guns and drankin'
Wikipedia Genre: Country
Home: Logansport, Louisiana
Day: ... 

Thoughts:  Holy hell.  Absolutely never heard of this guy, and he has a song with 413.7 million streams?  What the hell?  Ahh, its because this is some new Nashville ass country.  "Hard to make a livin' why the gas so high?" and something about 9 to 5 and Friday night and drivin' down by the creek to the water and gettin' stoooooned.  Whoooweeee!  I got a pistol by my side!  The devil's my friend!  I bet this song was featured on Yellowstone.

"We Ride" with 413.7 million streams.  That is wild for him to be down here on the 15th line of this poster with that one and then three others with more than a hundred million.  Is it because his name is hella generic?  You'd think he would rate higher on the poster than friggin' Plain White T's.

His Wikipedia bio is a hell of a ride on its own.  As a teenager, he worked on an oil rig as he played football and rode bulls.  He broke his collar bone riding bulls and developed an addiction to painkillers.  He then enlisted in the Army, attempted suicide, and started making music.  WTF man.  Save some trauma for later, buddy.  

And I figured out the popularity - "We Ride" became a TikTok thing and then he got to open for Morgan Wallen.  That will do it.  The current song I am listening to is a plodding stomper about how he will kill you if you try to come near his doublewide.  I will let someone else go watch this guy list American things over the top of generic rockin' country.

Penelope Road

One Liner: Soft pop indie made for cuddlin'
Wikipedia Genre: No Wikipedia, but indie pop, synth pop, jazzy yacht groove
Home: Atlanta
Day: ... 

Thoughts:  Quite a juxtaposition to go from Mr. Tough-Guy-Bad-Ass-Singerman up there straight into some synth pop indie made for cuddling.  Also, my grandpa-ass system for figuring out music genre may have to join the present century, as this is yet another band with no Wikipedia entry.  Come on, fellow youths!  Gimme my Wiki entries!  Although they apparently have called their music "stanky funky junk," and Wikipedia would not have given me that beautiful word salad, so maybe we are in the right place after all.

The band name comes from the road in Atlanta where several of them lived.  It sounds like they all left Atlanta for college but then came back sophomore year to try to make the band thing work out.  A funny and odd anecdote in the one interview I read with them, the lead singer says that they don't love their EP.  Which is a really weird thing to say!  "The music we released sucks, please come hear our band."  He also said they all grew up on yacht rock, which makes a lot of sense.

Not sure I'm feeling it.  Now that I hear the yacht rock influence, I can dig where that is coming from, but it actually sounds a lot like those Couch people up above with kind of a jazzy rock goof sound.  Their top songs are from that first EP that they hate, so I will give you one from the newest release.  This is "Chance Encounter" with just over a million streams.

I feel like my girls have probably done some affected TikTok to this showing their tender side or something.  I don't love it.  In "Mercy" the lead singer's voice sounds like Ben Platt.  I actually popped over to Spotify to see if they had added him as a guest.  This will sound rude, but this feels like a band that will break up soon.

SG Goodman

One Liner: Americana leaning into lite rock and roll with great lyrics
Wikipedia Genre: Americana, folk, country, rock
Home: Hickman, KY
Day: ... 

Thoughts:  When I saw this on the poster, I figured it was S.L. Houser, who was at ACL last year and offers music lessons for Austinites.  Nope, another lady using initials to confuse and entertain.  (also, not L.P. Giobbi or M.J. Lenderman, who were both at ACL last year.  Initial Artists for all!).

She is pretty good!  She was raised in Hickman, Kentucky, which is a tiny town on the Mississippi River, in that little key-tip of Kentucky.  I have never been to Kentucky.  I am realizing, looking at the map, that it is just north of Tennessee (where I have been), and just south of Ohio, Indiana, and Missouri (where I have never been).  Maybe I need to rent a car and go see all of those exciting other states.

She was raised in the Southern Baptist church and says she went three times a week.  That seems like too much church, but I think I did the same with Sunday morning, Sunday night, and Wednesday night.  Good times.  She has also been driving since she was seven, which is apparently legal in Kentucky.

The tunes are kind of a mix of Sierra Ferrell's quasi-country Americana and Lucinda Williams' soulful, rockin' Americana.  I have been enjoying it quite a bit.  She got started in 2017 with an album with something called The Savage Radley, and then 2020 was her solo debut.  Produced by Jim James of My Morning Jacket, I think it has a cool combined sound.  That one includes her most popular song, "Space and Time," with 10.1 million streams.

Tyler Childers covered this later, likely being the reason it launched into popularity.  Here and there, that little vibrato she does for a second in the second line can get to be too much in some of these songs, but overall, I think she is a really good songwriter with some good chill vibes.  Like "Snapping Turtle," where you believe she is about to join some kids in torturing a turtle before she turns the stick on those little shits and makes them cry - I can see it all in my mind's eye and I really like it.  I'd go watch her.

Bourbon & Beyond - 2026 - Line 10 (Buffalo Traffic Jam, The Return of Jackie & Judy, Our Lady Peace, Sons of Legion)

I am going to run through the Bourbon and Beyond lineup slightly differently than my normal ACL lineup reviews, mainly to save space and time.  Instead of individual reviews for every band (lots of which I have already reviewed before and are ancient so a whole new review is likely not needed) I will go by rows on the poster.  I am way too psyched about this poster.  90's me mixed with today me all in one happy wrapper.

Buffalo Traffic Jam

One Liner: Stomping folky bluegrass 
Wikipedia Genre: Folk
Home: Bozeman, Montana
Day: ... 

Thoughts:  Their first song sounds like this is CAAMP.  Which is a good thing in my book.  Frankie Cassidy and Nathan Ross met as students at Montana State University and started making some roots Americana tunes together.  The lead singer's voice also sort of reminds me of the guy in Briscoe, in that he seems to have a strain lodged in his voice that never leaves, no matter what note he is singing.  But I could see this being a very fun little band to hoot and holler along with.

Top Song, by a lot, is "Fool's Gold" with 35.3 million streams.

I know there is no way my fingers would ever cooperate, but the idea of being able to jam a mandolin - truly would be amazing.  These two dudes spent college learning how to jam and make money.  I spent mine catching unidentifiable skin conditions from the rotting couch in front of a fraternity house.  They win.  

First available music is a 2024 eponymous EP.  None of those songs appear to have gained much traction, but their next couple singles started doing 6 million, 8 million, 19 million in streams, so they are on the radar now.  No actual album yet, just a 2025 EP that includes that "Fool's Gold" tune.

I'd check this out.

The Return of Jackie & Judy

One Liner: Fred Armisen and Sleater-Kinney playing Ramones covers.

Wikipedia Genre: No Wikipedia, but The Ramones
Home: We'll just say Portland.
Day: ... 

Thoughts: I saw The Ramones in the mid-90s because they opened for Pearl Jam at Southpark Meadows in Austin.  My main memory of that trip was my friend Strick hanging out the window of my car while we were hauling ass up I-35 so that he could bum a cigarette from the outstretched hand of a cute girl in a car next to us.  My only real memory of The Ramones was how funny we thought it was that they still counted off before every single song.  So, this isn't The Ramones, but it is named after a 1980 Ramones song, which seems like a terrible band name if you want recognition.  But luckily for these folks, they don't need recognition because they are already very famous.  This is Fred Armisen on drums and Sleater-Kinney on guitar/vocals.  Haha - it's like a Portlandia skit come to life.  That is awesome.  Fred Armisen's hair looks terrifying.  Is that a wig?  He's probably supposed to look like someone who was in the Ramones and I just don't know that schtick.

They have no songs on Spotify.  They have no real YouTube videos.  All you get are these crappy clips from some tiny show.  Probably in Portland.

Raw and sort of goofy, but what the hell.  I bet that would be a fun show.  Shocking revelation down here on the poster...

Our Lady Peace

One Liner: MTV buzz bin kings for a hot minute

Wikipedia Genre: Alternative rock, post grunge
Home: Toronto (I would not have pegged them as Canadian)
Day: ... 

Thoughts: Before you read anything, are you able to remember their biggest hit?  This is another one of the 90's redux bands on this poster, and I have to sheepishly admit that I got a little jolt of excitement when I saw them on the poster.  Around the time college was coming to a close, their album Clumsy came out with the very large hit "Superman's Dead."  Boasts 53.2 million streams on Spotify, despite not feeling (to me at least) like the kind of song I still hear on the classic rock/alternative rock stations.  Come on, sing along!

Oh that video is some good ass 90's buzz bin look-at-how-deep-we-are stuff.  Wait, is Silverchair on this poster?  Silverchair should be on this poster.  Fun to go back through this album.  "Clumsy" was another hit you may recall, "4am" popped right back into my head with every lyric like it had been in my disc changer yesterday.  The whole disc trips a memory switch for me that I am enjoying.  Looks like they kept making music, including a 1999 album with the very unfortunate title of Happiness...Is Not a Fish That You Can Catch.  And even though re-listening to Clumsy has been fun, I don't think I was missing much by allowing them to disappear into the musical brain backburner for the last 30 years.  

But you know what?  I don't have a single MuchMusic Video Award to my name, and they have TEN!  That is the "most MMVAs ever awarded to a band (tied with Billy Talent)" according to Wikipedia.  I really like that entry - here is a definitive statement, with a paren that entirely debunks that definitive statement.  Good work.  Also, congrats to whatever Billy Talent is.  Ten studio albums!  Also, their Wikipedia entry is massive - like a really deep dive into their history.  More than a lot of actually great bands would have.  Looks like the band is pretty much now just the initial lead singer, and then a bunch of new dudes who have joined since then.

I tried out the live album from 2003 - I guess the height of their powers.  I think the cock-rock heavy Creed/Live-style instrumentation is still pretty solid (although who knows what they have 20 years later), but it is the lead singer's voice that throws a wrench into it all.  If the schedule allows me to drop by the stage for the last song, then I'm in.  Otherwise, I think this little trip down memory lane was probably enough.

Sons of Legion

One Liner: Nashville duo trying hard and sounding like it

Wikipedia Genre: No Wikipedia, but bluesy rock with a little soul tinge
Home: Nashville
Day: ... 

Thoughts: I'd like to go on record that "In The Air Tonight" is a terrible pump up song.  I don't understand at all why that became a thing for sports players to get pumped up to.  It's use in The Hangover was genius, and that drum fill is one of one, but the song overall is plodding and about the guy who was boning Phil Collins' wife on the side.  Anyway, this band's top streamer is a mediocre cover of that song.  I apologize in advance for sharing the names of the two guys in this band, but they are Adam McInnis and Daddy Jack.  I'm sorry you had to read that.  One truly fascinating note about the band is that Adam is tone deaf.  I have no clue how you would be able to make music or sing with that condition, but that is wild.  I have to say, I was sort of digging this for a few songs, and then it started to wear me out a little.  Too overwrought, like I am listening to someone trying to write a song that will get picked up by the NFL to play as a game goes to commercial.  That is probably rude, but I just don't want to keep this playing anymore.  

No album, just a handful of singles stretching back to 2020.  The top single, after the Phil Collins thing, is called "Fire Starter" and has 13.8 million streams.

Sort of an Imagine Dragons thing going in there as they plod their way into the chorus.  I think my favorite tune is "Carolina," but I don't think I will go out of my way to catch this show.