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Encore Broadcast Episode Recap Featured News

Encore: Florence + the Machine and Andra Day

Austin City Limits presents a breathtaking hour with two of today’s most inspirational acts: Florence + the Machine in their return appearance and Andra Day in a standout ACL debut.

UK hitmakers Florence + the Machine first-appeared on the ACL stage in 2012. Now international superstars and one of rock’s biggest live acts, the unstoppable band make a triumphant return with a high-energy, buoyant five-song set. Dynamic leader Florence Welch dances barefoot across the stage performing songs from their recent, chart-topping LP How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful. Her knockout vocals and remarkable rapport with fans captivate throughout as she enlists the crowd as a “hungover choir of angels” for the Grammy-nominated “Shake It Out” from 2011’s Ceremonials, closing with a rapturous performance of the band’s 2009 breakthrough smash, the anthemic “Dog Days Are Over.”

“Florence brings a unique performance art to all of her shows, and she took it to a new level this night,” says ACL executive producer Terry Lickona. “She went out of her way to establish a real connection with her audience, and at times the fans seemed to be as much a part of the show as she was. It’s very magical to watch it happen in real time.”

Rising star Andra Day dazzles with her unique mix of R&B, soul and jazz in her first ACL outing, performing songs from her Grammy-nominated debut Cheers to the Fall. A singer with astounding vocal range, she showcases her powerhouse vocals in a stellar, four-song set. The performance turns topical as Day addresses the events of the Orlando tragedy (her taping was the same day) and dedicates her anthem of resilience “Rise Up” to the victims and their families. In a raw, emotionally cathartic moment, she asks the audience to join her in song sending healing energy in the hopes that the families might feel some comfort. Closing with a cover of Queen’s “I Want It All,” altering the original’s rock arrangement into a pleading blues ballad, the song brings the singer to her knees and the audience to their feet.

“It was the day of the Orlando tragedy, and emotions were already running high,” says Lickona. “Andra’s powerful performance reminded us all that music can be a universal healer and a force for good. When she sang ‘Rise Up,’ there was hardly a dry eye in the house.”

photo by Scott Newton

Tune in this weekend for this episode, and, as always, check your local PBS listings for the broadcast time in your area. Go to the episode page for more info, and don’t forget to click over to our Facebook, Twitter and newsletter pages for more ACL info. Tune in next week for an encore episode featuring the ACL debut of Zac Brown Band.

 

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Featured Live Stream News

ACL to live stream St. Vincent’s 5/14 taping

Austin City Limits is excited to announce that we will be live streaming our highly anticipated taping with the amazing St. Vincent and her band on May 14, 2018. We’ll be beaming live directly from the ACL stage at 8pm CT/9 pm ET on ACLTV’s YouTube channel.

First appearing on ACL in 2009, the groundbreaking Texas native—born Annie Clark—is currently touring in support of her critically-acclaimed fifth album MASSEDUCTION.  The New York Times’ Jon Pareles named it his #1 album of 2017 hailing St. Vincent and the album as “precise, unblinking, and in control unlike any since David Bowie.”  

Following 2014’s Grammy-winning Alternative Album of the Year, the eponymous St. Vincent, MASSEDUCTION reaffirms St. Vincent’s standing as one of the most innovative presences in modern music. The mass seduction of the album’s title is a bold, emotional reckoning, largely themed around power — or as Clark specifies, “All the forces that can swallow you whole.” MASSEDUCTION’s songs flesh out these themes as a mosaic of St. Vincent’s own experiences: “You can’t fact-check it, it’s not a diary entry, but if you want to know about my life, listen to this record.”

One of music’s most thrilling live acts, St. Vincent’s recent shows have wowed fans and critics the world over, with Variety citing, “Annie Clark’s ownership of the stage felt like fearless evidence that rock’s future might actually be female… she’s got enough style, ambition, chops, and complications for a half-dozen rock auteurs.”

Join us on May 14 for this full-set live stream on our ACLTV YouTube channel. The broadcast version will air on PBS later this year as part of our upcoming Season 44.

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Encore Broadcast Episode Recap Featured News

Encore: Ed Sheeran

Austin City Limits presents a dazzling hour featuring one of today’s most popular artists: Ed Sheeran. The worldwide superstar returns to the ACL stage in a stunning solo performance showcasing fan favorites and hit songs from his blockbuster album ÷ (Divide), the biggest-selling album of 2017.

Next generation singer-songwriter Sheeran shines in a ten-song tour de force, opening with the soaring anthem “Castle on the Hill,” one of the latest classics from his double-platinum Divide, Sheeran’s third studio album. “I feel this is going to be quite fun tonight,” enthuses the 26-year-old British phenom who first appeared on ACL in 2014. The one-man marvel performs solo with only his guitar and a loop pedal to layer his vocals, in a striking, intimate hour. Sheeran thrills with career highlights including his breakthrough hit “The A Team,” “Thinking Out Loud,” (which won him his first two Grammy Awards in 2016), and “Perfect,” a stunner from Divide Sheeran calls “my favorite song I’ve ever written.” The Austin audience is happy to follow his lead for the show-stopping set-closer “Shape of You,” the record-breaking chart-topper which recently became Spotify’s most-streamed song ever with over 1 billion plays. The musical dynamo is transcendent as he jumps from amp to amp, while working his loop pedal, drumming on his guitar and directing the willing crowd in a euphoric sing-along.

“There aren’t enough superlatives to describe Ed Sheeran’s many successes, but underlying everything is a genuine talent that makes him stand out,” says ACL executive producer Terry Lickona. “What’s remarkable is that at 26 his songs have connected with so many fans literally all over the globe. This is the first time that his unique one-man show has been captured for a full hour on broadcast television.”

Ed Sheeran on Austin City Limits ©️KLRU by Scott Newton

Tune in this weekend for this episode, and, as always, check your local PBS listings for the broadcast time in your area. Go to the episode page for more info, and don’t forget to click over to our Facebook, Twitter and newsletter pages for more ACL info. This episode will also feature on American Airlines’ in-flight entertainment channel in June. Join us next week for an encore featuring two of today’s most exciting rock and soul artists: Florence + the Machine and Andra Day.

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Encore Broadcast Episode Recap Featured News

Encore: Band of Horses and Parker Millsap

Austin City Limits showcases modern roots rock with two American originals: indie favorites Band of Horses and acclaimed singer-songwriter Parker Millsap.

South Carolina indie-folk rockers Band of Horses made their ACL debut in 2010 and return to perform time-honed classics alongside new gems from their fifth studio album Why Are You Ok? The Charleston-based quintet, led by dynamic frontman Ben Bridwell, kick off the upbeat seven-song set with the classic, “Is There A Ghost” from their 2007 album Cease To Begin. The band strips down to an acoustic trio for the early career hit “Part One,” circling a single microphone to capture their lush three-part harmonies. New songs “Throw My Mess,” “Hag” and “In A Drawer,” showcase the band’s melodic range, and lead into the raucous set-closing anthem, fan favorite “The General Specific.”

Oklahoman singer-songwriter Parker Millsap has set the Americana world on fire with his songs, his voice and his impassioned live show. Raised in the Pentecostal church, Millsap is filled with a fire-and-brimstone fervor that fuels his gospel-tinged lyrics and gives way to Buddy Holly-esque rockabilly ravers. The 23-year-old rising star opens his ACL debut with the apocalyptic title track from his sophomore album The Very Last Day. Millsap’s “talent for bringing convincing, complex characters to life” (NPR) is evident in the set’s centerpiece, “Heaven Sent,” which has the singer taking on the role of a gay son searching for his preacher father’s acceptance. Millsap closes out the standout performance with a soaring, fiddle-accompanied take on the blues classic “You Gotta Move,” then concludes with a howling, impassioned performance of his own hard-hitting “Hades Pleads,” which gets the appreciative ACL audience on their feet for a well-deserved ovation.

photo by Scott Newton

“Their songs are at the heart of what makes both Band of Horses and Parker Millsap so special,” says ACL executive producer Terry Lickona. “Band of Horses are at the top of their game, lyrically and melodically, and Parker Millsap’s songwriting is story-telling at its very best. This is a show you where you should turn off the lights and turn up the volume.”

Tune in this weekend for this episode, and, as always, check your local PBS listings for the broadcast time in your area. Go to the episode page for more info, and don’t forget to click over to our Facebook, Twitter and newsletter pages for more ACL info. Tune in next week for an encore episode from the one and only Cyndi Lauper.  

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Encore Broadcast Featured News

Encore: Iggy Pop

Austin City Limits presents a Season 42 highlight: an hour with the one and only Iggy Pop. The larger than life icon gives a king-sized performance in his first-ever ACL appearance, with a mix of classics and songs from his acclaimed 2016 release Post Pop Depression, his first career solo #1 album.  

Bringing new songs to life alongside classics that bookend his storied career, Iggy is joined by the all-star team behind Post Pop Depression: Queens of the Stone Age’s Josh Homme and Dean Fertita and the Arctic Monkeys’ Matt Helders, augmented for the stage with Queens’ Troy Van Leeuwen and indie-rock mainstay Matt Sweeney. Hurtling onstage to open the eleven-song set with “Lust For Life,” the godfather of punk bares his soul and torso in this memorable hour. Shirtless by the second song, the Detroit native performs selections from his first two solo albums, the late 1970s pair of collaborations with David Bowie, The Idiot and Lust for Life, including rarely performed gems “Some Weird Sin” and “China Girl.” A raucous “Funtime” features Josh Homme taking the vocal sung by co-writer Bowie on the original version. Iggy launches into new classics fitting perfectly into his solo catalog, featuring tight, punchy marvels that embellish his earlier work. Displaying his uniquely animated stage presence, the veteran rock ‘n’ roll warrior thrills with several forays deep into the crowd, saying “This is a pretty good job.”

“There’s never been another show quite like this one, and that’s saying a lot!” says ACL executive producer Terry Lickona. “Iggy is an ageless, timeless, human dynamo, and he took command of the stage, the cameras, the whole building. This show captures the essence of what makes Iggy Pop the godfather of punk rockers.”

photo by Scott Newton

Tune in this weekend for this episode, and, as always, check your local PBS listings for the broadcast time in your area. Go to the episode page for more info, and don’t forget to click over to our Facebook, Twitter and newsletter pages for more ACL info. Join us next week for another encore episode, starring Band of Horses and Parker Millsap.

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Episode Recap Featured New Broadcast News

ACL’s 43rd season closes out with country rockers Chris Stapleton and Turnpike Troubadours

Austin City Limits closes out Season 43 with a scorcher: country superstar Chris Stapleton, riding country’s hottest hand with a trio of acclaimed, chart-topping albums and a trio of newly-minted 2018 Grammy Awards, sharing an episode with one of roots music’s most revered acts, red-dirt country-rockers Turnpike Troubadours.

After years penning hits for some of Nashville’s biggest acts, singer, songwriter and guitarist Chris Stapleton took the country world by storm in 2015 with his multi-platinum, double Grammy-winning debut Traveller. Just three years later, Stapleton is the reigning CMA Male Vocalist of the Year, and a five-time Grammy winner, taking a trio of top honors at this year’s ceremony, including Album of the Year for From A Room: Volume 1. The Kentucky native delivers a powerhouse ACL debut with a blistering six-song set fueled by his show-stopping voice, searing guitar and stellar songwriting. Opening with “Hard Livin’,” from his latest, the companion album From A Room: Volume 2, Stapleton follows with an early hit, the crowd-favorite folk-rambler “Traveller.” Joined by wife Morgane on harmony vocals, the couple wrap their voices around each other for the spellbinding gut-punch “Fire Away,” revealing a powerful onstage intimacy, and the pair dazzle on blowtorch stunner “Second One To Know.” Standing solo and acoustic for “Whiskey and You,” the country outlier brings the room to hushed silence pierced only by scattered whoops from the audience between verses. Stapleton closes out the masterful set with the breakout hit from his debut, Southern soul-burner “Tennessee Whiskey,” unleashing the full power of his scorching vocals and earning multiple standing ovations from the can’t-get-enough crowd.

Road-tested country rockers Turnpike Troubadours topped the red-dirt touring circuit this past decade, earning legions of fans the old-fashioned way, through word-of-mouth for their rousing live shows anchored by frontman Evan Felker’s singular songwriting. Their acclaimed new release A Long Way From Your Heart has launched the Oklahoma sextet onto the national stage, and the band opens their ACL debut with the album’s lead song “The Housefire.” The Troubadours perform a six-song, career-spanning set with Felker’s trademark character-driven tunes exploding behind rowdy strings. Throughout their four albums, the band has used a running cast of characters to weave a narrative for their dedicated fans with songs that chronicle the highs, hangovers and heartbreaks of Middle America. “Tell everyone in Austin I love y’all to death” yells Felker during the blazing crowd-pleaser “Before the Devil Knows We’re Dead.” Steel guitarist Hank Early switches to a Dobro for an acoustic duet with Felker on “Diamonds and Gasoline.” Felker calls out to bring the band back for set-closer “Something To Hold Onto,” as the ace musicians ignite in a three-way solo blaze of glory with Early, lead guitarist Ryan Engleman and fiddler Kyle Nix.

photo by Scott Newton

“We take pride in bringing the best of the best of every genre to our audience, and Chris Stapleton is at the top of his game right now,” said ACL executive producer, Terry Lickona. “Few bands on the scene, if any, deliver a better live experience than Turnpike Troubadours, and this show makes you feel like you’re right on the front line.”

Tune in this weekend for this episode, and, as always, check your local PBS listings for the broadcast time in your area. Go to the episode page for more info, and don’t forget to click over to our Facebook, Twitter and newsletter pages for more ACL info. Join us next week for a special encore episode, featuring Ms. Lauryn Hill.