UPDATE giveaway is now over. Austin City Limits will be taping a performance by Spoon on Wednesday, October 19th at 8 pm at ACL Live at The Moody Theater (310 W. 2nd Street, Willie Nelson Blvd). We will be giving away a limited number of passes to this taping. Enter your name and email address on the below form by Monday, October 17th at 2pm.
Winners will be chosen at random and a photo ID will be required to pick up tickets. Winners will be notified via email. Duplicate entries for a single taping will be automatically voided. Tickets are not transferable and will be voided if sold. Standing may be required. No photography, recording or cell phone use in the studio. No cameras, computers or recording devices allowed in the venue.
Pavement on Austin City Limits, Oct. 2022. Photo by Scott Newton.
It’s no exaggeration to say that Pavement is one of the most influential bands in indie rock since the days of the Velvet Underground. The five-piece from Stockton, California rewrote the rules of how rock & roll could be presented, using a slacker veneer suffused in irony to disguise superior songcraft and musicianship, scoring underground hits with “Cut Your Hair,” “Range Life” and “Harness Your Hopes,” among others. The band’s influence even went so far as to have their late-period tune “Spit On a Stranger” covered by Nickel Creek during their 2002 ACL taping. So we were pleased to have the original band on our stage, as the band continues its recent reunion tour marking the 30th Anniversary of their seminal debut Slanted & Enchanted with their first-ever ACL taping.
Coming onstage to wild applause, the quintet – singer/guitarist Stephen Malkmus, guitarist Scott “Spiral Stairs” Kannberg, bassist Mark Ibold (last seen on our stage with Sonic Youth in Season 36) and drummers Steve West and Bob Nastanovich, plus guest keyboardist Rebecca Cole – opened with “Grounded,” a languorous rocker from the band’s third album Wowee Zowee. “Summer Babe,” a near-perfect example of Pavement’s patented tight-but-loose approach to guitar rock, followed, revealing what caught the ears of rock cognoscenti with the release of Slanted & Enchanted, their 1992 debut album from which the tune hails. The band kept the engine running even hotter with “Stereo,” a blazer from Brighten the Corners that revels in discordance as much as tunefulness and earned huge cheers. Malkmus turned up the jangle with the intro to “Black Out,” his laconic singing offsetting the song’s inherent prettiness, before the crunch returned with the rock anthem “Embassy Row,” during which Nastanovich wandered the stage, blurting into his microphone. The brief “Zurich is Stained” was followed by the power popping “Trigger Cut,” one of those songs you don’t realize you know until you find yourself singing along.
Nastanovich then took the mic for the ranting, raving “Two States,” one of the group’s not-too-subtle nods to British postpunks the Fall, one of Pavement’s chief inspirations. After that short sharp shock, Malkmus brought the band back to (relative) sanity with the dreamy, psychedelic “Type Slowly,” which let the bandleader take an extended guitar solo. Fan favorite and streaming champ “Harness Your Hopes” arrived next, its laid back pop melody inspiring loud noise from the crowd. The hits kept coming with the equally catchy “Spit On a Stranger,” another late period Pavement perennial. “Unfair” once again featured the stage-prowling Nastanovich, providing more unhinged shouting to contrast with Malkmus’ languid croon. Pavement then went into the less frenetic “We Dance,” before giving Kannberg the spotlight for the rock ‘n’ rolling “Painted Soldiers,” the band’s contribution to the Kids in the Hall’s film Brain Candy that elicited some surprised cheers. That led into “Fin,” another dynamic ballad that lulls us into a false sense of calm before the guitars take over.
That served as a palette cleanser, however, for the final round. The band launched into its penultimate song, and one of its biggest faves, with “Range Life,” a sort of reworking of pastoral country rock that took shots at more famous nineties rocker of their era. There was only one way to close the show, as became obvious with the familiar “whoo-hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo” that begins “Cut Your Hair,” the band’s Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain favorite that garnered fevered applause from the audience. This wasn’t so much a nostalgia show as it was proof that great songs hold up over time, and we can’t wait for you to see it when it airs early next year as part of our Season 48 on your local PBS station.
Pavement tapes Austin City Limits, Oct. 10, 2022. Photos by Scott Newton.
UPDATE giveaway is now over. Austin City Limits will be taping a performance by The War on Drugs on Sunday, October 16th at 8 pm at ACL Live at The Moody Theater (310 W. 2nd Street, Willie Nelson Blvd). We will be giving away a limited number of passes to this taping. Enter your name and email address on the below form by Thursday, October 13th at 2 pm.
Winners will be chosen at random and a photo ID will be required to pick up tickets. Winners will be notified via email. Duplicate entries for a single taping will be automatically voided. Tickets are not transferable and will be voided if sold. Standing may be required. No photography, recording or cell phone use in the studio. No cameras, computers or recording devices allowed in the venue.
Adrian Quesada performs with Girl Ultra on Austin City Limits, Oct. 2022. Photo by Scott Newton.
We all found different ways to pass the time during the pandemic. Famed Austin guitarist and producer Adrian Quesada spent his time listening to classics from the balada movement of the 1970s Latin music world, becoming so enchanted he decided to record an album of songs in that style himself. Boleros Psicodélicos – literally “psychedelic boleros” – features guest vocalists from across the spectrum of contemporary Latin music, from indie rock to grand pop, garnering accolades across the board. For this special ACL taping, which is only the second time this music has been performed live, Quesada welcomed eight sensational guest vocalists to the stage, nearly every singer from the album, to bring to life their album performances, plus some special additional songs.
Dressed in variations on basic black, Quesada and his nine-piece band (including strings, horn, vibraphone and keyboardist Jaron Marshall from Quesada’s other band Black Pumas) opened the show with “Starry Nights,” a lush and funky instrumental taken from Jaguar Sound, his forthcoming LP that draws inspiration from library music, hip-hop, psychedelia and Italian film scores. Following that scene-setter, Quesada brought on Mireya Ramos, the leader of New York’s all-female mariachi Flor de Toloache, for the first song from Boleros Psicodélicos: “Tus Tormentas,” a ballad with a laidback hip-hop backbeat and spectacular singing and violin from Ramos. Marshall then laid down some ethereal organ as an intro to “El León,” a swaying, melodramatic bossa nova featuring Chicago rocker Rudy de Anya. Mexico City’s sultry R&B Latin singer Girl Ultra took the stage for a pair of tunes: the original ballad “El Payaso,” which featured a ringing solo from vibraphonist Carolyn Trowbridge, and a cover of the groovy “Trigal,” a 1969 hit for Argentine singer Sandro.
“How does this happen? You’re all here singing along to boleros at ACL Live,” noted Quesada happily, mentioning the chills he gets from playing in front of the iconic ACL backdrop. He then welcomed potent singer Angelica Garcia for another combo, starting with the opulent “Puedes Decir De Mi,” from the catalog of Cuban superstar La Lupe that earned a wave of applause, and ending with the sweeping, sensual original song “Ídolo.” Subbing for the absent Gabriel Garzón-Montano and carrying a colorful parasol, Mexico-to-Austin vocalist and Jumbo frontman Clemente Castillo joined the band for “El Paraguas,” an acid-tinged ballad in waltz time with a dynamic Quesada guitar solo. Explaining the concept of the album, Quesada welcomed to the stage Argentinian singer and Thievery Corporation associate Natalia Clavier, the first singer to grasp Quesada’s concept by recording “Esclavo y Amo,” a drama-filled 1975 hit from Pervuian/Mexican band Los Pasteles Verdes. She also performed the sprightly, synth-frosted, rock-accented tune “¡Adios!,” which she previously recorded with another of Quesada’s projects, the Echocentrics. Rising young Guatemelan singer Tita then came on to perform the sentimental, seductive “El Muchaco De Los Ojos Tristes,” a 1982 hit from Spanish singer Jeanette.
Quesada closed the show with a back-to-back dose of star power, as vocalist iLe – former frontwoman of Puerto Rican powerhouse Calle 13 and sister of ACL veteran Residente – took the stage for a stirring take on Cuban singer and queen of bolero Olga Guillot’s 1967 hit ballad “Bravo,” to huge audience reaction. She and the band closed the show with the lively Quesada/iLe original “Mentiras Con Cariño,” the opening cut of Boleros Psicodélicos, on which Ramos returned to add her emotional violin soloing. As a coda, Quesada introduced the band and the singers, leading them all in a final bow. It was an incredible show, one not likely to happen again anytime soon, and we can’t wait for you to see it when it airs early next year on your local PBS station as part of our Season 48.
Adrian Quesada brings his Boleros Psicodélicos to Austin City Limits on Oct. 9, 2022. Photos by Scott Newton.
Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats on Austin City Limits, 2022. Photo by Scott Newton.
Few bands are as deft at mixing soul, rock, folk, country and blues as Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats. The Denver combo has proved their bonafides across three albums, not to mention their smokin’ Austin City Limits debut back in 2015. Armed with their excellent LP The Future and an upcoming ACL Fest sure to set Zilker Park on fire, the octet returned to our stage with a powerhouse performance.
“It’s good to be back,” Rateliff remarked before the band went right into “Look It Here,” an effervescent soul stomp from the group’s 2015 debut. The group then touched down on their second record Tearing At the Seams for “You Worry Me,” a less frenetic but no less soulful pop tune. The combo of pop hooks and R&B arrangements continued with “I’m On Your Side,” the first tune from The Future, and “I’ll Be Damned,” with Rateliff putting down his guitar to glide across the stage with his trademark footwork. The band slowed things down to mid-tempo for “Survivor,” the warm R&B tune shot through with guitarist Luke Mossman’s psychedelic distortion and Rateliff’s reverb-heavy rhythm chops. The group shifted to a minor key and added some percussive background “ah’s” for “Baby I’ve Lost My Way,” keeping the vibe going for the surly “So Put Out.”
After thanking both Austin City Limits and the crowd for their support, Rateliff strapped an acoustic guitar back on for “Wasting Time,” which recalled early 70s Van Morrison. The leader then sat down at the Wurlitzer electric piano for “A Little Honey,” a horn-heavy burner in the tradition of Southside Johnny & the Asbury Jukes. “Love Me Until I’m Gone” reached even further back, recapturing a R&B groove not heard since the early sixties, if not the late fifties, and bringing it back to the twenty-first century. Rateliff then brought out the three-piece horn section of baritone saxist Andreas Wild, tenor saxophonist Jeff Dazey and trumpeter Daniel Hardaway for a harmonized intro to the dramatic soul ballad “Face Down in the Moment.”
Rateliff stripped the band down to himself, Mossman and keyboardist Mark Shusterman for the exquisite “And It’s Still Alright,” the reassuring title track to Rateliff’s 2020 solo album that never got its due thanks to the pandemic cutting its tour short. The band returned for the warm ballad “Redemption,” a low-key stunner from the soundtrack to the film Palmer, then gave a shout-out to the mothers of a few bandmembers with the country-inflected “Hey Mama.” The tempo went revving back up for “Coolin’ Out,” an old-fashioned soul banger with a sizzling baritone sax solo that definitely did not follow its title’s advice. That led almost straight into the set’s finale, a one-two punch featuring an unnamed crowd-pumping vamp and the strutting, audience-pleasing “I Need Never Grow Old,” tossing his Telecaster offstage and exiting to wild applause. Of course, the Night Sweats returned to the stage, evoking some Harvest-era Neil Young and the R&B side of the Band with the title track to The Future. Rateliff and the band ended the show with the upbeat rouser “Love Don’t,” leaving the audience happy and exhausted. It was a great rock & soul show, good ‘n’ greasy, and we can’t wait for you to see it when it airs early next year on your local PBS station as part of our Season 48.
Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats perform on Austin City Limits, Oct. 6, 2022. Photos by Scott Newton.
Austin City Limits is thrilled to announce we will be live streaming the highly-anticipated debut taping of alternative rock legends Pavement on Oct. 10 at 8 pm CT. ACL offers fans worldwide the unique opportunity to watch this taping here in its entirety on our ACLTV YouTube Channel. The broadcast episode will air early 2023 on PBS as part of our new Season 48.
Among the most beloved acts to come out of the American underground in the 1990s, Pavement are Mark Ibold, Scott “Spiral Stairs” Kannberg, Stephen Malkmus, Bob Nastanovich and Steve West. Originally from Stockton, California, the band released five era-defining albums – Slanted And Enchanted (1992), Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain (1994), Wowee Zowee (1995), Brighten The Corners (1997) and Terror Twilight (1999) – before disbanding in 1999. With Terror Twilight receiving an expanded reissue, the band reunited this year for its first shows in more than a decade, including a 30th anniversary headline set at Primavera Sound. This fall they will tour throughout the US, EU, UK, and Japan. Pavement’s 2010 reunion saw them play four sold out shows in Central Park and top the bills of festivals worldwide including Coachella, Primavera Sound, and Pitchfork.
Join us hereOctober 10 at 8 p.m. CT for Pavement, and on PBS early next year for the broadcast episode. Tune in to your local PBS station on Saturday nights for brand new episodes of Austin City Limits; watch live on PBS or stream anytime at PBS.org.
