ACL Stage Preview: CSS & MGMT @ the AT&T Blue Room Stage on Saturday

Image from CSS’ MySpace, by Roberta Ridolfi

After enjoying a number of quality acts on Day One at the AT&T Blue Room Stage, head back there because Day Two is just as inviting. The Austin City Limits Music Festival continues to bring in respectable artists from all over the world and you can start your second day at the fest with a smorgasbord of sounds courtesy of Iceland’s Mugison (a.k.a. Örn Elías Guðmundsson). The son of a karaoke singer, and in the past, a one man show in concert, Mugison’s has favored a full band of late as compared to his earlier days behind his laptop. Either way, a variety of genres, and pure entertainment is the result.

Scotland trio The Fratellis is next up at 1:30 p.m. The band formed in 2005 and had achieved a reasonable amount of success in the U.K. by 2006, opening for Kasabian, and showcasing their crunching pop melodies on quintessentially British shows such as Top of the Pops and Later…with Jools Holland. Fame in the U.S. followed with multiple shows at SXSW 2007 including a special set at Stubb’s during SPIN’s annual day show where Pete Townsend joined the band on stage to perform “The Seeker.”

The international flavor continues with Brazil’s CSS (or Cansei de Ser Sexy) at 3:30 p.m. The São Paulo dance-pop act captured American indie imagination with their delightful ditty “Let’s Make Love and Listen to Death From Above” from 2006’s self-titled release on Sub Pop Records and “Music is My Hot, Hot Sex” off the same record was utilized in commercials by both Zune and Apple’s iPod touch. Donkey was released on Sub Pop in July of 2008. It may be difficult to avoid the inevitable dance party that beckons during a CSS’ show; a rendition of L7’s “Pretend We’re Dead” could be a part of their set as a bonus!

Image from MGMT’s MySpace, by Jon Bergman

The shindig continues at 5:30 p.m. with arguably one of the hottest bands in the musical realm at the moment -- New York’s MGMT. The duo of Andrew Van Wyngarden and Ben Goldwasser is the brain trust behind MGMT although their live performances naturally garner assistance from many other musicians. You must be hiding under a rock if you’re unaware of Oracular Spectacular anthems like “Electric Feel,” “Time To Pretend,” and our personal favorite “Kids”; the band has been equally omnipresent, playing everything from SXSW to Coachella and from Glastonbury to the Roskilde Festival this year.

Black Sabbath, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, The Black Angels, Black Lips…there is no shortage of bands that have employed the dark world of the word “Black” in their name. The Black Keys differentiate themselves with gritty blues-rock that should put an end to the electro-pop mania that precedes them on stage on day two. Comprised of Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney, the Ohio act’s second release Thickfreakness was recorded in one day while their latest effort Attack & Release was apparently intended originally to be a collaboration with Ike Turner. The duo’s raw sound should be a marked departure from some of the music you’ll take in at the AT&T Blue Room Stage on day two, bringing to light ACL Fest’s roster of diverse acts once again.

“Artists and schedule subject to change without notice.” (As per Austin City Limits Music Festival’s Schedule Grids.)

Contact the author of this article or email tips@austinist.com with further questions, comments or tips.