Austin City Limits Festival returned to Zilker Park for a second weekend, Friday-Sunday, October 13th-15th.
As Sunday rolled around, people were still high in spirits as they headed over to catch Morgan Wade on the IHG Stage. While the “Wilder Days” singer was a tad late to begin her performance, fans didn’t seem to mind much as the weather was the best Texas had seen for months. As Wade appeared she made verbal note of the young fan in the front sporting her t-shirt and probably made the toddler’s day. Fans enjoyed the energetic show from Wade and her band as they rocked out solos and accompanied her on vocals.
At 4:30 PM, Yves Tumor played the Tito’s Stage. As the band took the stage, Yves followed, appearing in a Slipknot hat, cut-off jeans and rocking a very unique silver plated mic. The tent made for a warmer situation with bodies packed close together to see the “Gospel For A New Century” Singer. As the show unfolded, genres started to contort themselves into tracks like “echolalia” and “Kerosene!” The vibe of the crowd accompanied by the music was next level.
Playing on the T-Mobile Stage, London-based rapper Little Simz came out hot. Dressed in business casual, the emerging female rapper demonstrated her talents cruising through her hip-hop catalog. Hands up and down casting her shadow on the silhouettes that stand behind her displayed in her set production. Fans grew to the height of their friends’ shoulders to catch a glimpse of the action unfolding on stage.
Back at the Honda Stage, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs arrived to put on an incredible performance. The band’s frontwoman Karen O arrived in a green outfit, opposite of the red one she wore at ACL the previous weekend (QRO photos). The band kicked off their set with “Spitting Off the Edge of the World”’ the first track off their latest studio album Cool It Down (QRO review). The roar from the crowd after what felt like a cinematic intro to a film was immaculate. As they began to bring the house down, the lead singer cooled herself off by spitting water straight up into the air, letting the mist pour over her as she addressed fans. About midway through the set “Soft Shock” sent an unearthly bliss through the crowd as they swayed back and forth feeling the notes melting off the stage. Soon after, displaying a purple cloth, Karen O playfully dropped it on her head signaling for the drums to start the classic song “Gold Lion” off their sophomore album Show Your Bones and followed with more hits and new favorites. Between songs, O called for peace, most likely referring to the growing troubles overseas.
A short walk from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Cigarettes After Sex played the Miller Lite Stage at 7:15 PM. The trio stood under spotlights, barely lit evoking the same sense of ambiguity their music provides. Fans stood in awe as their emotions spun in different directions, possibly diverting to memories that brought them back to the first time they heard the band.
As the last set times of the festival quickly approached, ACL veterans, Mumford & Sons, closed out the American Express Stage. This was a bold pick for promoters, as Marcus Mumford had played the festival just last year. However, the crowd was plentiful to see the band, even as ODESZA, one of the largest electronic touring acts playing across the park had started just 15 minutes before. Appearing with his band on a well-lit stage Marcus Mumford, wearing a solid grayish outfit and sneakers took the crowd by storm opening up with “Babel” the namesake of their second studio album (QRO review) and quickly started running through the hits that they have accumulated throughout their ten-plus year career. Halfway through the set the band brought Trombone Shorty on stage to do a chilling cover of “ House of the Rising Sun”. This seemed to be the trend of the evening as more special guests were brought out during their set. The Huston-Tillotson University Choir, a local college in east Austin, made an appearance to help sing “October Skies” as well as Hozier, who graced the stage just hours before that evening singing “Timshel” and joined again by the choir for “Awake my Soul”. The band closed out the evening with their hit song “I Will Wait”. An appropriate anthem to close out the festival as attendees will have to wait until next October to feel the ACL magic again.
