acl '09

a few days ago when the Austin city limits music festival lineup came out, facebook news feeds went crazy with people voicing their excitement over what many have already referred to as "the best acl ever". no joke, i'd say 3/4 of the status updates late monday night said something about how this was the best ACL lineup yet. i guess this happens every year, cause everyone's just excited, but i dont exactly see what constitutes this year's roster as the best ever. here you'll find my thoughts on the big names you'll be paying to see this October, if you so choose.

Pearl Jam - a good outdoor, festival worthy, rock and roll show. at least in the eyes of the producers. i like these guys well enough. nothing all that interesting about their music in my opinion, but they've got alot of name recognition, so its a good choice if you look at it from the festival producer's standpoint. i will say that i think this is one of the more underrated bands among high schoolers, considering who else my friends are more psyched about seeing. i have always really liked "last kiss" by these guys too.

dave matthews band - i actually have literally never listened to these guys. people seem to be psyched on them though so ill give them the benefit of the doubt.

beastie boys - these guys are fun. i can imagine them being a super fun show. i fully back this decision.

Kings of Leon - kings of leon is that band that everyone just seems to like. they seem to infringe on several different generes and therefore appeal to a wide audience. relatively as of late they've taken a more pop-ish approach and that one song of theirs continues to get a lot of radio airtime. ill take their old stuff over the new stuff anyday, but none the less i approve of the kings. at the same time, it's not a band that would single handedly make me shell out $180 for a 3 day pass.

ben harper - eh to chill and fluffy for me. i say skip this guy. go for something with a little more of an edge. i think it speaks alot as well that none of ben's top 5 downloaded songs on itunes are from albums released within the last six years.

ghostland observatory - a classic ACL choice. they have to have their token "electronic" band, if you can really call it that. last year it was MGMT, the year before that Arcade Fire and Muse, etc. etc. everyone enjoys a good synth and MIDI propelled musical group. my friends are into them so ill probably see them.

Mos Def - the dude from 16 Blocks. enough said. is he the dude in Black Star?

Sonic Youth - these guys have influenced so many groups who will probably get more of an audience at ACL than they will, despite the significance this group had. these guys are getting older though, so everyone should see this show.

andrew bird - a clever choice for ACL. this guy is gaining so much popularity right now its insane. honestly, not much bad to say about him. i like most of his music. good instrumentation. i salute his ability to play alot of instruments.

the decemberists - - generic and fluffy but i enjoy the group. this my token pop choice for the weekend. i guess you could say they have good lyrics.

lilly allen - is smokin

b-52's - ACL's token nodd to the past. i approve.

citizen cope - not a fan. maybe he'd have a fun show though, who knows.

knaan - i dont know much to anything about this guy, but regardless i think it'll be a fun show.

girl talk - i looked this guy up on itunes cause i hadn't heard his music before, and there wasn't anything there on him. the tracks on the ACL website are kind of so-so hip hop mashups. again, probably a super fun show regardless of how i feel about his music.

GROUPS I WISH WERE RETURNING TO ACL:
- hot chip
-wolf parade (haven't come yet, hopefully 2010)
-band of horses
-beck
-wilco

we'll see. im not sure if i'll go this year based on the lineup. it annooys me how everyone craps their pants over the lineup every year and says its the best ever. we'll see.

i promise ill start posting actual film stuff soon