Austin City Limits
October 5th, 2009 | Published in Featured Stories
Every fall hordes of Aggies make the trek to that burnt orange city down the road for the music extravaganza known ACL. This year is no different. This weekend the 2009 Austin City Limits Festival will kick off with a bill that is so big and so impressive that it could only be held in the Lone Star State.
The Austin City Limits Music Festival has become a staple of the Texas music scene over the years, showcasing what the Austin City Limits television show set out to provide over 30 years ago: “Great Music. No Limits.” Produced by C3 Presents, the outfit responsible for Lollapalooza and Big State Festival, the ACL Festival is more than just a big concert, it’s an experience.
C3 Presents prides itself on what they refer to as “experience based music festivals,” and the Austin City Limits Festival is probably the benchmark. They provide the best food and drink that Austin has to offer, the creative community of Austin can be found at the festival in the form of the SoCo Art Market and kids of all ages can have a good time thanks to H-E-B’s Austin Kiddie Limits.
If music is what you’re looking for, then I suppose they might have some of that as well.
This year’s ACL lineup boasts more than 120 bands from all over including the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Kings of Leon, Dave Matthews Band and Pearl Jam. Even though the ACL Festival draws some of the biggest names in music, the festival has been a principal in providing an outlet for Texas’ up and coming talent over the years as well. This year’s bill includes Texas natives Nelo, Jonathan Tyler and the Northern Lights and Daniel Johnston, just to name a few.
What makes ACL really stand out as far as giving new bands a shot is The Sound and The Jury contest. The 3nd annual online battle of the bands, sponsored by Dell Lounge, allows bands to upload music and have their fans vote to score them a spot on the ACL lineup. Contestants will endure three rounds of voting (online and by celebrities) before reaching the finale. The winning band will be listed as part of the official lineup and receive an opening slot on the Dell Stage at the ACL Festival.
The 2009 Austin City Limits festival has something for everyone. The lineup has everyone from John Legend to Reckless Kelly, Todd Snider to Brett Dennen, Raphael Saadiq to The Decemberists, to go along with some of the best food, drink and art that Austin has to offer.
The ACL Festival has become a staple of Austin, and even Texas culture and is an experience that you don’t want to miss.
For schedule and ticket information check out www.aclfestival.com.
