It was hot. 95°F or more and 70% or more humidity. People were seeking shelter in the shade of the porta-potties. You know it's hot when...

We had a blast at the Austin City Limits Music Festival! The bands we saw were fantastic! I was not disappointed in any of the shows, though I did hear some lackluster reviews for some artists - mostly the ones that didn't show any energy. Here's a breakdown of the bands we/I saw:

Friday 9/17

• Bob Schneider - he rocked much more than I expected
• Blind Boys of Alabama - they really are blind! They've been playing together for 60 years.
• Patty Griffin - we heard a wee bit while wandering
• Butch Hancock - again, wandering
• Terry Allen - weird
• Joe Ely - great show! Makes me want to see him again locally.
• Los Lonely Boys - fairly disappointing. They talked too much. Need to polish the live show, boys.

Saturday 9/18

• Big Head Todd and the Monsters - Fantastic! Tied for number two show with The Roots on my list.
• Bruce Robison - it was fun watching people respond to "What Would Willie Do?" who hadn't heard it before
• Holmes Brothers - sang one of many versions of "Amazing Grace" over the weekend
• Marcia Ball - cracks me up; she's a middle-aged white woman growling out Louisianna swamp blues and hammering away at the keyboard
• The Pixies - non-stop rock! No intro, no breaks, just rock. Great show! ...but not number one.

Sunday 9/19

• Mighty Sincere Voices of Navasota - heard one song, which was enough for me to really really like them
• Guy Forsyth - all he could say was "this is talk like a pirate day - ARRRRRR!"
• Kelly Willis - sweet sound, good set
• Mindy Smith - Jodi: "she finished well"
• The Roots - one of these is not like the other; lots of rap and lots of guitar. No breaks. Great show! tied for number two with Big Head Todd
• Elvis Costello - we couldn't break into the crowd, but we could hear; good greatest hits set
• Spoon - so-so. Others seemed to love them, I was unimpressed
• Pat Green - disappointed. Modern country, and PG was full of himself. I left early for Cake
• Cake - the BEST show of the weekend! These guys rocked! I will go see them again! Played two encores, which is unheard of at ACL Fest

All that for a measly $75! Can't wait for next year.