Austin City Limits….
more like Awesome City Limits! I have never had more fun crammed into two days in my entire existence.
Shows I saw:
- Fleet Foxes- very, very talented baroque harmony quintet out of Seattle
- The Fratellis- hungover, yet still able to play a good set
- CSS- the most normal lead singer ever. like, seriously?
- Conor Oberst- not really :(
- Beck- Hell yes. I wasn’t filled with Modern Guilt about that one. Man, i’m such a Loser, you guys should kill me. I’m a human pun- Timebomb. Damn, I’m on fire! You go, Girl! You know Where It’s At.
- MGMT- they still need to work on live performances, but overall good show.
- Iron and Wine- soothed our aching feet with their harmonies
- Band of Heathens- per recommendation of Dr. Brian, and he was right- they rock!
- The Black Keys- the show was so good, I bought a shirt. I wear it proudly
- The M’s- cool local band. songs were easy to learn, and they weren’t in that “fuck you i’m a rockstar” stage of their careers yet.
- Nicole Atkins- a charming lead singer with a really powerful voice.
- The Kills- creepycool, I now listen to them daily. “sour cherry” is really good.
- Stars- they know what’s up!
- Okkervil River- at their autograph signing, one of the band members was wearing a bear mascot outfit. wikked, dood.
So besides 14 amazing shows, there were other countless highlights. My favorite and most distinct memory was while waiting for the MGMT show to start, being crammed chest to chest against a hilarious guy from peoria, Illinois named Nate. What a crazysexycool person to meet in such an awkward situation. Another enjoyable aspect of the festival was the faint haze lingering above the entire crowd from all of the cigarette and pot smoking. It made the landscape look like a dream seen through the eyes of a little kid. Despite not partaking in any of the drugs myself, i was still able to obtain a buzz from all of the sidestream smoke, which was pretttttttty alriiiiiiiiight.
Also, at the CSS concert there was the funniest dancer in front of us pulling Lord of the Dance moves to slutty technotronic synths. Behind us was a group passing out full sheets of acid tabs. By the end of the show, everyone was having a blast no matter what state of sobriety you were in.
Final Statement: Wherever I am in the world, or whatever situation I might find myself stuck in, I vow to always attend ACL. For the rest of my life. Amen.
