LIVE REVIEW: Austin City Limits Fest
Words and Photos by kat hans
2025 marked my fourth year attending Austin City Limits, and it easily became my favorite year yet. Every fall, ACL takes over Zilker Park for two weekends of non-stop music from Friday through Sunday. The fest began as a single weekend event in 2002 and has been growing ever since. I’ve been to my fair share of large-scale festivals, but ACL continues to stand out in nearly every way.
Set against the backdrop of downtown Austin, Zilker Park offers a layout that actually makes sense: stages, food areas, restrooms, and merch booths are all thoughtfully spaced out. Local restaurants, food trucks, ice cream shops, and pizza joints serve up just about any kind of cuisine imaginable. Hydration stations to fill up water bottles and CamelBaks are scattered throughout the park. People set up blankets and chairs during non-headliners, which makes for a chiller atmosphere. The fest is getting younger, but there are still plenty of age differences, and the spaciousness of the fest makes hordes of teenagers fairly avoidable.
To beat the Texas heat, tents are scattered throughout the park, offering a moment of sweet, sweet shade, and staff members walk around busy stages passing out free boxed water. This year, the park offered a free T-shirt to any festivalgoer who filled a recycling bag with discarded cans and cups, which made a noticeable difference in the amount of trash left on the grass.
Before the fest
The Continental Club is a must-stop in Austin, especially on the Thursday night before ACL kicks off. You’re guaranteed great live music and a sassy bartender weaving through the crowd with trays in hand. Both historic and self-proclaimed as the “granddaddy of live music venues,” the Continental Club attracts your friend’s cool great uncle and your little brother’s freshly 21-year-old friends.
Before Weekend One this year, the club hosted The Heavy Heavy, a British alt-rock band who also played ACL on Saturday. These guys can rock a drum solo and know their way around a tambourine. Their sound took over the intimate venue, leaving my ears ringing (in a good way!)
DAY ONE: FRIDAY
Asleep at the Wheel
When I think of the excited first moments of the Friday of ACL, I think of Asleep at the Wheel. Having performed every year since the festival began in 2002, this Western swing group has become the most consistent part of the evolving fest. This group is quintessentially Texan, and while not a genre I listen to recreationally, they are incredibly fun to watch. Plus, they’re from Paw Paw, West Virginia. You couldn’t dream up a more perfectly Western-sounding hometown if you tried.
Briscoe
I’m usually pretty good at doing my homework on the lineup before ACL, but this year I somehow skipped over Briscoe. Thankfully, I caught them live and they quickly moved up my list. Not to be mistaken for twin brothers, the red-headed Austin duo are lifelong friends. One great instrument after another was added to the mix, including the fiddle, banjo and harmonica. It’s that kind of effortlessly tight musicianship that makes you realize you’ve stumbled onto something special. Safe to say, Briscoe earned a permanent spot in my Spotify rotation.
Good Neighbors
Good Neighbors was one of the weekend’s best surprises. I’d added them to my Friday schedule mostly because their name kept showing up on my algorithm-curated playlists. Predictably, they saved their hit “Home” for last, but the band had a contagious energy that made every song enjoyable. The group’s charming English accents only added to their appeal, and by the time they wrapped, the audience had nearly doubled in size.
DAY TWO: Saturday
Spacey Jane
As one of my most anticipated sets, Spacey Jane did not disappoint, and easily earned the title of my favorite performance of the weekend. The Australian quartet delivered a perfect balance of emotion and energy, making you want to cry and sway with your friends, then headbang shortly after. Lead guitarist Ashton Le Cornu was the definition of “putting in the work” with the most dramatic jumps and spins around the stage throughout the entire hour-long show. Even under the 90-degree Texas sun, with heat radiating off the stage, the band’s energy never wavered. It didn’t take long for singer and guitarist Caleb Harper to sweat through his long-sleeve button-down. Nonetheless, the heat didn’t dim the group's enthusiasm, and Spacey Jane has definitely made my must-see-again list.
The Backseat Lovers
Another rock band that was high on my list for the weekend was The Backseat Lovers. They played most of my favorites, which included many songs from the When We Were Friends album, and the song “Snowbank Blues” from Waiting to Spill. Their sound was nearly identical to their recordings. Joshua Harmon, the lead singer and guitarist, dominated the screen with his long flowing Fabio-esque blond hair. When they played their hit single “Kilby Girl,” Harmon tricked the audience by over-dramatizing the lead-in to the chorus and coming in late. This made the audience go wild and come in ten times harder when the chorus did hit. His presence alone made the set all the more enjoyable to watch. Still, I’m holding out hope to hear “Olivia” live one day.
DAY THREE: Sunday
Rainbow Kitten Surprise
RKS has one of the most distinctive sounds in mainstream indie rock. Lead singer Ela Melo commanded the stage with powerful vocals and interpretive, dance-like movements. You would never know that the band took a hiatus in 2023—they had a magnetic chemistry and acted fully in sync. Touring bassist Maddie Bouton matched Melo’s intensity and added some flavor to the mix. The two moved together in a kind of choreographed chaos that kept the crowd absolutely transfixed.
All in all, it was another successful year at Austin City Limits. More honorable mentions go to The Strokes, Mallrat, Modest Mouse, and Cage the Elephant. I’m leaving with new names on my list and eagerness to revisit some old favorites. Every year, the hardest part of navigating ACL is dealing with the fact that two of your absolute favorite bands are playing on different stages at the same time. Tough calls were made, but if missing a few sets means I now have an excuse to buy more concert tickets, I’m calling that a win.
