Categories
Taping Recap

Taping recap: Rainbow Kitten Surprise

We always love Austin City Limits debuts, and it’s even better with a young band as fresh and exciting as Rainbow Kitten Surprise. The Boone, North Carolina quintet hit the Moody Theater stage in support of its highly acclaimed third album How To: Friend, Love, Freefall, from which comes the hits “Hide” and “Fever Pitch.” The band presented those and a whole lot more on its first ACL taping, which we live streamed around the world.

The band took the stage to enthusiastic cheers as they launched into the rollicking “Matchbox,” with vocalist/keyboardist/guitar and dancer Sam Melo and bassist/sparkplug Charlie Holt leading the way. The equally effervescent “It’s Called: Freefall” kept the energy level popping, followed by the moodier “Shameful Company,” a showcase for Melo’s soulful vocals. Melo added rapping to his vocal repertoire for “Moody Orange,” traversing a variety of musical moods in a single composition without taking the song anywhere near the rails. Then it was on to “Hide,” one of the singles from Freefall, its anthemic pop crashing into Melo’s bitter cries of “You better hide your love!” Guitarist Darrick “Bozzy” Keller put down his axe to join Melo in front for the theatrical “Devil Like Me,” before re-donning it for the mid-tempo charmer “Cocaine Jesus,” highlighted by a cappella harmonies.

A melancholy piano intro kicked off “When It Lands,” an ambitious, multi-movement composition that showcased each member’s talents. “Wasted” was simpler, but no less impressive, with Melo giving the vocal melody an impressive slow burn. Keller and fellow guitar slinger Ethan Goodpaster exchanged their electrics for acoustics for “Heart (Hey Pretty Mama),” a folky change of pace that was clearly a crowd favorite. The electrics came back for the groovy “All’s Well That Ends,” the better to play those smooth disco rhythm parts. Back at the piano, Melo crooned the intro to the dramatic “Holy War,” before retaking the mic at the front of the stage for the melodic midtempo charmer “Painkillers.” “Hi, we’re Rainbow Kitten Surprise,” said Melo, speaking for the first time between songs.  The band delivered a crowd favorite, “Fever Pitch,” the catchy anthem that brought the group to worldwide attention. The audience went wild as RKS quit the stage.

The fact that the lights didn’t go off signaled that the show wasn’t over. Sure enough they came back for a generous encore, starting with the minimalist “Possum Queen,” essentially a duet between Melo and drummer Jess Haney’s techno-influenced beats. Haney ceded the spotlight solely to Melo for the (mostly) solo “Polite Company.” Following the jaunty “Recktify,” RKS closed out the set with the hard-rocking guitar-frenzy “Run,”Melo doffing his shirt and in-ear monitor to slink around the stage like the rock star he is. The crowd went appropriately crazy.

But it still wasn’t over. Due to technical difficulties, the band decided on re-takes of “Matchbox,” “It’s Called: Freefall” and “When It Lands.” Given that there was nothing wrong performance-wise with the originals, this was a gift to fans for sticking around. It was a nice way to end a stunning show, and we can’t wait for you to see it when it airs this fall on your local PBS station.

Categories
Featured News Taping Recap

Taping recap: Phoebe Bridgers

Phoebe Bridgers, Austin City Limits, 2021. Photo by Scott Newton.

Few songwriters hit the level of acclaim earned by Phoebe Bridgers right out of the box. But the California native captured the hearts and minds of critics and music fans alike with her 2017 debut album Stranger in the Alps, not to mention her work with side bands boygenius (with Julien Baker and ACL alum Lucy Dacus) and Better Oblivion Community Center (with another ACL vet, Conor Oberst). But it was 2020’s Punisher that catapulted her into the ring of stardom, thanks to singles “Kyoto,” “Garden Song” and “Savior Complex” and a raft of Grammy nominations. So we were jazzed to host Bridgers for her debut Austin City Limits taping as she played Punisher from start to finish. 

“All right, let’s do it,” Bridgers said as she and her skeleton-costumed band took the stage, opening with “Motion Sickness,” a highlight from her debut. She moved over to Punisher, starting with the instrumental interlude “DVD Menu,” which led directly into the ethereal “Garden Song.” “This is our first indoor show in two years,” she noted, donning a B.C. Rich Warlock guitar for the sparkling power pop tune “Kyoto,” frosted with JJ Kirkpatrick’s trumpet fills. Putting aside her axe, she plucked the mic from its stand and joined pianist Nicholas White on his stand for the shimmering ballad that acts as the title track for Punisher. She kept the mood downcast and beautiful for “Halloween,”  a song keyed in on Bridgers’ three-part harmony with drummer Marshall Vore and violinist/guitarist Emily Kohavi. Guitarist Harrison Whitford contributed vocal counterpoint to the coda as well. 

Bridgers strapped on her acoustic guitar for another Alps number, the melancholy “Funeral.” Electric guitar came back for the epic “Chinese Satellite,” a masterfully crafted blend of the personal and political. That was followed by the carefully detailed “Moon Song,” a heartbreaking portrait of a relationship’s slow disintegration. She followed with the equally emotionally fragile “Savior Complex,” before getting more assertive with “ICU,” a song inspired by a political argument in a Whole Foods parking lot. Her band recalibrated itself so that Vore could come forward to play banjo alongside Kohvai’s violin for the semi-acoustic beauty “Graceland Too.” “Thanks for coming,” Bridgers said as she prepped for the final song. “This is wild. It’s been a dream.” She and the band ended the set appropriately with “I Know the End,” the epic that concludes Punisher, going out in a hail of freeform noise and distortion. Bridgers kicked her mic stand over, waved to the crowd, and was gone as the amps fed back. The show was an auspicious debut for a remarkable singer/songwriter, and we can’t wait for you to see it when it airs later this December on your local PBS station. 

Phoebe Bridgers tapes Austin City Limits, October 2021. Photos by Scott Newton.
Categories
Featured News Taping Recap

Taping recap: Pavement

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.

Categories
News Taping Recap

Taping recap: Patty Griffin and Steve Earle & The Dukes

Singer/songwriters Patty Griffin and Steve Earle have been frequent visitors to the ACL stage in the past couple of decades. Griffin first appeared in 2000 as part of a songwriters’ special, getting her own show the next year, while Earle debuted way back in 1987. It’s always a pleasure to welcome back old friends, and doubly so under such special circumstances: Griffin to showcase songs from her highly-acclaimed, self-released and self-titled new album, and Earle, joined by some special guests, spotlighting Guy, his tribute to his songwriting mentor Guy Clark. Both turned in shows for the ages, which we live streamed around the world.  

Patty Griffin comes off of a four-year hiatus while the singer dealt with breast cancer, and her performance pulled generously from it. After a boisterous welcome from the crowd, she opened with the album’s “Mama’s Worried,” essentially a duet between David Pulkingham’s flamenco guitar and her own resonant singing. Next up was “The Wheel,” a bluesy declaration built on its writer’s jagged rhythm guitar and multi-instrumentalist Conrad Choucroun’s bass guitar/kick-drum rhythm. She followed with “Boys From Tralee,” a Celtic folk-tinged tune about Irish immigrants (of which Griffin’s grandparents were two), tying it into the current situation at the U.S. border. From the Emerald Isle to the American swamp: Griffin moved back to her 2004 LP Impossible Dream for the shuffling, tremolo-heavy “Standing,” allowing her to draw from her love of gospel. But she quickly shifted from the sacred to the secular, with the sly “Hourglass,” inspired by the great Screamin’ Jay Hawkins and featuring a Pulkingham solo that earned cheers. 

Guitars went to their stands as Pulkingham moved to the piano and his boss to the mic for the gorgeous “Luminous Places,” a well-titled standout from Patty Griffin. Then it was on to the “Truth #2,” a fan favorite, as evidenced by the cheers at the opening chords, and “Where I Come From,” a narrative Patty Griffin highlight. “River,” the self-titled album’s single, once again showcased her rich vocals, accompanied by Pulkingham’s acoustic guitar and the ridiculously multi-tasking Choucroun on piano, and greatly appreciated by the audience. Wielding a mandolin, Griffin finished her set with the rocking, inspirational “Shine a Different Way,” to the crowd’s delight. 

photo by Scott Newton

Joined by his long-running five-piece band The Dukes, Earle hit the stage kicking off his Guy Clark tribute with the classic “Dublin Blues,” receiving exuberant cheers at the opening line “Wish I was in Austin.” Earle immediately went into “Texas 1947,” featuring the expert pedal steel work of Ricky Ray Jackson. After sharing a short story about how he met Guy Clark while hitchhiking around Texas, the band performed the ode to the Hill Country honky-tonkin’ queen “Rita Ballou,” featuring Eleanor Whitmore on violin. Following a tale about Clark’s loyalty to Texas BBQ over Tennessee style BBQ, Joe Ely joined Earle on stage to perform “Desperadoes Waiting For a Train” – two Texas music legends trading verses on one of the state’s most influential songs. The Dukes quit the stage temporarily, so Earle could essay “The Last Gunfighter Ballad,” a Clark song made famous by Johnny Cash and Willie Nelson. The band returned for “The Randall Knife,” one of Clark’s most autobiographical and arresting tunes, followed by the beloved “L.A. Freeway,” one of his most famous. With Earle donning his mandolin, he and The Dukes got acoustic for “New Cut Road,” an explicitly bluegrass-flavored tune that threw another spotlight on Whitmore, as well as her flatpicking husband Chris Masterson. After introducing the band, Earle went into “Heartbroke,” going through the first verse before being joined onstage by another Clark mentee – songwriting great Rodney Crowell, who originally recorded the song in 1980, before it became a hit for Ricky Skaggs in 1982. 

“I guess I should play a couple of songs of mine so y’all won’t think Guy didn’t teach me anything,” Earle quipped before launching into “Guitar Town,” the song that put him on the map as a writer and performer. After that hit, there was only one other song The Dukes could hit, and sure enough: the opening synth riff of “Copperhead Road” – the powerhouse rocker that served notice that Earle was simply country – got the crowd going wild. “That’s what Guy taught me,” he asserted. After that explosion, Earle brought Crowell and Ely back, joined by Lubbock legends Terry and Jo Harvey Allen, for “Old Friends,” Clark’s beautiful evocation of friendship, with each singer taking one of the spoken verses. Earle led the audience in a round of the chorus, before an instrumental coda and the singers laying down one last “old friends” to close. A better elegy for Clark would be hard to imagine. It was a beautiful moment, and we can’t wait for you to see it when it airs this fall on your local PBS station. 

 

Categories
Featured News Taping Recap

Taping recap: Pat Benatar & Neil Giraldo

Pat Benatar & Neil Giraldo on Austin City Limits, 2023. Photo by Scott Newton.

When Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo took the Austin City Limits stage for their very first taping, they did so in front of a crowd that was, to put it plainly, stoked. So it was appropriate that the freshly-minted Rock & Roll Hall of Famers and their rhythm section of bassist Mick Mahan and drummer Tony Pia kicked off the evening with “All Fired Up,” the mid-eighties hit that celebrates the power of their epic style. Of course, that efficacy was evident throughout the evening, as singer Benatar and guitarist Giraldo consistently raised the flag for evergreen rock. 

by Scott Newton for Austin City Limits and Austin PBS

The ever-smiling married couple took us on a high-energy, career-spanning journey of their impressive, near-five-decade, Grammy-laden catalog, from the powerhouse “Sex As a Weapon” and the empowerment paean “Girl” to the soaring rocker “We Live For Love” and the fiery Rascals cover “You Better Run.” “We love this song as much as you do, as it’s a song that brings people together,” Benatar noted as she sat on a red stool beside the grand piano. Giraldo tickled the ivories for “We Belong,” one of the married duo’s biggest hits, and one that Benatar sang with the kind of passion that meant she believed it every time she sang “We belong together!” The rousing “Invincible” got the blood pumping, while the steely “Hell is For Children” roared with righteous anger – nobody does rock anthems like Benatar and Giraldo. Need more proof? The set-ending “Love is a Battlefield” grooved and blasted across the firmament like the classic it is, earning huge applause. The duo returned for a ripping encore of “Heartbreaker,” from Benatar’s 1979 debut, which she called “the song that started it all,” within which they interpolated Johnny Cash’s immortal “Ring of Fire,” let the crowd sing a chorus, and ended on, of all things, an electrified Irish jig and a standing ovation. It’s always good to see veteran performers like Benatar and Giraldo who clearly still enjoy what they do for a living, and that onstage joy transferred to the eager audience and the camera for what will be an amazing episode when it airs as part of our upcoming Season 49. 

Pat Benatar – lead vocals

Neil Giraldo – guitars, piano, vocals

Mick Mahan – bass

Tony Pia – drums

Setlist:

All Fired Up – Wide Awake in Dreamland

Sex As a Weapon – Seven the Hard Way

We Live For Love – In the Heat of the Night

Promises in the Dark – Precious Time

Girl – Go

We Belong – Tropico

Everybody Lay Down – Gravity’s Rainbow

Invincible- Seven the Hard Way

Shadows of the Night – Get Nervous

Hell is For Children – Crimes of Passion

You Better Run – Crimes of Passion

Love is a Battlefield – Live From Earth

Encore:

Heartbreaker/Ring of Fire – In the Heat of the Night, Johnny Cash cover

Categories
Featured News Taping Recap

Taping recap: Parker McCollum

Parker McCollum on Austin City Limits, 2022. Photo by Scott Newton.

It’s only a slight exaggeration to say that Texas music is synonymous with singer/songwriters. Not only that, but a certain special breed of singers and tunesmiths, whose ears are wide open to different sounds and whose Lone Star roots are deeply embedded within their music. Raised in the East Texas town of Conroe and seasoned at Austin’s own Saxon Pub, Parker McCollum is the fastest rising country star in the new generation, with a major label contract, a best-selling album in Gold Chain Cowboy, a just-announced nomination for  New Artist of the Year at this year’s upcoming Country Music Awards, and, now, his debut on Austin City Limits, which we live streamed around the world.  

“It’s the first time I get to say it,”  said the baseball-capped singer as he took his position at center stage. “What’s goin’ on, Austin City Limits?” He and his ace six-piece band then launched into the heartland rock of “Young Man’s Blues,” a cut from his 2020 Hollywood Gold EP that introduced McCollum to the wider world. The musicians wasted no time, going straight into the rocking but romantic “Wait Outside,” from his breakthrough  Gold Chain Cowboy. “I don’t know how many bands started out at the Saxon and then did a live Austin City Limits taping, but we’re certainly one of ‘em,” remarked McCollum wryly before singing “Stoned,” a new song destined for the next record. Strumming his acoustic with swagger, McCollum led the band into the anthemic, celebratory “To Be Loved By You.” The singer then went back to his debut album The Limestone Kid for “Meet You in the Middle,” a frisky country rocker with spitfire guitar solos from Brady Beal and Alex Weeden. 

“I hope the gratitude is just radiating off of us tonight,” McCollum smiled, acknowledging his family, introducing his band and singing the ballad “Like a Cowboy” with all the heart in his body. Then he introduced a just released single, the catchy “Handle On You,” which felt like an immediate audience favorite. The open-hearted McCollum mentioned how he had to delay the taping twice, first due to a broken finger and then illness, and he waited to be in top form to get this ACL moment right, and the singer aptly introduced the introspective folk rocker “Rest of My Life” to cheers from the crowd. The band launched into the brash rocker “Fallin’ Apart,” which McCollum noted was co-written by his producer Jon Randall and Miranda Lambert (both last seen on our stage in 2021 memorably debuting their The Marfa Tapes collaboration), along with fellow Texas songwriter Randy Rogers. After that blazer, it was only appropriate to go back to the honky-tonk for the brokenhearted boozer’s ballad “Drinkin’.” That tune segued directly into “Love You Like That,” a lighter-waver both uncertain and hopeful. 

McCollum then monologued about the writing of the next song “Hell of a Year,” explaining how he choked up singing it during soundcheck when he remembered writing it in the drive-thru of an Austin Whataburger, finally feeling like he’d written a good song. He balanced the heart-on-sleeve poignancy of the tune by drolly noting that the song was written about 2017, but gained new resonance in 2020 – “It’s every songwriter’s dream, for a song to be relevant twice.” McCollum returned to the heartland for the widescreen rocker “Why Indiana,” and the already fired-up audience showed their love for the penultimate “Pretty Heart,” the double-platinum first single from Gold Chain Cowboy. McCollum once again expressed his gratitude to his family (many of whom were present in the audience) and to ACL before ending the show with the heartfelt power ballad “I Can’t Breathe,” once again to the crowd’s great delight. The band returned to the stage with “Happy New Year,” a tune from The Limestone Kid that represented not only where he came from but where he’s headed. The music ended, but McCollum didn’t leave the stage – he couldn’t, as he was surrounded by legions of fans and autograph seekers, who he was happy to indulge. It was a hell of a debut show, and we can’t wait for you to see it when it airs this fall on October 29 as part of our upcoming Season 48. 

Parker McCollum tapes Austin City Limits for the first time, Sept. 7, 2022. Photos by Scott Newton.