Austinist: Here We Go Again: 2008's ACL Lineup Revealed

sitstageleft

Tue, 22 Apr 2008 12:30:51 -0600

i think im probably not going, but IMO this lineup is much better than last years. Last year I felt like no one was playing, and once the White Stripes cancelled (I had a 1 day ticket explicitly to see them) I was fucking livid, because there was no one else I really wanted to see. This year there are a number of pretty solid acts in the middle. Think about whos going to be playing in the afternoon: Jenny Lewis, Man Man, Del the Funky Homosapien, Jaime Lidell, Spiritualized, M Ward---if enough of those get stuck on one day, (esp. if Beck headlines) I'll probably spring for a one day ticket. Would be a hell of a day...

Trancereducer

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 17:02:52 -0600

Consider what demographic the promoters are trying to reach and remember in past years, the line-ups change.

Grape Ape

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 16:00:09 -0600

Sorry - Lolla does have a lot of bands, coincidentally alot of them are the same as those playing ACL. Yea for us, we all have more beer money and the same amount of bands.

Grape Ape

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 15:56:36 -0600

Bonaroo is $100 more per ticket, Lolla is $40 more and only has 20 bands as opposed to the 120 bands ACL will be showcasing. I think people are a little misguided in that they don't really understand what ACL Fest is supposed to be and there is a gross misunderstanding of costs associated with festivals. You can claim ACL isn't top-tier all you want, but I belive you are making that assumption because there are not the mainstream bands like Rage, Kayne, Radiohead playing. Some people might not want to see Metallica or Rage or Kayne. They would really rather see bands like Slightly Stoopid, Black Joe Lewis and Shooter Jennings. Maybe that's what makes a top-tier event to them, not just a who's who of national mainstream radio play.

texasauteur

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 15:25:53 -0600

I've slowly come to realize that ACL has always been a second tier festival that occasionally flirts with the first tier status. I think the rest of Austin should wake up and realize that. It's a bitter pill to swallow.... I'll be there but I'm going to Lolla too ....and I do have pit tickets to Radiohead in Houston since I figured they wouldn't get booked at ACL....cause of the whole 2nd tier thing.....(and while I'm at it, b/c of the whole not being a top tier festival, shouldn't charge 1st tier prices)

YoYoMa

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 11:49:47 -0600

Turd, That's where you're wrong. You're going to be standing in line with 64,999 other douchebags no matter what.

turd_on_the_run

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 10:01:05 -0600

Don't worry about the people pissing and moaning about the lineup. That's just that many fewer douchebags you'll have to stand in the beer line with.

batlady

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 09:24:57 -0600

@mandenator: Some of us can't see the Radiohead shows in May because we're singing Beethoven's 9th with the Austin Symphony that weekend. Tickets on sale soon! http://www.austinsymphony.org/season/may/index.asp#bn

Stella

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 09:08:11 -0600

I am upset about Radiohead because I couldn't afford ACL *and* a trip to Houston/Dallas complete with overnight stay at $60-something ticket prices. And I have been a Radiohead fan since 1994. I have never, to my knowledge, even heard a Korn or Limp Bizkit song. Pffft. But I do agree with Grape Ape about the hipsterization of Austin and how fickle the trendy (mostly younger) music crowd has become, with their oh-so-retro rubber Day-Glo Ray-Bans.

mandenator

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 23:01:27 -0600

and anyone mad that radiohead is not playing is just upset because they forgot to buy tickets for the shows in may before they sold out

mandenator

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 23:00:24 -0600

i don't care what anyone else has to say, but i'm super excited about this year's line-up i would say there are more "hipster" bands on this year's line-up than previous years half the fun of acl is just chilling to whoever is playing where you are at a given time

Grape Ape

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 19:46:48 -0600

I remember when the "cool crowd" would have been willing to pay the $170 just to see Louis XIV or White Denim, now they are dismissed as lame. If ACL based their line up on what most of you think it would be, they'd have to change it again in August becasue you would have all decided what was the cool band in April has now become unworthy and not a good band. Hell, if they based it on who you guys think should be there for top tier acts, we wouldn't have another ACL as the cost of getting those acts is insane. Besides, ACL would then have to deal with you bastardizing them and calling them sellouts because they'd have to change $250+ per ticket to to stay afloat. I'm definately on board with the notion that their is an air of music snobbery in this town now. Yes, I' refernce the good 'ol days when you would just hear something walk in and ask who it was playing. Usually you got the "I'm not sure" answer, but we all still at least listened to a couple of thier songs out of respect for what it is they do. Nowadays it's all about who's on the hipster playlist. Most of the kids/people griping about not having Radiohead were most likely all listening to Limp Bizkit or Korn back when they should have actually been paying attention to Radiohead.

Shaun3342

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 18:58:44 -0600

In response to this quote: "Music fests are for music lovers and true music lovers not only have open minds but pure unadulterated enthusiasm at being exposed to great stuff they haven't heard before." I agree with LoudMouth; ha ha. First, this requires that there be great stuff to hear. Second, I think true music lovers can detect crap and discard it accordingly (instead of being so "open-minded" as to like anything). See G. Love, above.

Shaun3342

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 18:54:32 -0600

Generally underwhelming in my opinion...an even further step down from last year. They completely forgot to get some actually-good rock bands. Seriously, does G. Love do anything else all year long? It sure seems like he's played every ACL Fest. Oh, and he sucks.

Ursel

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 16:52:38 -0600

Spoon baby...I am soooooo there!!!!

Barney Noodles

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 16:41:34 -0600

LoudMouth, just give in and go to law school or something so you can bank. It is your destiny!

leggyblonde

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 16:00:07 -0600

Yeah, LM, why don't you help with the recycling bins for the weekend? Free pass and you get to roam around. Oh wait, there's no one you want to see.

cram

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 15:45:15 -0600

You don't even have to volunteer. I know people who get hired every year to work slinging beer and they get to hear every band on the stage nearest to them while earning a little $$$.

beatyou

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 15:27:21 -0600

you dont have to make 1000 a week to buy a ticket to this. volunteering is the way to go.

DancingMunchkin

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 15:20:40 -0600

Ha...I wish, LoudMouth. But as a "true music lover", I save up for the things I want to spend my meager paycheck on such as festivals, tickets to local shows and either used or new CDs from local stores. Those are my splurges that I scrimp in other areas to make but point taken for people who prefer to make other splurges or don't have the option for any splurges at all. Rent a canoe and hang on the lake perhaps? Or just stand on the trail behind the main stage? Not the ideal situation but better than nothing, right? And hey, in my mind unadulterated enthusiasm for anything at all is pretty sweet but to each his own as they say.

LoudMouth

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 15:07:38 -0600

I guess True Music Lovers also make $1000 a week.

LoudMouth

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 15:04:51 -0600

"Music fests are for music lovers and true music lovers not only have open minds but pure unadulterated enthusiasm at being exposed to great stuff they haven't heard before." Ha ha ha ha ha!

cram

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 14:43:31 -0600

I would guess Explosions in the Sky is not playing because they will be broken up/on hiatus by then. Back in December, the band announced that June 2008 would be the end of any EITS shows for quite some time. Lolla is the first weekend in August and maybe the band just doesn't want to play ACL Fest almost 2 months later. The Vineland Festival doesn't happen until 2009 at the earliest, so claiming that's the reason ACL Fest doesn't have the acts scheduled for Lolla is a stretch. Same goes for the unknown-unpromoted-unannounced-unnamed FFF competitor. Finally, as for costs -- the rental, cleanup, permitting, etc costs obviously vary from Lolla to Coachella to ACL to Bonnaroo. The same $X for a ticket does not get you the same Y artists depending on the locale. Additionally, a band may be excited to play Chicago, but not want to play Austin for the same dollar amount. Charles Attal doesn't get to force bands to play, just because the readers of blogs want him to book that band.

seth

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 14:26:12 -0600

Spiritualized might convince me to get a single day pass depending on the other artists on that day.... I wonder if the exclusion of Explosions in the Sky is due to their headlining @ last year's Fun!Fun!Fun! fest..... As for ACL's trending towards folk (mentioned by Circumlocution's earlier comment)- C3 is booking a Fun!Fun!Fun! Fest-alike: "CA: We're actually going to launch an indie festival next year. It's going to be a real cheap ticket and multiple stages. And it's going to be here in Austin. We're already working on that and booking it." So they're probably moving more of the rock acts out of ACL and into the FFF Fest-alike! Seth

Stella

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 14:02:16 -0600

I am most excited about the Raconteurs, M. Ward, Iron and Wine, Band of Horses, Silversun Pickups, Gillian Welch, Erykah Badu, the Black Keys, Against Me!, Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings, Duffy, Vampire Weekend, the Drive-By Truckers, David Byrne, the Nachito Herrera All Stars, the Kills, White Denim, Black Joe Lewis and the Honey Bears, and Nicole Atkins and the Sea.

DancingMunchkin

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 13:56:07 -0600

Agreed, Grape Ape. The funny thing is so many of the bands not as well known by the mainstream who are playing this year's fest will likely be wildly popular come fest time in 2009 and all the people bitching about this lineup will be going on and on about how awesome they are and how lame it is that they're not playing ACL 2009. I guess people forget that one of the most beautiful things about a music fest is getting to wander about between the sets of bands you already love and discover new up and coming bands to love. Music fests are for music lovers and true music lovers not only have open minds but pure unadulterated enthusiasm at being exposed to great stuff they haven't heard before.

Stella

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 13:41:18 -0600

I have no idea what's in the Billboard Top 10 or what Pitchfork is.

Grape Ape

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 13:31:09 -0600

I find it funny when people complain about who is NOT playing. Ever notice those lists read like a who's who of radio play and mainstream music. There are a ton of great bands playing this year and no, unfortuantely the big headliners you want are all asking way too much money so they won't make it. We could have Radiohead or Pearl Jam, but would you pay the $250+ per ticket that they would have to charge? People need to look a little deeper than the Billboard top 10 or whatever Pitchfork is pushing.

JohnM

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 13:22:40 -0600

I'm still trying to decide if I like it or not. Very underwhelming compared to Lolla, whose tickets are not much more than ACL and is also run by C3. For the price they're paying Raidohead, Kanye West, NIN, etc. for that show there's no way these high of ticket prices are justified. WTF for increasing ticket prices with what is very blatently less paid towards the talent. Not to mention last year C3 probably got out of paying one of their headliners due to cancellation (White Stripes), yet did nothing to return that value to the pockets of the ticket buyer. Also, I second the Miley Cyrus disappointment.

Stella

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 13:17:49 -0600

I have a ticket, and am underwhelmed, but excited about a few of the mid-tier acts. Though, I am disappointed there's no Radiohead, Pearl Jam, Sigur Ros, Explosions in the Sky, Sufjan Stevens, Death Cab for Cutie, Lucinda Williams, My Morning Jacket, Black Crowes, Ryan Adams, Beirut, Islands, the Gossip, Weezer, Feist, Animal Collective, the Strokes, more alt-country, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, the Beatles, Miley Cyrus, or Barack Obama.

helloali

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 13:09:27 -0600

meh.

davetx

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 13:08:33 -0600

Lineup is decent, not their best, but a far cry from their worst. I'll buy a single-day pass once the daily schedules come out.

LoudMouth

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 12:41:03 -0600

rarr, I would bitch if there were any bands worth seeing this year. Anyone dumb enough to buy a ticket to that lineup deserves to be cheated.

LoudMouth

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 12:18:16 -0600

Robert Plant & Alison Krauss (a.k.a. 3 hours of Going to California)

poptartjen

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 11:59:39 -0600

I'm afraid that I may have to miss this year's fest simply because I can't afford to buy tickets right now. Tix will probably sell out by the time I can afford to purchase them.

Circumlocution

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 11:58:56 -0600

Worst major festival of the year. Now that C3 have Lollapalooza and Vineland, they've begun to shift ACL back to the roots and folk festival it used to be. No Radiohead, Coldplay, Doves, Death Cab, Franz Ferdinand, Oasis, Blur, Dr. Dre, Garbage, LL Cool J, The Verve or U2? Boooooooo!

rarrr

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 11:28:28 -0600

where is lm at?? i need to hear how this festival is too expensive and the working, poor man can't afford it!!!

deadflowers

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 11:23:37 -0600

Radiohead is missing. My guess: too expensive to keep the ticket price at 170 bucks a person.

leggyblonde

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 11:20:51 -0600

I've never been. I'm going this year. i've seen manu chao at stubb's and antibalas over coffee during sxsw (FREE!), both likely far better shows, true. Fortunately there are plenty others i've never seen but always wanted to. Still, i'm going. For the first time. (Despite 30 minute sets.) However, i'm not paying the $5 stage-fire carbon offset fee. ahahahahaah...ridiculous!

batlady

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 11:06:17 -0600

Is it just me, or does Radiohead seem to be missing from this list?

LordEric

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 10:49:41 -0600

I'm a little disappointed that they didn't get the Led Zepplin Reunion pt. II but all in all I agree that this lineup has good depth. I also agree that having so many SXSW repeats is a little stale but remember that not everyone gets to see these bands at SXSW. ACL is the proletariat fest to SXSW's hipster aristocracy. Hipsterocracy?

scim

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 10:34:50 -0600

As the trash talker you're most likely referring to, let me respond. I just don't see much to be overly enthusiastic about. I mean the line up is OK, but compared to ACLs past, it's pretty light. Beck's cool, but what's he done lately? 1/4 of CCR and 1/4 of Zeppelin? Meh. Past years have shown us the 60s/70s acts are pretty blah in this setting. Don't get me wrong. There are some kick ass bands on that list, but this ACL is a repeat performance for many of them. And while you always remember your first time, the second can be a bit of a let down.

YoYoMa

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 10:28:42 -0600

austinsoundcheck, I'd agree with the sheer depth being great, except that there are a TON of bands that have played ACL before and most, if not all, of the new bands just played SXSW, so there's not a lot of good new stuff there. Plus, the top tier acts are pretty weak compared to other years. The Raconteurs are the homeless man's White Stripes.

k

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 10:23:04 -0600

spiritualizedddddddddddddddddddddddddd!!!

austinsoundcheck

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 10:09:49 -0600

The trash talkers are already out, but I have to say I'm pretty impressed with the lineup. The sheer depth of it is incredible. They've managed to get bands across a variety of genres.