The second day of Austin City Limits Music Festival (ACL Fest) presented a wide range of artists to see, from Adrian Quesada’s lush live presentation of his Boleros Psicodélicos record to pop sensation (and former Georgetown, Texas resident), Conan Gray, to hip-hop from Lil Nas X and the psychedelic Americana sounds of War on Drugs. Saturday was spent sampling a smorgasbord of sounds at Zilker Park yesterday.
Adrian Quesada’s early afternoon set featuring a slate of guest Latin singers from Mexico, Central and South America on the Honda Stage was the most unique performance of the day. Quesada has been working on his Boleros Psicodélicos for years, finally completing the project during the pandemic break while touring with his band, Black Pumas. The record was released to critical acclaim earlier this year on ATO Records.
Quesada explained to the audience that the song, “Esclavo y Amo,” first got him interested in starting the project. He convinced Argentine singer Natalia Clavier (Thievery Corporation) to record the song over ten years ago. Apparently, Clavier was one of the few people who thought the project was a good idea. Early on, he said, “She was the only person who was like, ‘I’ll give it a shot.’”
Set highlights included “El Payaso” performed by Mexican R&B artist, Girl Ultra, and “El Paraguas” featuring another Mexican artist, Clemente Castillo who now resides in Austin. The singer was riding a performance high following the set, “Playing with Adrian in the Boleros Psicodélicos band was a blast!! It was a dream come true sharing the stage with such amazing performers.”
Later in the day, pop sensation Conan Gray appeared on the same stage, attracting a massive audience to the West end of the park for his performance. A former Georgetown resident, Grey has stated living in a small town in Texas during his teen years shaped his songwriting. The singer gained notoriety as a YouTube star. His self-released first single, “Idle Town” was a viral hit, gaining over 12 million views on YouTube.
The first Austin performance by Lil Nas X, the gay hip-hop star who gained notoriety for his collaboration with Billy Ray Cyrus hit, “Old Country Road” took place yesterday on the main, American Express Stage. The wildly popular rapper and singer executed the type of performance art show Tyler the Creator attempted last year and fell short of.
Multiple costumes and scene changes made the show feel more like a musical than a live musical performance at ACL Festival in a compelling way, short of a few long pauses as Lil Nas made a costume change. With voiceover narrations defining distinct acts, like a play, it was clear the singer’s idea of live performance means he’s angling towards performance art.
The War on Drugs completed the day two circuit with a set that started as the full moon began rising over the Austin skyline at dusk, eventually fading to dark as the talented act led by Adam Granduciel played a sublime performance. The 10-song, 75-minute set left room for extended jams that allowed the group to feature the band’s musical chops.
The setlist highlighted songs from four of The War on Drugs’ five albums. Performance highlights came with “Baby Missiles” and “Under the Pressure.” The War on Drugs return to ACL Fest next weekend in the same Saturday time slot and record their second Austin City Limits TV episode on Sunday, October 16.
Photos by Maggie Boyd
