After a beautiful opening day on Friday, the Austin City Limits music festival faced arguably the worst weather in ACL history on its biggest day, Saturday. What started out as a drizzle turned into a down pour sometime around 5 p.m. At this point, many poncho-adorned fans opted to go barefoot as flip-flops disappeared into massive puddles of mud.
However, the true fans that stuck through the chill and induced the showers were not in vain. Those who sacrificed footwear and comfort did so for a fitting reward.
Before the weather took a turn for the worst, Grizzly Bear hit the Dell stage from 3-4 p.m. Although the band drew quite a crowd, only their well-known tracks, including “Knife” and “Two Weeks,” really excited the audience.
Despite the steadily declining weather conditions, Citizen Cope rocked the LIVESTRONG Stage from 4-5 p.m. Fans sung along through classics like “Bullet and a Target,” “Hurricane Waters,” “Let the Drummer Kick” and “Sideways.” Although the performance was altogether satisfying, at some point fans became more interested in finding their umbrellas and keeping the rain out of their beers.
From 5:30-6:30 p.m. Eek-A-Mouse pleased fans under The Wildflower Center stage tent. Not thirty seconds of this reggae singer’s set passed without a mention of ganja, weed or some reference to smoking marijuana. Judging by the thick haze hovering above the crowd, Eek-A-Mouse wasn’t the only one enjoying the “Texas ganja” at the show. However, reggae lovers and stoners alike highly praised his performance.
Scheduled to take over the AMD stage at 6 p.m., greatly anticipated rapper Mos Def came on 20 minutes late. However, his show left many disappointed; it did not seem as if Mos Def was able to completely own the stage. The performance was difficult to hear, and many concert-goers grew tired of the show and wandered elsewhere.
The Decemberists owned the Dell Stage from 7-8 p.m. with an unusual, but compelling arena-rock style performance. Their newest album, ‘The Hazards of Love,” which is actually a rock-opera broken into 17 parts (songs), dominated the band’s performance. However, whether fans picked up on the fact that the band was essentially performing a rock opera, or just assumed the lead singer was a little kooky, the band’s theatrics did not overshadow the quality of their music.
The day’s headliners, the Dave Matthews Band and Ghostland Observatory, performed on the LIVESTRONG Stage and the AMD stage, respectively.
Luckily, the Dave Matthews Band has an extremely loyal following because there were few acts so many would tough out such weather conditions to see. Ironically, considering the rain, DMB opened with “Don’t Drink the Water.” As always, the band delivered a strong performance, however, many Dave fans were disappointed that he devoted so much of the set to new music. Fortunately for fans that stayed until the very end of the night, DMB finished with classic favorites such as “So Much to Say,” “Ants Marching” and “Two Step.”
Despite the Dave Matthews Band’s solid performance, Ghostland Observatory walked away with the day’s most buzzed-about show. The Austin based dance rock duo of singer/guitarist Aaron Behrens and master of the keyboard Thomas Turner wowed crowds with an out-of-this-world laser show to accompany their set.
Behrens sported his signature pigtail braids, a cowboy hat and skin-tight pants, while Turner wore a light-up cape behind the keyboard. Although some initially questioned the choice of Ghostland Observatory as a headliner for the festival, no one who saw the show walked away with a shadow of a doubt. Behrens’ energy and Turner’s musical genius excited crowds to a level that most would have deemed impossible just an hour earlier. As if fans weren’t ecstatic enough, the entire University of Texas Marching Band joined the duo on-stage for their song, “The Band Marches On.”
Only true fans endured all of Saturday at ACL. However, those who refused to let the weather rain on their parade were rewarded with awe-inspiring performances.
