ACL Music Festival 2014, Week One, Day Two – The Avett Brothers, Interpol + More
A buzz from day one of this year's Austin City Limits Music Festival lingered in the air at the park, and everyone seemed ready to go fresh out of the gate Saturday morning (Oct. 4).
We started out with Empires, an indie band from Chicago. A dark deep voice emanated from frontman Sean Van Vleet, and the band created a cool indie pop rhythm that was easy to move to. After that, we were fortunate enough to catch Mac DeMarco, who had a great interaction with the crowd -- and he seemed so genuinely happy to be playing for his audience. He was on top of his game with his signature laid back vibe.
We then rushed to see the Falls, a folk duo from Australia who explained it was their first time at Austin City Limits. They were accompanied by a string quartet from Austin -- and it all blended together seamlessly. Changing things up a bit, Rey Pila was next on the list. This band is from Mexico City and featured a very '80s indie pop sound. After that, tUnE-yArDs had, not surprisingly, quite the large crowd waiting for their set to begin. The New England outfit is the brainchild of Merrill Garbus, whose talents were all on display: She's an avid looper, played drums, tickled the keyboard and strummed a ukulele -- all the while belting out her vocals.
As the sun set, Interpol took the stage, and although they didn’t seem to move much, they sounded fantastic -- especially the tracks from their new album, 'El Pintor.' During Interpol's set, Iggy Azalea was performing on a smaller stage, but it was obvious everyone at the fest wanted to get a glimpse of her. She was very cheeky (pun intended, see our photos below), playing well to the energy of the crowd.
The Avett Brothers did the same and were dancing all over the stage with their instruments in hand, simply bursting with energy. We continued our night with Major Lazer, where the crowd against the rail was as entertaining as what was happening onstage. Major Lazer kept the dance party cranked to 100% the entire set, and it might have been the funnest performance of the day.
Stay tuned for our full recap of the third and final day of ACL Music Fest's first weekend -- but for now, check out our exclusive shots from day two below: