Austin City Limits
9.26.2005
Sunday. At ACL. After checking the weather, the gf and I decided that we didn't need to spend another three hours in the mid-day sun to watch Ambulance LTD. The high temperature of the day was apparently 107F. Which explains why I was so fucking hot all day.
There was a lot of bouncing around between stages, but here are the first thoughts:
Rilo Kiley: Sounded great. Pop-py, indie folk rock. I've been meaning to go out and get this album, since Bluestate never sent me the album that I won. Ah well.
Doves: Only heard a couple of songs, sounded good, but not that interesting.
Kaiser Chiefs: Solid live performance. Very British looking (you know, kinda goofy clothing, tight jeans, etc.). They tried to get the crowd going, but no amount of coaxing was going to get the crowd moving in the afternoon heat.
Arcade Fire: I didn't like them that much in January, but they've grown on me a little in the past 9 months. Like a baby. Unfortunately, the sound at the festival did not do wonders for the energetic, layered cacophony of noise that the Arcade Fire produces. But still one of the better performances of the day.
The Decemberists: Far and away the best band that we saw. Maybe I'm just saying that because I heart Colin Meloy, maybe its because they managed to get the crowd into their performance. Maybe its just because they are really good. Highlights include "July, July", "Red Right Ankle", and "Chimbley Sweep". Big dreamy sigh.
Franz Ferdinand: Sounded big and polished, like they are already used to being the "next big thing." Absolutely nothing to get me into the performance. Not even the stop-frame black and white, "artsy" filming of the show, could get me dancing.
Wilco: So after abandoning the Scotsmen, the gf and I mellowed out to Wilco. Good, but even the revered Jeff Tweedy was begging the crowd to show that it cared.
It didn't look like they did.
We then caught half of The Black Keys. Then we walked home, and I put on "Are You Experienced." Jimi Hendrix still sounds a lot better than those two white kids from Akron, Ohio.
You may notice that we didn't stay for "one of the best bands in the world" Coldplay. It's not that I think they suck. Its just that I get enough emoting done by listening to Death Cab, I don't need to sit around hot, sweaty, and miserable to listen to a band loved by forty-year olds and teenage girls.
All in all, it was too fucking hot to truly "enjoy" the festival. Usually in music reviews, you read about how the band didn't bring enough energy to the show. In this case, the crowds couldn't hold up their end of the bargain. Oh yeah, it was also dustier than Oklahoma during the Depression.
Thoughts for next year: Bring a folding chair, bring an umbrella, don't come if its over 100 degrees.
There was a lot of bouncing around between stages, but here are the first thoughts:
Rilo Kiley: Sounded great. Pop-py, indie folk rock. I've been meaning to go out and get this album, since Bluestate never sent me the album that I won. Ah well.
Doves: Only heard a couple of songs, sounded good, but not that interesting.
Kaiser Chiefs: Solid live performance. Very British looking (you know, kinda goofy clothing, tight jeans, etc.). They tried to get the crowd going, but no amount of coaxing was going to get the crowd moving in the afternoon heat.
Arcade Fire: I didn't like them that much in January, but they've grown on me a little in the past 9 months. Like a baby. Unfortunately, the sound at the festival did not do wonders for the energetic, layered cacophony of noise that the Arcade Fire produces. But still one of the better performances of the day.
The Decemberists: Far and away the best band that we saw. Maybe I'm just saying that because I heart Colin Meloy, maybe its because they managed to get the crowd into their performance. Maybe its just because they are really good. Highlights include "July, July", "Red Right Ankle", and "Chimbley Sweep". Big dreamy sigh.
Franz Ferdinand: Sounded big and polished, like they are already used to being the "next big thing." Absolutely nothing to get me into the performance. Not even the stop-frame black and white, "artsy" filming of the show, could get me dancing.
Wilco: So after abandoning the Scotsmen, the gf and I mellowed out to Wilco. Good, but even the revered Jeff Tweedy was begging the crowd to show that it cared.
It didn't look like they did.
We then caught half of The Black Keys. Then we walked home, and I put on "Are You Experienced." Jimi Hendrix still sounds a lot better than those two white kids from Akron, Ohio.
You may notice that we didn't stay for "one of the best bands in the world" Coldplay. It's not that I think they suck. Its just that I get enough emoting done by listening to Death Cab, I don't need to sit around hot, sweaty, and miserable to listen to a band loved by forty-year olds and teenage girls.
All in all, it was too fucking hot to truly "enjoy" the festival. Usually in music reviews, you read about how the band didn't bring enough energy to the show. In this case, the crowds couldn't hold up their end of the bargain. Oh yeah, it was also dustier than Oklahoma during the Depression.
Thoughts for next year: Bring a folding chair, bring an umbrella, don't come if its over 100 degrees.
Labels: fletcher
