October 2-4, 2009
Austin, TX
My 7th ACL Festival!! And the first one scheduled to miss the late September heat. No Dust Bowl or heat waves this year! Day 1 was beautiful, with blue skies and a healthy, lush, green Zilker Park. But Day 2 brought a downpour that turned the expensive new turf into a muddy cesspool. Day 3 threatened rain but ended up sunny and muddy.
On Day 1, I carpooled with Bob. He loaned me one of Tom's fancy chairs but accidentally gave me a giant tripod instead, which we didn't discover till we were in the park. Poor Bob then went back to the car to exchange it. We also tried to find Brian's base camp but never did, although we did run into Trish accidentally in the food court. Musically, Phoenix, Raphael Saadiq, Robyn Hitchcock, and Andrew Bird were my favorites this day. Kings of Leon were a disappointment; Bob and I heard them more clearly near his car than in the park.
Although Day 2 was probably the strongest day musically, it was the worst for me. Not just because of the rain, but also because I spent most of it alone, unable to find any of my friends for hours at a time. It was easy enough to find Brian early on when it seemed people were staying away from the park, but after splitting off on my own for what I'd hoped would be a short while, I was unable to find anyone again for 4 hours. Mute Math, the Airborne Toxic Event, and Flogging Molly were among my favorites this day, but Dave Matthews Band really rocked the house. I'm not a big fan, but that was my favorite show of the entire festival.
Day 3 was a muddy but rainless affair. After a nostalgia trip with the B-52s, I was able to find Michelle's group, and she and I managed to polish off a bottle of, um, water, before the day was done. The Toadies started well but faded, Passion Pit was good, and Pearl Jam closed with a rousing performance nearly matching Dave Matthews. And while most of my meals at the park were nothing to write home about, adding Michelle's excess jalapeños to my pulled pork sandwich led to my best meal of the weekend. I'd recommend combining those items to anyone going next year.
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| Bob & green grass | Me & green grass | A beautiful day | School of Seven Bells | School of Seven Bells |
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| VIDEO: School of Seven Bells | Empty food court | Sara Watkins | Sara Watkins | Medeski, Martin & Wood |
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| Bob & bug | VIDEO: Medeski, Martin & Wood | Medeski, Martin & Wood | Dr. Dog | Sunlit clouds |
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| Dr. Dog | Bob naps | My Coke | VIDEO: Dr. Dog | Phoenix |
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| Phoenix | Daniel Johnston | VIDEO: Daniel Johnston | Raphael Saadiq | Massive crowd |
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| VIDEO: Raphael Saadiq | Raphael Saadiq | Robyn Hitchcock and the Venus 3 | VIDEO: Robyn Hitchcock and the Venus 3 | John Legend |
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| John Legend | Bob heads across the park | Dusk over Zilker Park | Dusk over Zilker Park | Dusk over Zilker Park |
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| Dusk over Zilker Park | Them Crooked Vultures | VIDEO: Them Crooked Vultures | Andrew Bird | VIDEO: Andrew Bird |
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| Kings of Leon | VIDEO: Kings of Leon | Kings of Leon | Yeah Yeah Yeahs | Yeah Yeah Yeahs |
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| Football & disco ball | VIDEO: Football & disco ball | VIDEO: Yeah Yeah Yeahs | Cotton Jones | Brian texts in the rain |