ACL 2019: Shura

Sunday at 3pm.  This would be my first choice if we had the time to see her.  She's on the vrbo stage which is across Barton Springs Road.  A long way from Tito's.  The other choices besides Koffee are Bea Miller, a 20 year-old pop singer that competed on the X Factor.  She was a little too poppy for me.  The other option is rapper IDK.

Shura is the moniker of British-born Aleksandra Lilah Yakunina-Denton.  Electropop/synthpop.  Her new album was released on Secretly Canadian Records.

"BKLYNLDN" is very chill. 

religion (u can lay your hands on me)

ACL 2019: Koffee

Sunday at 3pm.  Yola plays until 3:30 so we won't be able to catch any full sets at this time.  This is the closest stage to Tito's.  It's 19 year-old Mikayla Simpson from Kingstown, Jamaica.  The New Yorker says she is modernizing reggae and states: "To understand both the history and the future of Jamaican music, listen to Koffee."

Toast

ACL 2019: Shandon Sahm

Sunday at 1:45.  Playing after Ley Line on the Tito's stage is Doug Sahm's son/former Meat Puppets drummer Shandon Sahm.  He just released a cover album of his dad's songs called "Sahm Covers Sahm" and is out on tour promoting it.

At 2pm we have two choices,  IDLES and Joseph.  I know you have no interest in IDLES but I'd like to check them out.  You can wander over to Joseph.

We can meet up at 2:45 at Titos for Yola.  I'm beyond excited to see that show.


Give Me Back the Key to My Heart

ACL 2019: Kat Dahlia

Sunday at 1:15pm.  This Cuban-American singer/rapper from Miami (but now based in L.A.) is playing the small BMI stage.  I'm not sure why as it looks like she's quite popular.  The Youtube video below has 53M views.  That's much more than the other 3 artists at this time.

According to this article she took a 2-year hiatus and is now recording new material.   This song was her first big hit back in 2013.

Gangsta

ACL 2019: Duckwrth

Sunday at 1:15pm.  This rapper/singer was at SXSW and I previewed him then.  I predicted he'd be at ACL.  I'm getting good at this.

NPR has an article on him.

This song came out since SXSW.  It's pretty good.

Crush

ACL 2019: Still Woozy

Sunday at 1:15pm.  Soulful R&B sound from Oakland.  This is the moniker of 25 year-old Sven Gamsky.   The reddit poster has a good overview of him.

"Goodie Bag" is cool.  I've listened some other songs and like what I've heard.  He and Mallrat are playing next to each other so we can easily walk between the two stages.


LAVA

ACL 2019: Mallrat

Sunday at 1:15pm.  Four choices at this time.  All are pretty mellow.  I hadn't heard of any of them so I'll preview them all.

This is probably my first choice.  It's the moniker of 20 year-old (she'll be 21 at ACL) Brisbane-born Grace Shaw.  Fader says she's a breakout star.  Good indie pop song.

Groceries

ACL 2019: Drew Holcomb and the Neighbors

Sunday at 12:30pm.  Last choice is this band out of Nashville.  They say they were influenced by Tom Petty.  They did a cover of "Won't Back Down" with Austin based Penny and Sparrow.

"Dragons" is a nice song similar to Avett Brothers. 

This song is Alternative rock/pop similar to Of Monsters and Men and Head and the Heart.

End of the World

ACL 2019: Ley Line

Sunday at 12:45pm.  All female band out of Austin.  They played the Campground stage at Old Settler's last year after you left.  Really good. Crowd was totally into it.  They're playing the tent and I bet it would be a good set.  I'd like for you to see them but Julia Jacklin may beat them out.  We need to make an effort to see a show in Austin.  They're quite mellow so it would need to be the right venue.

They play at The Grove at Southpark Meadows tomorrow at 7pm.  They also play HAAM day but it's at Cenote off Cameron Rd. and 290.

This video was recorded at Old Settlers by KUTX on their pop-up stage.  "Respiração" was recorded in L.A. for Jam in the Van.

Oxum

ACL 2019: Julia Jacklin

Sunday at 12:30am.  Three good choices at this time.  First choice is who we saw during SXSW in 2016 at the Hilton Hotel.  She was very good.  She has since released her second album.  I've been listening to it and really like it. 

Caroline Rose followed by Julia Jacklin.  That's a great way to start a Sunday.

Body

ACL 2019: Sego

Sunday at 11:45am.  One more band at this time.  It started as a duo out of Provo that is now a full band in L.A.

They're really going for the Beck sound, especially on "Neon Me Out".

This song has lots of Beck with a little LCD Soundsystem mixed in.

Shame

ACL 2019: Kady Rain

Sunday at 11:45am.  First choice at this time is Caroline Rose. No way I'm missing that.  For informational purposes I'll highlight the other choices at this time.  There's a hip-hop band out of San Marcos (not Brockhampton) called PNTHN that really isn't our style.  You can click on the link if you want to hear one of their songs.

Another option is Austinite Kady Rain Williams.  She got a nice writeup in the Austin Chronicle and was on the 2018 NPR 100 for SXSW. 

Straight up pop.  "Lonely One" has a throwback 80s pop sound. It's pretty good.

R.A.D. Moves

ACL 2019: Natalia Lafourcade

Saturday at 5pm.  Last choice at this time is this singer, composer and producer from Mexico.  Mellow latin pop.  Her big success in the US was singing on "Remember Me" from the movie Coco.  It won the Academy Award for best song and she performed on the show.

Her Tiny Desk Concert has almost 9M views.  Pretty good sound.  She's on the vrbo stage which is the new one on the other side of Barton Springs Rd.


NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

ACL 2019: Chris Schiflett

Saturday at 5pm at the BMI stage.  Americana/country rock side project from Foo Fighters guitarist.  You'll never guess who produced his solo albums: Dave Cobb.  This whole festival is filled with Dave Cobb artists.

The BMI stage is an interesting spot.  I hope it doesn't rain.  That area was a mud pit last year.

I listened to some of his other songs and they're all pretty similar to this one. Nothing really grabbed me but it could be good live.

West Coast Town

ACL 2019: Kali Uchis

Satruday at 5pm. This singer was at ACL back in 2015 in the Tito's tent.  Since then she has released her first album which got rave reviews.  She has toured with Leon Bridges and Lana Del Ray. 

"Get Up" is nice.  She may be my first choice at this time.


After the Storm

ACL 2019: Judah & the Lion

Saturday at 5pm.  Four choices at this time.  Usually by 5pm on a Saturday we have well-known acts that don't need a preview but not this year.  It could be me.

The first option is a former Christian band out of Nashville.  Their last album was produced by Dave Cobb.  That man is busy.  Their wikipedia page lists genres as bluegrass, Americana, hip-hop, folk, rock, and electropop.  Kind of all over the place.

Here's a mellow song with Kacey Musgraves lending vocals.  It was the best song I heard.  The others were too poppy for me.

pictures

ACL 2019: Lauren Daigle

Saturday at 4pm.  Three choices at this time.  First choice is Brittany Howard for me.  The second choice is Pink Sweat$.  I previewed him when he played the C3 B+Q BBQ party at Scoot Inn during SXSW.  I predicted he would most likely play ACL and here he is.

The last option is a Christian singer from Louisiana that crossed over to mainstream with this song.  She sounds like Adelle on this one.

It won't let me embed the video so click to view.

You Say

ACL 2019: Dayglow

Saturday at 3pm. Another good option for this time.  Indie pop from 19 year-old UT student Sloan Struble out of Ft. Worth.  The Austin Chronicle has a story on his breakout thanks to Spotify.  He left school to pursue his music career and has been touring ever since.

Chill pop sound.  "Hot Rod" incorporates Austin's Moonlight towers into the video.  Cool.

 "Can I Call You Tonight?"

ACL 2019: Briston Maroney

Saturday at 3pm.  Indie rock from this 21 year-old singer-songwriter originally from Tennessee and Florida but now in Nashville.  "Steve's First Bruise" has a Strokes feel.  "Caroline" reminds me of "Budapest" from George Ezra.

This is a cool song. 

Freakin' Out on the Interstate

ACL 2019: Hippie Sabotage

Saturday at 3pm.  Dylan LeBlanc is playing the Tito's stage at 2:45pm so that's probably my first choice.  This may be a good slot to walk around and sample different bands, though.  First option is two brothers out of Sacramento that produce EDM music.  They seem to be pretty popular.  The ACL fest website lets you select your schedule and over 433 fans have chosen this band.  Dylan LeBlanc has 77.

They shot to fame with a remix of Tove Lo's "Habits (Stay High)" that has over 733M views on Youtube.  Wow.

Mellow chill dance tunes.  This song only has 65M views.

Devil Eyes

ACL 2019: Sigrid

Saturday at 2pm.  This is a singer/songwriter from Ålesund Norway. (Fun fact: I spent Christmas 1988 in Ålesund.  A breathtakingly beautiful place.)  She won the BBC Music sound of 2018 and just released her first album.  Catchy pop.

"Don't Feel Like Crying" is her biggest US hit.

Sucker Punch

ACL 2019: Madison Ryann Ward

Saturday at 1:45pm.  Two pretty good choices at this time.  First is a singer from Oklahoma that is also an accomplished athlete.  In high school she was named Oklahoma Female Athlete of the Year and was All-State in volleyball and golf.  She played volleyball at Oklahoma and after graduating moved to Nashville to pursue a music career.  It got a boost when she was featured on David Letterman's Netflix show (with Lukas Nelson on guitar!) with Jay Z.   She is signed with Rick Rubin.  Damn.


Mirror

ACL 2019: Diamante Eléctrico

Saturday at 1:15pm.  We go from 3 great choices at 12:30pm to 4 toss-ups.   I listened to all four and none really stand out.  We've got a Cardi B/Lizzo wannabe in Megan Thee Stallion, Back Street Boys flavor from Hell's Kitchen-based high school boy band Laundry Day, and hip hop from Taylor Bennett.

I'm sure Megan Thee Stallion would be the most entertaining show but this seemed to be the most interesting band of these options.  It's rock group out of Bogata that has won 2 Latin Grammys for Best Rock Album.  They've opened for the Rolling Stones and have recorded for Third Man Records.  David Fricke had a glowing write-up of them in Rolling Stone.  His choice quote about their new album:

"The sum of those moments is Diamante Eléctrico’s graduation day, their best record  and a certain fixture of future lists of the greatest rock en español albums... is aggressively purist in its power-trio force, as basic in its charge (despite the samples and studio enhancement) as Cream’s debut LP, 1966’s Fresh Cream, or the Black Keys’ gnarly 2004 album, Rubber Factory. But the determined reach and assured execution of the changes on Buitres echo other precedents: the Rolling Stones’ decisive integration of blues roots and contemporary rebellion on 1968’s Beggars Banquet; Soundgarden’s giant step up from the grunge underground with the progressive hard-rock drive of 1991’s Badmotorfinger; Jack White’s nuclear fusion of antique blues ideals and mass-appeal savvy on the White Stripes’ 2003 smash, Elephant."

That's some serious name dropping.

"Dias Raros" features Billy Gibbons on guitar.  Cool.

Oro

ACL 2019: Flora Cash

Saturday at 12:30pm.  I've heard this song a hundred times on KUTX but never knew the band.  It's a married duo who met online.  He's from Minneapolis and she's from Sweden.  As Wikipedia says: "Lleshaj, from Stockholm, and Randall, from Minneapolis, met in 2012 on SoundCloud when Lleshaj began commenting on the tracks Randall had posted and the two discovered they appreciated each other's music.".  The rest is history.

Opposite this band is Orville Peck.  He's the openly gay masked country singer that sold out Mohawk recently.  I can't remember if he was inside or outside, though.  I like his album and his stage act should be interesting.  He reminds me of a mix of The The, Morrissey, and Roy Orbison. 

The other option at this time is local rapper Abhi the Nomad.  He has gotten lots of airplay on KUTX as well.

I'd be happy seeing all three of these but I'm leaning towards Orville Peck. 


You're Somebody Else

ACL 2019: Vanessa Zamora

Saturday at 11:45am.  Mellow pop from Tijuana.  She reminds me of Sade.  Nice sound.  A good way to start to day.

Solegrande is good, too.



Malas Amistades

ACL 2019: Aquadolls

Saturday at 11:45am.  Four options at this time (5 if you count Barton Hills Choir.  I assume they'll be doing Cure and Guns N' Roses songs).  I'm sure you'll want to see Blackillac at this time, especially if Gary Clark, Jr. joins them.

This is a an all-female band out of SoCal that plays surf punk/pop.  I just found a guy on reddit that is doing a rundown of the bands at ACL and he is much more thorough than me.  Here's his rundown on the band.   He compares them to the Cults and Best Coast.  Pretty accurate.  They've opened for Raveonettes so I'm in.

our love will always remain

ACL 2019: The Comet is Coming

Friday at 5:30pm.  Psychedelic jazz instrumentalists from London.  A nice warm-up for the Thom Yorke fans waiting for the chocolates to kick in.


Summon the Fire

ACL 2019: Lil Uzi Vert

Friday at 5:30pm.  Raconteurs play at this time so that's first choice.  This is rapper Symere Woods out of Philadelphia.  His last album debuted at #1 on the Billboard charts and has gone platinum.  I'm so out of it.

This song has 348M views.  Wow.

XO tour Llif3

ACL 2019: K. Flay

Friday at 4:30pm.  Rock from Kristine Meredith Flaherty aka K. Flay.  She stared rapping while at Stanford and decided to pursue a music career.  She cites her influences as Lauryn Hill, M.I.A., Cat Power, Liz Phair, OutKast, and Tame Impala.

One of her big hits is a collaboration with Louis the Child song where she sings:  "It's Strange".

This song was nominated for a Grammy for Best Rock Song.

Blood in the Cut

ACL 2019: Kaytranada

Friday at 4:30pm.  Slim pickings at this time.  There are 4 choices.  The Score is a rock duo compared to Fall Out Boy and Imagine Dragons.  Pass.  TroiBoi is an electronic producer of trap music compared to Diplo and Major Lazer.  Not really our thing.

The other two choices are hip-hop influenced.  First is Haitian born, Montreal raised Louis Kevin Celestin.  His debut album won the Polaris Prize in Canada in 2016.

This song is interesting.  The first 3 minutes are quite different from the last 2.  It shifts directions in a nice way.  "You're the One" is good, too.  Nice R&B sound.

Glowed Up

ACL 2019: Monsieur Periné

Friday at 3:30pm on the Tito's stage.  Latin flavor from this Columbian band.  They won the Latin Grammy for "Best New Artist" in 2015 but it looks like they were formed in 2008.  Overnight success.

28M views. 

Bailar Contigo

ACL 2019: King Princess

Friday at 3:30pm.  Tyler Childers is playing at this time so that's where I'll be.  The kids will be at this show.  It's the moniker of 20 year-old Brooklyn born and raised Mikaela Straus.  She's signed to super-producer Mark Ronson's (Adelle, Amy Winehouse, co-wrote your favorite song "Shallow") label with Columbia Records.   Trivia: her great-great grandparents were co-owners of Macy's and died on the Titanic.  Her family has quite a history if you want to read more.

This song has over 9M views on Youtube.   She has already performed at Coachella, Lollapalooza and Glastonbury. 

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