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Episode premiere: Foo Fighters

Austin City Limits presents a Season 49 high point: Rock superstars Foo Fighters return to shake up Austin City Limits in an epic hour featuring classics alongside gems from their latest album But Here We Are, newly nominated for a trio of 2024 Grammy Awards, including Best Rock Album. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame icons make their mark in the annals of ACL history once again, having previously graced the ACL stage twice before, with unforgettable performances in 2009 and 2015. ACL saluted the band’s 25th Anniversary in 2021 with a fan-favorite hourlong special featuring beloved classics from both appearances, now one of the most requested episodes in the ACL archives. The highly-anticipated new installment premieres November 18 at 7pm CT/8pm ET as part of the series Season 49. ACL airs weekly on PBS stations nationwide (check local listings) and full episodes are made available to stream online at pbs.org/austincitylimits immediately following the initial broadcast. 

The program, produced by Austin PBS and recorded live at ACL’s studio home ACL Live in Austin, Texas, continues its extraordinary run as the longest-running music television show in history, providing viewers a front-row seat to the best in live performance for 49 years as the music institution nears a remarkable half-century milestone. Austin City Limits celebrates 50 years as a live music beacon in 2024: on October 17, 1974, Willie Nelson taped the pilot episode and the trailblazing series premiered in 1975. Stay tuned for news on special concerts, fan events and activations as Austin City Limits salutes an incredible legacy of 50 golden years of American musical history and iconic performances. 

Foo Fighters perform on ACL, 2023. L-R: Josh Freese, Dave Grohl. Photo by Scott Newton.

American rock ‘n’ roll greats Foo Fighters bring a full tilt stadium show to the intimate Austin City Limits stage for their third headlining appearance, showcasing key tracks from their acclaimed eleventh studio album But Here We Are. In their first ACL appearance since 2015,  leader Dave Grohl guides the band through a blistering 10-song set, opening with the fan-favorite “Times Like These” and showcasing explosive new numbers, including “Rescued,” newly nominated for a pair of 2024 Grammys including Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance. The powerhouse set pauses as Grohl honors his late mother with the requiem “The Glass,” and dedicates “Aurora,” an early career highlight, to the band’s late drummer, Taylor Hawkins, saying it was his favorite Foos song. “It was the first song that we all wrote together, says Grohl. “So we like to do it every night for him.” Grohl doesn’t hold back in the emotionally raw hour, battered but not broken, head banging and hair flying, his impassioned vocals and primal howls anchoring the pummeling choruses as the mighty band rockets forward in another remarkable chapter. “I don’t like to say goodbye,” shares Grohl, “so I just say good night like this,” and closes the hour alone onstage with a stripped-down solo rendition of their signature “Everlong,” as the hushed crowd hang on to every word: a testament to the communal power of music.

“Foo Fighters are survivors and soldiers, in the great tradition of rock ‘n’ roll,” says longtime ACL executive producer Terry Lickona. “They have become valued members of the ACL family, and this show captures them as they begin a new chapter and a new adventure.”

Foo Fighters take a bow after rocking Austin City Limits in 2023. L-R: Rami Jaffee, Chris Shiflett, Pat Smear, Nate Mendel, Dave Grohl, Josh Freese. Photo by Scott Newton.

Foo Fighters setlist:

Times Like These

No Son Of Mine

Rescued

Under You

La Dee Da

Nothing At All

The Sky is a Neighborhood

The Glass

Aurora 

Everlong

Season 49 Broadcast Line-up (second half of season to be announced shortly):

November 25 | ACL Presents: 22nd Annual Americana Honors featuring 

Nickel Creek, Avett Brothers, Bonnie Raitt, Brandi Carlile, The War and Treaty & more.

Watch new episodes live, stream online, or download the PBS App. The complete line-up for the full 14-week season, including eight new episodes to air beginning January 13, 2024, will be announced shortly.  Viewers can visit acltv.com for news regarding live streams, future tapings and episode schedules or by following ACL on Facebook, Twitter, IG and TikTok. Fans can also browse the ACL YouTube channel for exclusive songs, behind-the-scenes videos and full-length artist interviews.

Austin City Limits

Austin City Limits (ACL) offers viewers unparalleled access to featured acts in an intimate setting that provides a platform for artists to deliver inspired, memorable, full-length performances. Now in its 49th Season, the program is taped live before a concert audience from The Moody Theater in downtown Austin. Austin City Limits is the longest-running music series in television history and remains the only TV series to ever be awarded the National Medal of Arts. Since its inception, the groundbreaking music series has become an institution that’s helped secure Austin’s reputation as the Live Music Capital of the World. The historic Austin PBS Studio 6A, home to 36 years of ACL concerts, has been designated an official Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Landmark. In 2011, ACL moved to the new venue ACL Live at The Moody Theater in downtown Austin. ACL received a rare institutional Peabody Award for excellence and outstanding achievement in 2012.  

Austin City Limits is produced by Austin PBS and funding is provided in part by Dell Technologies, the Austin Convention Center Department, Cirrus Logic and AXS Ticketing. Additional funding is provided by the Friends of Austin City Limits. Learn more about Austin City Limits, programming and history at acltv.com.