ACL 2023: Weekend Two Friday Review

Through the kindness of a friend, I got to go check out Friday for the second weekend after my blitzkrieg through the park on weekend one.  I was excited, and so we got down there likely earlier than I expected.  Fun to be had, baby!

First off, the heat was back.  Weekend one was just glorious on the temperature, man.  Untouched in my many years of attendance.  So, this Friday popped up in to the 90's and was less pleasant for sure.

We heard the closing screams of We Don't Ride Llamas, and whooo boy am I glad I didn't hurry up to get in and see them.  It was not something I need to be there for from the final tune.

Bailen was great.  My comparison to Haim kept popping up in my head, as they played really well together and threw in some excellent harmonies.  The weird thing that I did not like was that there was something creating massive bass sounds during the show - like, intentional ones - when no one in the band was obviously doing it.  Like, the drummer was drumming, the lead singer had an electric guitar, and the third guy had an acoustic guitar, and yet somehow there was an 808 thrum erupting from the stage during those songs.  Offputting.  Also, hot AF in the Tito's Tent.

Here, we did half of Oliver Hazard and half of Ethel Cain.  Hazard was just as expected - I immediately told my wife that she needs to listen to those guys, because it is just the kind of Americana-ey, pleasant music she would love.  Ethel Cain was insane - I had never seen the little Barton Springs stage so full of humanity.  And I don't really get why either - she was fine, but nothing about the show was a revelation of amazing proportions.  Odd.

Ugh.  My friend wanted to go see Lil Yachty, and it was just as terrible as I expected.  The crowd's biggest excitement was when he played his snippets of two other people's songs, both of which are like a decade old.  Okay, seven years, but whatever.  His trippy, fake, wishing-he-was-Tame-Impala stuff is just depressing.  I did not enjoy this portion.

We did a few songs from The Moss, but it was meh.  Went to grab food instead.  Now is when the good stuff kicked in.

Maggie Rogers is a golden goddess.  She was just everything that you want out of a show - powerful vocals, great musicians, perfect set-list, a commanding presence on stage, performers who look like they are having fun and loving it too.  I really loved it.

My wife cannot comprehend why I would want to see the same band twice right in a row, but The Revivalists killed it again, AND did a completely different show.  They opened with "Kid," instead of ending, they played some tunes that they skipped last time like "The Long Con," "Got Love," and "Pour it Out Into the Night," and they covered the imminently rad "High and Dry."  If I hadn't seen both shows, I would have been sad about missing out on certain tunes!

Finally, we did Kendrick Lamar.  And, well, meh.  I've been through all of this before, but he just isn't that terribly interesting to watch perform.  Part of that is definitely on me, in that I really only know the lyrics to Good Kid tracks, but even without that, he just kind of stands there and spits, while his weird little pack of dudes marches around behind him on stage.  And the tracks go from undeniable bangers to kinda boring and long meanders.  If I had been deep into the pit up front, maybe the perspective would have been different, but from half-way back in the crowd, it just never got off the ground.  Felt like the abbreviated set from the week before was actually the better one because he just hit us with his best shot.

I am honestly glad that the Fest is over.  I'm exhausted and my lungs are full of dirt.  I got to see some amazing things that made me deeply happy, but now I just want to sit back and chill out.  Well, until I go see Nickel Creek this weekend and maybe the Killers tonight...  ;)

Until next year, know that I will continue writing stuff on here about other music, and shows I see, and guesses for next year's lineup.  So stay tuned!

ACL 2023: Weekend Two: Friday Schedule!

I have tried to reduce some of the bloat in these schedule posts so that you can just get the goods.  I think I am going to make a separate place to find playlists and other thoughts about the days.  Click the name link to find out more about each artist.

Here we go - Friday, Weekend Two:

12:45/1:15

Honda (12:55)	Jimmie Vaughan & Tilt-A-Whirl Band: Stevie Ray's big brother laying down classic blues guitar action
Tito's (1:15)	The Huston-Tillotson University Jazz Collective: The Huston-Tillotson University Jazz Collective
Kiddie (12:45)	School of Rock: Kids jamming cover tunes based on what they learned at private lessons
AmEx (12:55)	Font: Only one song but it is full of cowbell and fun

Font is my easy choice here.  I am honestly disappointed that they have stuck them at such a terrible slot, as even with only one song in the ether, it jams.

1:40 (some weird start times this year!)

Miller Lite	We Don't Ride Llamas: Shape-shifting local band of siblings
BMI	Emlyn: Aggressively empowering pop from a gal who is not taking your crap anymore
IHG	The Altons: Old school soul tunes on their most recent hits.
T-Mobile	Jaime Wyatt: Classic country sound with a little brassy Outlaw to her

Surprising even myself, I'd likely choose Wyatt and the old school country here.

2:25

Honda	Thee Sacred Souls: Sweet, smooth, lovely throwback soul
Tito’s Tent	Bailen: HAIM vibes and harmonies from NYC siblings
Kiddie (2:30)	Resonate: A few dank raps from a weed store owner
American Express	Nessa Barrett: Awful TikTok pop with overly affected voice and a death fascination

Thee Sacred Souls were freaking good last weekend.  Just a perfect early afternoon chance to kick back with a drink and let something nice wash over you.

3:10

Miller Lite	Breland: If "Old Town Road" made a full career
BMI	Oliver Hazard: Like the Lumineers popped up in small-town Ohio
IHG	Ethel Cain: Spacey bedroom indie Del Rey by an odd bird
T-Mobile	Abraham Alexander: Soulful buddy of Leon Bridges with a perfectly lovely voice

Tough slot here.  I think if you are trying to see something "important" that may be the next big thing in music, then you should go see Ethel Cain and check her out at this early stage of her career.  I think Oliver Hazard are legitimately good music that would be fun to hear.  And Alexander has the killer voice and nice sound - you could do him and Sacred Souls back-to-back and have smooth soul overload.

4:10

Honda	Raye: Pop singer with some dark lyrics
Tito’s Tent	Blond:ish: EDM that appears to be much more enjoyable when live than when streamed in the office
Kiddie (4:30)	Q Brothers: Possibly not the worst Kiddie Limits band, if you believe Joseph
American Express	Lil Yachty: That mumble rapper with the red braids

Not my hour here.  I guess I'd lean in to my soft spot in my heart for EDM in the Tito's tent because it feels tighter and more fun in community like that.

5:10

Miller Lite	The Teskey Brothers: Complete incongruity between their look and sound channeling Otis Redding-style soul
BMI	The Moss: Jangly rock and roll with a little reggae/surf tinge from dudes foolish enough to leave Hawaii for Utah
IHG	D4VD: Downbeat indie that is inexplicably huge on Spotify - the depressing Weeknd
T-Mobile	Glorilla: Crunk lady rapper bragging her way into a Cardi B guest spot

My instant preference is The Moss, but I actually think the Teskey Brothers might be a really cool show.

6:10

Honda	Maggie Rogers: A strong-voiced pop songwriter and one of my favorite songs
Tito’s Tent	FKJ: Jazzy multi-instrumentalist doing electronica solo
American Express	Major Lazer: Dancehall EDM from Diplo and many friends

Maggie is the easy call here when this was Kali Uchis, and I heard from several people that her show was magic last weekend.  I skipped it to get closer for The Revivalists.  Now that Major Lazer is slated to take that spot again, I'm less sure.  One of my daughters said ML was her favorite show of the whole weekend.  The other said either #1 or #2.  So we are talking about a show that must be a hell of a lot of fun.

7:10

Miller Lite	Portugal. The Man: Alt. rock psych guys who made a funky new jam of 60's pop that everyone has heard
IHG	The Revivalists: Jammy rock band from New Orleans with one massive alt rock radio hit
T-Mobile	Above and Beyond: Electronic trance music with at least a jillion tracks

I had not realized that Revivalists were getting shunted over to the little BS stage.  That is whack.  That is definitely my pick here.  First, because they rule and their show was fantastic.  Second, because I watched Portugal last weekend and for the third show I have seen, they sound like dogcrap.  I used to think it was just the sound engineers doing something wrong, but after three shows, you have to think that they are purposefully trying to sound that way.

HEADLINERS:

Honda (8:10)	The Lumineers: Scruffy indie folk guys who have maintained a strange level of popularity
Tito's	Silent Disco
AmEx (8:40)	Kendrick Lamar: One of the top rappers today

It's too bad that someone else isn't the headliner opposite Kendrick - put Odesza's ass over there or something!  Because even though I complained heavily about both of these artists, I'd still almost assuredly choose Kendrick and see one of the best rappers alive at the top of his game.

Obviously, last weekend was a cluster for this hour - big packs of teens walked out of Lumineers but then came back and then left again but then came back as everyone got messed up info about whether Kendrick would perform.  So, I got to see both shows (sort of), and they were both honestly phenomenal.  15-year-old's report from Kendrick was that there were way too many old people up front trying to film the show instead of getting hype and it was annoying.  I think Kendrick just invites that split - a combo of hype songs and Pulitzer-winning-NPR-nerd stuff.

ACL 2023: Weekend Two: Sunday Schedule

I have tried to reduce some of the bloat in these schedule posts so that you can just get the goods.  I think I am going to make a separate place to find playlists and other thoughts about the days.  Click the name link to find out more about each artist.

Sunday, Weekend Two:

12:00

Miller Lite	Katy Kirby: Excellent indie rock that has drawn me in for a long time
BMI	Myron Elkins: Southern rock from a Michigan kid
Barton Springs	Kathryn Legendre: Local C3 employee getting to take the stage with some classic country flavor
Tito's	The Moriah Sisters: Powerful belting for the Lord
T-Mobile	Leon III: Fantastic alt-country psych rock by two of the Howler Bros.

That's a killer hour.  What I honestly want is for this whole hour to just be a showcase all in and of itself, like at Scoot Inn one evening, so that I could hear all of these bands in an afternoon.  Kirby is really great.  I loved the Leon thing.  Elkins is raw and badass.  You really have a lot of great options if you are going this early on Sunday.

12:45/ 1:00

Honda	Michigander: Fun low-key but super catchy rock
Tito's (1:00)	Sisi: I don't know man, 3 songs that are definitely not my thing
Kiddie	Ralph's World: Kiddie Limits silliness
AmEx	Madison Cunningham: Deeply beautiful Americana with some rock leanings

Can't go wrong with Michigander or Cunningham.  I think both of them will make for a very pleasant early afternoon show.  I lean towards Michigander just because I wanted to check him out last year, but I really enjoyed Cunningham and will keep listening to her stuff.

1:30

Miller Lite	Mimi Webb: Surprisingly fun dance pop
BMI	Corook: Fascinating - incredibly sad, hilariously funny - and damn weird alt pop
Barton Springs	Randall King: Pure country in a classic sense but from a new guy
T-Mobile	Penny & Sparrow: Duo making indie-folk-rock magic after meeting at UT

This Sunday's lineup whips last Sunday's ass.  So many fun things to check out.  I thought Corook was really interesting, P&S are lovely and probably the perfect thing for this time of day, and Randall King is classic-sounding.  You've got great choices here.

2:00/ 2:15

Honda	Dope Lemon: Laid-back, chilled-out rock in the vein of Mac DeMarco
Tito’s Tent (2:00)	Quin NFN: Legit Austin rapper from da 4.
Kiddie	School of Rock: Kids jamming cover tunes based on what they learned at private lessons
American Express	Kevin Kaarl: Apparently confessional singer/songwriter all in Spanish

Dope for sure here - I've been listening to him again this week and it is just a fun time.  We watched his show last week and it was a vibe.  I wish his image wasn't quite what it is, with all the cool sunglasses and rings and outfits, but I really enjoy the tunes.

3:15

Miller Lite	Suki Waterhouse: Model and actress making forgettable bedroom pop
BMI	Caramelo Haze: Another neo-Afro-Columbian-Latino-rock outfit from Austin
Barton Springs	Morgan Wade: Lyrically solid country bordering on rock with all the tattoos.
Tito's	Celisse: One powerful song from an apparently great guitarist
T-Mobile	Del Water Gap:  Ex-bandmate of Maggie Rogers making great indie pop

I had no recollection of Caramelo or Celisse when I just put this box together.  Not a good sign.  My choice here is definitely Del Water Gap.  Terrible band name but excellent music.

4:15

Honda	M83: Atmospheric electro and dance, with that one big "Midnight City" song.
Tito’s Tent (4:30)	Yves Tumor: Weird as hell ambient and experimental noise pop
Kiddie	FYUTCH: Kiddie rap time!
American Express	Niall Horan: One of the One Direction guys making really good pop rock tunes

Easy call for me to go see Niall.  But I don't know if I understand M83 being a 4pm band.  They seem much larger than that to me.  We saw Niall last weekend and his whole show was really nice - a little cheeky, a little cheesy, but really enjoyable.

5:15

Miller Lite	Ivan Cornejo: Spanish songs that may be love songs maybe?
BMI	Corey Kent: Rockin' Nashville country from an ex-Voice competitor
Barton Springs	The Breeders: Alternative rock's girl group from the 90's (yes, you remember "Cannonball").
T-Mobile	Little Simz: Fantastic rapper with a chill vibe but some toughness in her lyrics

Simz was phenomenal last weekend.  Just powerful and nimble and owned the stage.  I loved it.

6:15

Honda	Yeah Yeah Yeahs: Very arty rock with more screaming than I would have guessed, based on "Maps."
Tito’s Tent	Sidepiece: Electronic house music just like the last batch you heard
American Express	Hozier: Massively popular Irish blues rock with the Take Me To Church song

I didn't expect this, but Hozier is my top pick for the whole day.  His catalog is really solid and enjoyable, so I'll be over there for this for sure.  Although, I heard from others that YYYs was an amazing rock and roll show.

7:00

Miller Lite	Cigarettes After Sex: Dreamy pop rock that inexplicably has a jillion streams.
Barton Springs	Death Grips: Aggressively aggravating experimental rap and abrasive industrial
T-Mobile	Labrinth: Squawky, glitchy R&B with infrequent forays into rap-ish squawks.  Squawk.

Just a cursed hour.  I don't want to see any of these.  If you told me I was required to choose one, I guess I'd go see Death Grips to just witness who is purposefully doing that to their earholes.

HEADLINERS:

Honda (8:15)	Odesza: Chillwave electronic tunes.
Tito's	Silent Disco
AmEx	Mumford & Sons: Roots rocking Americana revivalists with two great albums and then ...

I keep forgetting that Mumford is back again.  I guess I'll go watch that show, but if I am being entirely honest it is not that exciting to me at all.  Odesza doesn't move the needle either, so Mumford is likely it.  I will say that last weekend we got treated to the Austin High Band, Noah Kahan, and the Huston Tillotson Choir, so they're trying to make it special for you!

ACL 2023: Weekend One Review

Still basking in the glow of the weekend, even as my sore feet and lower back and throat cry out for help.  Really great year.  Even when the lineup isn't custom made for my tastes, we still go so much excellent music.  AND THE FREAKING WEATHER WAS AMAZING!!!

Let's see what I can remember...

Friday:

• Made it to the park in time to catch the last song or so by The National Parks.  Good stuff.  Poppier/more exiting live than it is in the studio stuff.
• Thee Sacred Souls are just lovely.  Just the right thing for an early afternoon band where you can just lay back on the grass and hang with friends and a drink.  So nice.
• I was too lazy to walk over for Brittney Spencer, which is on me for sure, so we caught a part of the Half Alive set.  Pretty good - they even did some of the wild dance move stuff.
• Freaking Portugal. the Man.  I was really excited for this set.  I really enjoy their studio tunes.  The last two times I have seen them the sound was awful and I was disappointed.  Guess what?  That must just be the way they sound live.  I don't understand it at all, but the sound is muddy and unbalanced and it sort of crushed me.  Really too bad.  But now having seen them three times, at different stages, and if they always sound that way then it must be on purpose.  Bummer.
• Little Simz freaking RULED.  Holy hell, she is so freaking good.  Insanely talented and confident as hell.  Definitely glad I got to catch that one.
• I made a major mistake and skipped Maggie Rogers to make sure I was in prime position for the Revivalists.  Everyone I talked to said her show was amazing.
• The Revivalists crushed it.  I've become a little bit of a fanboy now, but their live show is so freaking fun.  Loads of energy and very sing-a-long-able tunes.  Awesome.  And almost a perfect set - I was hoping for "The Long Con," but otherwise got what I wanted to hear.
• Here is where things went wonky.  I went over with a group to the Lumineers, so that I could fetch some younger girls and chaperone them at Kendrick.  But by then the news was out that Kendrick was late because of "plane issues."  And then the misinformation started flying - people saying he wasn't coming at all.  People saying he was just about to start.  People saying that he was going to play an aftershow.  The funniest part of that was watching the teenagers in the crowd because they left the Lumineers show, and then streamed back in, and then left again, and then streamed back in, and then left again.
• BUT, all of that aside, and despite all of my smack talked about the Lumineers, they sounded freaking awesome.  A real deal band with good players up and down the roster.  Funny thing though was that they burned the hits early - "Cleopatra," "Ho Hey," and "Angela" were like the first three songs.  So, there was a long period of no one knowing the songs until "Ophelia" came along.
• And then Kendrick came out anyway, and we stood on the hillside and watched from a  million miles away.  Talented dude, man.  And the abbreviated set was actually kind of perfect, because he just slammed us with the hits as quickly as he could and skipped some of the slow BS.  He even cut a handful of the tunes short, which was kinda rad, just to get more tunes played.  (but also, what the hell man?  Plane issues?  You're the main headliner at the Festival and you can't even get to town that afternoon???)

Saturday:

• Stupid Longhorns.  Way to make me skip Die Spitz and then lose anyway...
• Got there in time for the last bit of Declan McKenna.  I really like his stuff.
• Ben Kweller is so rad.  I loved his show, and just wish that he could be as huge as he should be.  I don't understand how popularity really works, but I'm listening to him again right now as I write this because he's so super good.
• ALSO - freaking McLovin' was playing bass for him.  Weirdest thing - I looked at the green-haired dude playing bass and told my wife he looked like McLovin', she agreed, and we moved on with the show.  Then he talked for a bit, with that distinctive lispy voice, and we were both like MCLOVIN!  Strange stuff.
• Mt. Joy are good stuff.  We ended up in a sort of weird spot for this one, with one of those speaker towers directly in front of us, and I didn't love that.  Kind of hard to just relax and enjoy the shaggy alternative rock when it is being drilled through your head to get to the rest of the crowd.  But they have a great vibe - just the thing I wanted from Portugal!
• Caught two songs of Tanya - didn't love it.  Part of that is on me - I just don't know her songs well enough - but part of it was also that her voice is rough.  Speaking of which...
• Alanis Morissette was freaking super fun.  I was with a crowd of 40-something year old women and everyone was scream-singing along to the hits.  Awesome time.  BUT, I will say that it really seems like something is up with Alanis.  Made me think of the way that Michael J Fox can't stop moving all the time - her hands were doing odd things, and she would repeatedly pull away from the mic like she wasn't sure about her note.  It was distracting.  But also a damn fun show.
• At the same time, my friend was enjoying the hell out of Thirty Seconds to Mars.  He showed me video of Jared Leto jumping off the top of the stage with a harness and rope - freaking wild.
• I skipped Noah Kahan, and am truly bummed about it because everyone else saw it and said it was an amazing show.  Dangit.  But I wanted to be close for the Foos.
• FOO FIGHTERS!  This was my favorite show of the weekend without a doubt.  I found myself thinking through whether they are actually my favorite band.  No lie - I teared up during the first two songs.  Which sounds patently ridiculous - who freaking cries during "All My Life"? But whatever.  Kick ass show that included a lot of weird little side paths into partial songs by Van Halen, Metallica, Devo, Beastie Boys, The Beatles (and others I am not remembering now).  The low point for me was then they brought on Shania Twain.  First off, no announcement at all about it, it looked like some Ice Spice-ass weirdo in a red wig just wandered onto stage, and then she massacred the vocals on "Best Of You."  Just awful sounding.  Not my favorite song in the catalog, but totally ruined it for me to hear her struggling to smear it out.  Only other quibble is that they ended early.  What is up with my favorite bands not making it to 10?
• Wait, one other quibble - I'm apparently a whiney baby.  Some songs ought to be played without interruption.  Pearl Jam did this the other night too, where the best, most-exciting, most cathartic, sing-a-long, let-it-all-out moment is coming up in the song, and then they pause to just start talking or playing some gentle riff.  NOOOO!  When it is time, in "Monkeywrench," to scream that "ONE LAST THING BEFORE I QUIT" bit near the end, the song should BLAST right in to that moment.  No interludes!  That should have been the hottest, most glorious moment of the show, and instead it whimpered.

Sunday:

• First show was Dope Lemon and it was excellent.  We grabbed drinks and sat in the grass off to the side of the staged, and they put on a really enjoyable set.  I honestly can't put my finger on why I am liking him so much, but it is just "vibe" I think.  Super cool.
• Sunrose were everything I wanted from them.  They opened their set with "War Pigs" and holy hell it freaking ruled.  That song is so good for heavy bands to cover - shout out the Faith No More version.  Also, they were REALLY loud at that tiny BMI stage.  Fun stuff.
• Niall Horan was really good!  I was sort of on the fence about him, but he just had a really nice demeanor and a clean sound.  Seemed genuinely pleased to be up there making music for us!
• Tanner Usery sounds great.  Classic singer-songwriter, blustery country-boy-can-survive type stuff.  We only stayed for a few songs, but I think he is super talented.
• Hozier was a little disappointing to me, but it wasn't his fault at all.  I just was with a crowd of folks who were less interested in being up front, and so we were like eight miles back watching him on the screens.  I just don't get the same energy when the show is like that.  But, I'll readily say that "Jackie and Wilson" and "Work Song" were really great.
• Now I was able to talk my people into squeezing up, as the crowds sped away from Hozier and left us with a ton of room to cruise up to the front for Mumford.  And it was cool that we could, because we were in between the stage and the sound stage thing where they did their spotlight-to-the-sky duet with Noah Kahan.  I've made my disappointment well known with them showing up yet again for another headlining set, but at the end of the day I still enjoy the show.  Earnest and soaring choruses that everyone can sing along to are just fun at the Festival stage.

I'm not planning on being there next weekend, but I know my wife's eyes are already rolling at the thought of my actually skipping an ACL event.  We'll see if I can get a ticket to fall into my lap.  ;)