APF 2013: Highlights, Including Tonight

Yesterday, I posted about Time Conflicts in the Austin Psych Fest line-up. Today, I'm going to post some of my daily, highlight artists. There are lots of great bands playing APF, and as I said yesterday, you could just stay at the main stage every day of the festival and see really great sets. If you'd like to dabble in a little bit of curated listening allow me to guide you on this psychic journey.

If you already bought tickets or you would like to buy tickets to Austin Psych Fest, you may do so starting tonight at 6:00pm. Just head on over toward the Mohawk and you'll figure it out from there. That's actually my advice in any given situation. Add Whiskey as needed.

Thursday

• Allah-Las - 11pm, Red 7, Outside
• A Place to Bury Strangers - 10pm, Mohawk, Outside
• Metz - 9pm, Mohawk, Outside

Metz - Wet Blanket video via YouTube

Friday

• Vietnam - 6pm, Elevation Amphitheater
• Suuns - 7:30pm, Levitation Tent
• Warpaint - 8:30pm, Reverberation Stage

Vietnam - Kitchen Kongas video via YouTube

Saturday

• Young Magic - 2pm, Levitation Tent
• Kaleidoscope - 8:30pm, Elevation Amphitheater
• OS Mutantes - 10:00pm, Reverberation Stage

Kaleidoscope (UK) Flight From Ashiya

Sunday

• Elephant Stone - 4:00pm, Reverberation Stage
• White Fence - 5:00pm, Reverberation Stage
• Goat - 10:00pm, Elevation Amphitheater

Goat - Goathead video via YouTube

For what it's worth, I'll be going to APF for the full weekend but I understand that you might be short on personal time and cash assets. If you're only heading out to Carson Creek Ranch one day of the festival, I'd go Sunday. That's my opinion and I know the day before Monday isn't ideal for some people. However, Goat is my number one band in the APF draft this year and they play Sunday night. My 2nd round draft pick goes to Elephant Stone, who also perform Sunday. So for me, Sunday has the best single-day-ticket line-up.

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Planning the FINAL day of ACL 2010

If you're as exhausted as I am the prospect of going back to Zilker for another long day is somewhat daunting but we're all just going to have to suck it up y'all. It's only one more day then we can relax until the next big fest in Austin...next month.

In order to serve my own laziness this post will be very short on words. In fact I'm just going to list my picks followed by sample video. So, let's plan out the final day of the fest shall we?

TV Torso


TV Torso - Live at the Parish video via YouTube


Warpaint


Warpaint - Stars video via YouTube

White Rabbits


White Rabbits - the Plot video via YouTube

Foals


Foals - Balloons video via YouTube

Portugal the Man


Portugal the Man - People Say video via YouTube

Make sure you catch The Morning Benders!! I love these guys enough to write these sentences about them!


the Morning Benders - All Day Daylight video via YouTube

Yeasayer


Yeasayer - Madder Red video via YouTube

Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros


Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros - 40 Day Dream video via YouTube

the Flaming Lips


the Flaming Lips - She Don't Use Jelly video via YouTube

the National


the National - Vanderlyle Crybaby Geeks video via YouTube

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ACL Aftershow Officialness

So, I'm sure you've heard by now that the OFFICIAL after-shows for Austin City Limits Festival have been announced/gone on sale. You can get the complete list by clicking either of the above links, but let me tell you which shows I'd be most interested in checking out. If I could only attend 1 after-show I would see the show at La Zona Rosa with Sonic Youth and Warpaint. Not only because Sonic Youth are legends and this show is a rare opportunity but ALSO because Warpaint are effing awesome and will be legends in the future. Well, maybe not legends but you never know? They do kick some majah ass y'all.


Warpaint - Stars video via YouTube


Is it in poor-taste to post a video hosted on the SXSW YouTube channel when writing a post about ACL Fest? Oh well.

If I went to TWO ACL after-shows this year, I would go see Sonic Youth and the other show I would see would have to be...dang I just realized my top 3 after-shows are all taking place at the same time on October 9th. How do you like that? Even in the after-show experience you're forced to choose which stage you want to commit to. I'm still sticking with my number one choice cause it's at La Zona Rosa. My number 2 choice, the same night, is at Stubb's and, personally, I'd rather be at LZR than Stubb's. If you feel the opposite then you should see the Black Keys with Foals Oct. 9th. Have you listened to the Black Keys' latest, Brothers yet? They just keep getting better y'all.


the Black Keys - Tighten Up video via YouTube

My number 3 choice, also on October 9th is two bands I've seen already this year, both of whom I really loved. Girls will be playing Emo's with the Soft Pack.


Girls - Lust For Life video via YouTube

For the rest of my choices I'll just choose one show per night to make things easier. Wednesday night, before the fest, is all about the Strokes at Stubb's. Hate all you want but every track on their first LP is an effing jam and will be awesome to see performed live.


the Strokes - the Modern Age video via YouTube

Thursday night before the fest has to go to, hometown heroes, Spoon. I had the pleasure of enjoying their Austin City Limits television taping earlier this year and it was pure perfection.


Spoon - Nobody Gets Me But You video via YouTube

I must also give a nod to, lesser-known act, First Aid Kit who is playing a show with Ferraby Lionheart on Thursday night as well.


First Aid Kit - Tiger Mountain Peasant Song video via YouTube

Friday night, the first true night of "after-show", is kind of a toss-up for me. None of the shows on this particular night are un-missable in my opinion. I know a lot of you will disagree with that but this isn't your blog is it? *Evil Laugh Goes Here* For me it's a tie between seeing the Black Lips and seeing Deadmau5. It kind of just depends on what sort of experience you're looking for. Now, Monsters of Folk are also playing that night, but I feel like they're much better as a concept than a reality. I like the idea of those musicians coming together but I'm quite underwhelmed with the actual results ya know?


Black Lips - Drugs video via YouTube

Now we're up to Saturday Oct. 9th, which is where I began this post. So that's my Bloggy Advice re:ACL after-shows. Thoughts? Opinions? Congratulations?

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B. Benson + A/Fam Follow-Up + Vids

I never got back to y'all after my Wednesday debacle. As you may recall, I had tickets to two shows on the same night and I didn't know what I was going to do. Well, I ended up attending pieces of both shows. It was pretty stressful, but I need the practice for SXSW when at any given moment there will be a billion bands I want to see all playing at once in different venues scattered across multiple zip codes. I went to the Parish room first Wednesday night. I only caught 1.5 songs from Warpaint but it was enough to make me want to seek them out when they're here for SX. Akron/Family went on afterward and they started their set out in a pretty low-key way. They started about 30 minutes later than I expected so I only got to hear them play 4-5 songs and I wasn't really feeling it. They were getting a little avant for my mood that evening and crowd was very chatty. I did manage to capture their opening tune in this sub-par video though.


Akron/Family - River video via YouTube


I left the Parish as soon as someone on Twitter posted that Brendan Benson was on stage at the Independent. Now, it's kind of unfair to compare B. Benson and Akron/Family since they are sooo different but it was a welcome shift for me on Wednesday night. Akron/Family challenges their audience to find the beauty and participate in the moment of the show experience. Brendan Benson churns out perfect pop-rock at break-neck speeds, effortlessly shifting from one beautiful melody to the next. Needless to say it was pleasant to not be challenged in a rock setting after having been awake for 10+ hours. I had never been to the Independent but I highly approve. It's pretty much a bare-bones warehouse space with a stage in the corner. The audience was pretty thin, the room was full but not packed tightly, so I was able to stroll right up to the stage.


Brendan Benson - A Whole Lot Better video via YouTube

Austin was Benson's last night of his current tour so he took the opportunity to do some cover songs in the encore. He ended up doing 3 different one, 2 of which I would have expected and 1 of which I didn't. Remember that song, "Who Sucked Out the Feeling?" Well, I had forgotten all about it until Brendan Benson covered it and apparently that's not an unusual cover for him since he also did it at his Daytrotter session. He also did a Graham Nash song as well as this one originally by Tom Petty.


Tom Petty - Listen To Your Heart video via YouTube

All in all both shows were good but completely different vibes. If I hadn't had other places to be I would have enjoyed Akron/Family more but I just wasn't feeling patient enough to be enveloped in their vibe that night. All of my Twitter friends who stayed for the whole show had nothing but positive things to say. Just goes to show, if you end in a big way that gets people involved that's what they'll take away from the show as a whole. They won't even remember that you played a shitty, slow, boring song as the SECOND song in your set?!?! Seriously, bands let's keep the energy high for the first 2-3 songs then you can dial it back and preserve your energy ok?

Speaking of dialing-it-back, don't forget you can catch the hypnotic sounds of Warpaint at SXSW2010.


Warpaint - Stars video via YouTube

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