Xochilt Garcia
Editor in Chief
Weekend One at Austin City Limits Music Festival was one for the books. Whether that book is ‘good’ or ‘bad’ needs to be considered on a case-by-case basis.
From country to punk, gay pop, indie and psychedelic rock, and back to even more country, The Mesquite caught more than ten live acts over the opening three-day weekend of ACL. Here’s what we thought, and whether or not you should try making a little room in your likely already full schedule to see some of the returning acts during Weekend Two.
Friday, Oct. 4:
Asleep At The Wheel, Honda Stage – 12:55 p.m.
Unfortunately, I was only able to catch the end of this Western swing group, but what I heard left me wanting more. The band was a paragon of classic country: fiddle, banjo and a lead singer with a long snowy beard that could rival Santa Claus. Their sound was jovial, expert and dance-worthy. You won’t fall asleep at the wheel listening to these folks. Unfortunately, they won’t be coming back for Weekend Two, and we are all the poorer for it. — Xochilt Garcia
Chaparelle, IHG Hotels & Resorts Stage – 2 p.m.
The smoky dreamchild of lovers and established musicians Zella Day and Jesse Woods, Chaparelle is old Hollywood meets classic country. Chaparelle makes music that feels like you’re cruising down some hazy dirt roads in a satin-lined 1968 F-series Ford with your sweetheart. Although only having released their first single “Bleeding Hearts” just four months ago, the Texas-based Chaparelle effortlessly cemented their sound and feel as a polished and carefully crafted, charming country outfit during their Weekend One performance. The group played both of their officially released singles, “Bleeding Hearts” and “Sex & Rage,” along with many other unreleased originals like “Devil’s Music,” “All Things Considered” and “Love is Hot,” the latter of those tracks Day dedicated to the girls who had “a little bit of titty sweat going on” during their mid-afternoon performance under the beating Texas sun. The group wasn’t afraid to get hot and heavy with their set, most evident when Day belted out a surprising and ultra-sultry cover of Lana Del Rey’s “Video Games.” Throughout the set, Day would slink around the stage and flirtily rub up and down her companion, Woods, as they and their merry band blissfully made sweet, sweet music together. As their merch declares, Chaparelle is country music for lovers. It’s a crying shame they are not returning for Weekend Two. — Amber Esparza
Hudson Westbrook, Honda Stage – 2:25 p.m.
Check out an in depth review and interview here.
Mannequin Pussy, Miller Lite Stage – 3:10 p.m.
Sometimes, you just need the cathartic experience of an angry woman screaming at you. And that’s exactly what Mannequin Pussy delivered in an electrifying and brazen performance during Weekend One at ACL. The sizable crowd patiently waited until Mannequin Pussy’s third track to start moshing, kicking off during the more aggressive parts of “Control” from their 2021 EP “Perfect.” The writhing and contortions continued throughout most of the rest of their set with Mannequin Pussy dishing out heavy hitters one right after the other, including numerous tracks off of their latest album “I Got Heaven.” The tracks that seemed to resonate the most with the audience (and myself) were “Loud Bark” and “Perfect,” which were furiously shouted along to by the crowd. And speaking of shouting, Mannequin Pussy has a tradition at their live shows where they slowly buildup the audience to throw out a big, collective scream and roar in power. “When I countdown from three, I want you to give yourself the gift of letting out a scream that you never thought was capable of. Don’t be shy… Don’t be a bitch about it… Just feel where it is and let it erupt out of you,” lead and guitarist Missy Dabice whispered sensuously into her mic before counting down. The ACL crowd held nothing back after Dabice counted them down, allowing the band to segue into a blistering performance of “Clams.” As is true punk fashion, the band was not afraid to get political during their set.
The band reminded the audience of the injustices that they said continue to fall on the Palestinian people while proudly hanging a Palestinian flag throughout their set. The band’s bassist Bear Perry also criticized the government’s lack of emergency aid for people experiencing natural disasters in the U.S., which he said especially affects communities of color. “…I want to dedicate this song to all the brown and black folks in the crowd. And more importantly, just so you know, Kamala Harris is also a ‘cop.’ She is a sitting vice president with full power and doing absolutely nothing about what’s going on in North Carolina. Maybe if we made North Carolina Israel, they’d get some fucking money,” Perry told the crowd as he took front and center to perform “Pigs Is Pigs,” the band’s first song to feature Perry as the lead vocalist. Mannequin Pussy chose to end their first-time ACL set with a bang, giving fans one last chance to mosh with one of the group’s newest hardcore numbers “OK? OK! OK? OK!” Unfortunately, Mannequin Pussy will not be returning for Weekend Two of ACL, but the group is on tour throughout October in the U.S., and we highly encourage you to check them out if they slide into a venue near you. — AE
Leon Bridges, American Express Stage – 6:30 p.m.
Bridges doesn’t just sing, he serenades in a mist of his own soulful performance. As the sun set on the festival, Bridges performed his 2020 single “Texas Sun.” An orange hue filled the air as Bridges emoted images of driving through a Terlingua desert with the windows down, as the sun’s rays peek behind the Big Bend Mountains. If you’re going to Weekend Two of the festival, make it a priority to see Bridges. — XG
Chris Stapleton, American Express Stage – 8:30 p.m.
When Stapleton took the stage, he promised the crowd he wouldn’t do a whole lot of talking. And it was an hour and a half of Stapleton hit after hit (he truly has so many!) that flew by too quickly. Other than applause for his velvety voice, skilled band members, and a harmonica player that just doesn’t quit, nothing can replicate or accurately capture the way Stapleton’s show scratched a country bluesy itch in my brain. You’ll just have to go see for yourself. — XG
Saturday, Oct. 5
BALTHVS, Tito’s Handmade Vodka Stage – 4:20 p.m.
To simply call BALTHVS a Columbian psych act would be a bit of a minimization. With bass lines that cut bone-deep, guitar riffs that leave you feeling raw and out-of-bound sonic sounds that send you on a spiraling trajectory somewhere out of this world, BALTHVS is psychedelia and so much more. The Columbian funk-psych-surf trio made their ACL debut to a decent-sized crowd who were eager to catch the magic of BALTHVS live. The group kicked off the show with their “Surf Medley,” an ultra-trippy covers amalgamation of three surf-rock paradigms: The Chantays’ “Pipeline,” Dick Dale’s “Misirlou” and The Reverend Horton Heat’s “Marijuana.” Now, imagine all of this amid a backdrop of psychedelic digital projections reminiscent of the old Windows Media Player visualizations and baby, you got a party. Although BALTHVS came out swinging at the beginning, the group experienced more than a few hiccups throughout their set. Johanna Mercuriana, bassist and vocalist for the group, had some difficulties with her microphone and vocal levels throughout a big chunk of the show. And when one-third of your band is experiencing some technical snags, the performance quality is going to suffer a bit. The group’s guitarist, Balthazar Aguirre, also mistakenly ended the show early due to a set time confusion but the group happily and quickly got back on track after a festival team member let them know that BALTHVS still had an extra 25 minutes of play time left in their set. The band went on to play tracks like “Venus Flytrap” and “Aio,” two songs from their latest album “Harvest” released earlier this summer. BALTHVS later closed out their set with an experimental cover of The Trammps “Disco Inferno.” Regardless of the few obstacles for Aguirre and Mercuriana, the crowd seemed to thoroughly enjoy the show. I was especially fascinated with the group’s drummer and percussionist, Santiago Lizcano. Lizcano stayed consistent and focused throughout the performance, skillfully reeling in his bandmates when things got choppy. BALTHVS is returning for Weekend 2 on Oct. 12 for one more show and is very much an act worth taking a trip with. — AE
Jungle, Miller Lite Stage – 7:10 p.m.
Electric, energetic and dynamic. Jungle knows how to f-ing work a crowd. We were shocked to see they played at the Miller Lite stage, a respectable but smaller stage at the festival. Jungle deserved at least the Honda stage for the sizable crowd pressing into each other as the group weaved between hits like “Candle Flame” and “Back on 74.” Lydia Kitto, the band’s female lead singer, brought the songs to life as the other members contributed a perfect cacophony of guitar, bass, synth and smooth vocals. Truly, we’ve never seen anything like it. — XG
Sunday, Oct. 6
Cale Tyson, T-Mobile Stage – 12:30 p.m.
When you google Tyson, the Wikipedia bio labels him an “indie/folk musician,” but after seeing 25 minutes of his set, that seems like a betrayal of the genre. Wearing an old white muscle shirt, jeans and boots while croaking out tired lyrics about a “city girl” who was “going country,” Tyson felt like the Great Value version of Morgan Wallen without the drinking and anger issues. After dragging on into an unreleased track where he sang about enjoying making his girlfriend mad, I knew it was time to go check out the other sets. — XG
Richy Mitch & The Coal Miners, Honda Stage – 12:55 p.m.
Despite a hesitant start, Richy Mitch and the Coal Miners picked up the pace and delivered a solid B+ act for their first ACL appearance. The group was everything you’d expect from a Seattle-born basement band. All members, from drummer Jakob Ervin to lead singer Mitch Cutts, had a certain humility and concentration throughout the whole set. But there was no need to be so modest: they were so good it felt like they barely scratched the surface of how much fun they could’ve had with each other and with the crowd. Each song felt like the audience was in that basement with them while they rehearsed after school. Check them out during Weekend Two of ACL. — XG
flipturn, American Express Stage – 2:45 p.m.
In a world full of indie rock bands that ultimately melt into the same pot of whiny lyrics and oversized flannels, flipturn has been able to stand out and cement themselves as a group not to be underestimated – especially after their Weekend One ACL performance. The Florida-born band put on a catharsis-inducing show, from lead singer Dylan Basse to drummer and percussionist Devon VonBalsen. Sometimes it’s hard for lead singers to avoid stealing all the spotlight, but the instrumental production during flipturn’s show was just so emotional and heartfelt as the words poured from Basse’s mouth; it made me angry at the young couple in front of me that only stared lovingly into each others’ eyes as they swayed instead of looking at the American Express stage. But perhaps the cringe of acting like a main character in an indie coming of age film can be excused, as long as flipturn provides a live soundtrack. Hearing their new single “Rodeo Clown” and their most known song “August” was everything I could have hoped for: a sucker punch of young love, yearning and heartbreak. — XG
Orville Peck, Honda Stage – 4:25 p.m.
Before getting into his Weekend One ACL performance, country singer Orville Peck set a rule for the audience: “If at any point you feel like crying, you have to cry.” Well, my sincerest apologies to Peck if he caught sight of my ugly crying face in the crowd while he sang “The Curse of the Blackened Eye,” a mournful track off his album “Bronco: Chapters 1 & 2.” If there is one act that makes the entire festival worth it, it’s Peck and his band of guitars and drums. A gay icon with a trance-inducing booming voice, Peck performs every song with a guttural sense of heart-wrench. His show would have been reminiscent of an old Greek tragedy, if Greek tragedies were set in the dusty red mountains of West Texas. If Peck ever took off the mask he’s infamous for never removing from his face, it may have been too much to bear for this listener. Peck is also performing during Weekend Two of ACL, and festival goers will be all the better for it. — XG
That Mexican OT, T-Mobile Stage – 5:45 p.m.
The way I felt about seeing Mexican-American rapper That Mexican OT perform, is the way I feel about most male rappers’ live shows: they are lackluster and disappointing.
That Mexican OT came out late for his ACL act, an entourage of other smaller rappers following behind him and only performed 30 to 60 seconds of his songs cut by awkward and choppy transitions. Despite being excited for his set, the deep Southern bass he expertly builds into his tracks and the way he raps with one of the smoothest flows I’ve heard from the latest generation of rappers, That Mexican OT’s idea of “performing” is standing on stage and mumbling into a microphone. In contrast, female rappers like Megan Thee Stallion, Doja Cat and GloRilla put on real shows: choreography, makeup, costumes, special effects, etc. Female rappers give their audiences the most, so why do we accept the least from male rappers? Fifteen minutes into That Mexican OT’s set I was ready to leave; I had to secure a good spot for Chappell Roan’s set. — XG
Chappell Roan, American Express Stage – 6:45 p.m.
Hot take: Chappell Roan’s Weekend One ACL set cemented Roan as the renaissance of good pop music. More than a singer, Roan is a master artist and creative, and we’re lucky to exist in the same time frame as she does. Roan seamlessly spun through “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess” album hits, her latest single “Subway” and a powerful execution of “Barracuda” from rock band Heart — I barely had time to catch my breath. Roan is a true vocalist with a streak of satisfying female rage, theater flair and perfect drag makeup. Her performance is raw, her chemistry with the audience is undeniable, and her lyrics are refreshingly honest commentary on what it means to be a young girl these days–gay or not. Roan has made pop music fun again for me. There’s a reason Roan keeps drawing the biggest crowds at music festivals around the country. If you’re attending Weekend Two of ACL, make sure to be at Zilker Park hours before her set on Oct. 13 to secure a good spot. You won’t want to miss a single second of it. — XG
