Kacey Musgraves returned to the Austin City Limits stage for her third appearance in ten years Monday, June 3, 2024 in support of her latest release, Deeper Well. We at Austin City Limits were thrilled to have her back to the show.
“It’s good to be back here in Texas,” said Musgraves, after taking the stage with her talented band, all sporting Canadian tuxedos. She continued, “It is such an honor to be kicking off the 50th season of ACL.”
Kacey Musgraves’ performance will air as the season premiere of the 50th anniversary of Austin City Limits, the longest running music series in television history. Season 50 is slated to premiere on PBS in September 2024.
Kacey Musgraves performs on Austin City Limits, June 3, 2024. Photos by Scott Newton.
Listen to the full set list from the Austin City Limits taping below:
Maggie Rogers returned to the Austin City Limits stage for her second taping Thursday night, sporting her [now] signature sheer skirt and black leotard, the perfect ensemble for a night of impassioned dancing. And that’s exactly what she came onstage doing – dancing. Opening the hour with “It Was Coming All Along,” from her third and latest album Don’t Forget Me, the singer-songwriter’s contagious energy had the audience on their feet, dancing along throughout most of the highly anticipated performance.
Rogers performed three more songs from Don’t Forget Me, following the album’s track list. Touted as a road trip album written from the perspective of someone leaving home for the first time, hearing the tracks in the album order was transcendent. Rogers broke up the journey through Don’t Forget Me with favorites “Want Want” and “Be Cool” from Surrender, as well as “Dog Years,” and hit single “Love You For a Long Time.” As Rogers switched from dancing with abandon to wielding an acoustic guitar for some songs, fans took the opportunity between songs to yell, “I love you Maggie,” to which she replied warmly to the intimate studio audience, “I love you too.”
After “If Now Was Then,” the band left the stage as Maggie took to the piano for a stripped down and vulnerable performance of “I Still Do.” Overwhelmed by the emotion of the obviously very personal song, Rogers took a beat at the back of the stage to breathe deeply as her band returned to the stage, before asking the audience for three minutes to regroup backstage. Returning to an adoring crowd lifting her up with applause, Rogers was brought back to high spirits as she continued with selections from Surrender: “Anywhere With You,” and “That’s Where I Am.”
Closing out the night with “All the Same” and “Don’t Forget Me,” Rogers and her talented band took the studio audience through what felt like the nostalgic hills and valleys of a long lost relationship, but through the matured perspective of someone with clear eyes and a full tank of gas. Catch Maggie Roger’s Season 50 episode later this year on PBS, in celebration of 50 years of Austin City Limits.
Maggie Rogers performs on Austin City Limits, May 30, 2024. Photos by Scott Newton.
Listen to the full set list from the Austin City Limits taping below:
Nickel Creek returned to the Austin City Limits stage Sunday, May 5 for their fourth performance over a 25-year period, in continued support for their 2023 release of fifth album, Celebrants, coming off a nine-year hiatus in releasing new material. With their debut in 1999, Terry Lickona mentioned in introducing them that “they were teenagers when they came on the show the first time,” sharing an episode from their second performance on ACL with none other than Dolly Parton. Siblings Sara Watkins (fiddle, guitar, vocals) and Sean Watkins (guitar, vocals), with Chris Thile (mandolin, mandola, bouzouki, vocals) and Jeff Picker (bass, vocals) came onstage jumping for joy and hyping up the crowd. They began the dazzling hour with “Where the Long Line Leads,” “The Lighthouse’s Tale,” and the instrumental “Going Out…,” with Chris Thile pausing in between to reflect on their fourth visit to ACL, “We’re not teenagers anymore…”
In title track, “Celebrants,” the band clapped rhythmically in unison, pairing that enthusiasm with whimsical licks from the mandolin, with Thile switching between the mandolin, mandola and bouzouki throughout the set. Sara Watkins wielded her fiddle with expert showmanship, with band member introductions before and after “Strangers.” Jeff Picker and Sean Watkins grounded the set with consistency and self-assurance only earned from years of growth and experience. In fact the underlying tone of the set seemed to be an introspective look at growth with a fond acceptance of where they’re currently at musically and in life, and embracing those in between moments.
The trio shared one microphone for “Water under the bridge Part 1,” with their flawless harmonies dipping and diving into low and high registers, showcasing their skillful range. Their infectious energy proved they were truly having fun onstage, which the studio audience definitely seemed to pick up on and feed off, clapping along throughout the set.
Sara prefaced “Thinnest Wall,” with a few background notes, “We would like to address the relationship part of relationships where you’re in there dealing with all the stuff,” with the song being a look at the “beautiful monotony of the in between.”
“To the Airport,” featured an impassioned monologue about Amy’s Ice Cream from Chris Thile, followed by a vocals-only section where the trio harmonized perfectly to a quietly intent audience. Followed by fiddle tune, “Cuckoo’s Nest,” the second half of the hour picked up in energy, leading the group to a strong finish with “New Blood,” “Smoothie Song,” and “The Fox,” with Sara chiming in between songs, “It’s so special to us to get to do ACL.” With that the band did a choreographed jump and bow, and walked offstage momentarily before returning to perform an encore of “When in Rome,” and “Holding Pattern.” Catch the taping of Nickel Creek later this year as part of Austin City Limits’ special 50th anniversary season.
Nickel Creek performs on Austin City Limits, May 5, 2024. Photos by Scott Newton.
Listen to the full set list from the Austin City Limits taping below:
To commemorate the 50th anniversary of Austin City Limits, Zilker Belts has designed and produced two custom leather belts, the Spotlight and Backstage, featuring signature black Argentine leather expertly hand-stitched in Buenos Aires with tonal grey and gold nylon thread, incorporating the iconic Austin City Limits logo.
Zilker Belts values handmade artistry and are passionate about bringing traditional Argentine fashion to our hometown of Austin and beyond. We’re thrilled to partner with a brand like Zilker Belts, music lovers through and through, whose passion for their city is reinforced by their Zilker Sessions and collaborations with other Austin brands like SXSW, Luck Reunion, and The Daytripper, to name a few.
DON’T KNOW YOUR SIZE? A good rule when choosing a Zilker Belt is to go 2” larger than your pants’ waist size. So if you typically wear size 34 jeans, order a size 36 belt. For odd sizes, we suggest ordering 3” larger to be safe (ex. – choose a size 38 Zilker Belt for size 35 jeans).
Belts will also be sold at the merch table at Austin City Limits tapings and other events, and are available to purchase online HERE.
Brittany Howard performs on Austin City Limits, 2024. Photo by Scott Newton.
Powerhouse singer/songwriter Brittany Howard took the Austin City Limits stage for her fourth outing Monday night with an electric hour, showcasing latest album What Now, along with highlights from her acclaimed 2019 solo debut Jaime mixed into a dazzling set. Having formerly taped two episodes with her band Alabama Shakes, followed by a phenomenal solo Austin City Limits debut in 2021 for Season 47, the studio audience was buzzing with anticipation to experience new solo work from the ACL favorite.
“We’re so happy to be here,” smiled Howard, who emerged from backstage wearing a sparkling floor-length caftan dress that shone just as bright as her onstage presence.
Brittany and band enraptured the audience right out of the gate with What Now opening tracks “Earth Sign,” and “I Don’t.” Recorded during the pandemic, What Now is an affirming genre experimentation with existential lyrics that at times take a heady psychedelic turn. Mixing in some selects off Jaime, by the time Howard pulled out crowd favorite “Stay High,” the audience was ready to sing along. Howard let out a friendly laugh mid-song at the audience’s enthusiastic recognition of the hit.
Following new tunes “Red Flags” and “Samson,” the unstoppable frontwoman forayed into playing a suite of songs from Jaime, including “Baby,” “History Repeats,” “Georgia,” and a very moody “Goat Head,” with her stellar band and longtime backing vocalists Shanay Johnson and Karita Law fading in the meditative groove from a skillfully controlled almost-silence. Songs faded into each other, with trippy segues into meditative guitar by Alex Chakour and Brad Allan Williams piggybacked by a keys solo from Paul Horton to bookend “Georgia.” Howard let out an energetic scream in “History Repeats,” followed by a killer drum break in “13th Century Metal,” courtesy of drummer Nate Smith that inspired an audience clap-along.
The latter portion of the set became introspective and vulnerable, with new track “To Be Still” performed with just her ace backing vocalists and guitarist Brad Allan Williams accompanying Howard’s vocals. Her soaring voice in “Every Color in Blue,” further confirmed her status as one of music’s greatest vocalists.
“Live music is such an important thing, you know,” offered Howard as her remaining band members left her alone centerstage. Switching to an acoustic guitar, she shared, “I saw my first live band play when I was eleven years old, and it was from that moment that I decided that this was what I wanted to do. And I studied hard and I worked real hard, taught myself how to play, and I taught myself how to write songs, and now I get to be here with all of ya’ll.” With that she launched into a heartfelt “Short and Sweet,” ending the performance and walking offstage.
The audience rhythmically clapped Brittany and band back onstage for an encore featuring a trio of songs from What Now: “Interlude,” “Another Day” and the title track, a perfect end to a transformative set. We can’t wait for you to see it when it airs this fall on PBS as part of our golden anniversary Season 50.
Brittany Howard performs on Austin City Limits, April 29, 2024. Photos by Scott Newton.
Listen to the full set list from the Austin City Limits taping below:
We here at Austin City Limits TV would like to wish a very happy birthday to the one and only Willie Nelson, 91 years young today. Willie has, of course, a long history with ACL, beginning with our pilot episode in 1975 and continuing through multiple (and we mean multiple) headlining shows, songwriters specials and guest appearances. He’s a local, state and national treasure, and we hope he’s still twanging away on Trigger when he hits 100. Happy birthday, Willie!
Willie performs on Austin City Limits through the years. From left to right: Season 1 pilot, Season 44, Season 6, Season Season 5
