ACL 2013, week 1
we opened ACL weekend with an Engle Holding Ceremony.
make no mistake about it, it's not an easy task.
Yeah, that is the engle on the floor in front of me. but I did hold it, briefly.
yes, 130 bands!
Okkervil River played a strong and energetic show.
Depeche Mode weren't bad. it might be better for you if you really want to see all that Gahan spin and skin. the dry humping of the microphone stand was a bit over the top.
Parquet Courts got us started early Saturday morning. we got there at 11 AM for this show, then we enjoyed the Tito's/Dulce Vida block party (seen farther below)
The National were REALLY GOOD! this was the daughter's favorite acl show.
wilco sounded great.
the Cure was also amazing. they played just over two hours. I've never seen Robert Smith so animated, energetic and happy. they sounded as great too! (no cure pics, but a few vids captured by kat inserted below)
Our Space (man/ship):
with about 75,000 people in zilker park at one time, it's easy to get lost from your group. we were prepared with a festival totem. we decided the pole was a bit TOO tall at 30 ft. we managed to reduce it by half. at full (30 ft) height, it was a chore just keeping it up.
we had a spaceman or space shuttle at the top of our pole, and flashing led light at night.
we typically gathered at the same spot all weekend. we got to know people around us and they often came back to our totem several times. it's a lot easier to share space with people you've made friends with than feeling crowded by strangers.
this guy had a fist that travels around to different music festivals. I declined to smell it, but I did oblige to the fist bump. it says "DICK" across the knuckles and everybody was quite enthused about this fist....
the craft beer tent was a great place to escape mid day sun.
ahhhh! just outside the entrance, there was a private party hosted by two of our favorite brands, Dulce Vida and Tito's.
prizes, free drinks and more new friends!
I'd met Cassidy inside at the Tito's/Dulce Vida party. when he saw we were leaving, he said, "paul! hold on just a minute, I want to play you a song. look for me just outside" and there he was.
there was a shaded area for the daughter to sketch just outside the tito's party. we took turns sitting with her.
platinum VIP ticket holders get all sorts of fancy treatment like air conditioned bathrooms, fancy food meals, golf cart transportation and front row access. they keep a cooler full of BUD up near the stage for these VIP. this guy saw me there, looking thirsty, he reached into his free VIP beer stash and started to pass them to us!
VIDEOS: