ACL 4 Beatheads
Where to find the beats at Zilker Park
By Thomas Fawcett, 3:59PM, Tue. Sep. 23, 2008
Foo Fighters, Robert Plant, John Fogerty, David Byrne – the Austin City Limits Music Festival was never built on beats and rhymes but there is plenty to like in this year’s lineup for hip-hop heads and funk aficionados. Here are ten sure shots for fest-goers who don’t worship at the temple of rock.
Erykah Badu: The self-proclaimed analog girl in a digital world has been laying low of late but recent release New Amerykah Part One: 4th World War is a bizarre and beautiful masterpiece. (Saturday, 4:30pm, AT&T stage)
Antibalas: Brass-driven, Brooklyn-based infantry Antibalas has been spreading the gospel of Fela for more than a decade but 2007’s Security busts beyond the bounds of Afrobeat. (Friday, 7:15pm, WaMu stage)
Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings: This year's 100 Days, 100 Nights proves her a modern day Ms. Dynamite, the hardest working woman in show business. (Saturday, 2:30pm, AMD stage)
Manu Chao: The trilingual troubadour builds bridges across continents as salsa sashays with ska and rock rubs elbows with reggae, goofy electronic wizardry tying the whole carnival under a single tent. (Friday, 8:30pm, AT&T stage)
Black Joe Lewis & the Honey Bears: Gritty Austin soul shouter Black Joe Lewis mixes raw blues, soul, and funk and rubs dirt all over it. This is the real deal. (Saturday, 4pm, Austin Ventures stage)
Gnarls Barkley: Before a loving embrace by the indie crowd, Cee-Lo and Danger Mouse, the duo behind Gnarls Barkley, were underground hip-hop stalwarts. Aptly named sophomore album The Odd Couple is another dose of crazy. (Sunday, 6:30pm, AT&T stage)
Jamie Lidell: Blue-eyed Brit soul singer Jamie Lidell doesn’t hide his love of Stevie Wonder and Donny Hathaway but adds enough modern touches to keep things fresh. (Friday, 3:30pm, Dell stage)
Eli “Paperboy” Reed: Beantown soul stirrer Eli Reed channels Wilson Pickett, shouting throwback R&B over the crunchy grooves of his sevenpiece True Loves. (Saturday, 3:15pm, WaMu stage)
Galactic w/ Chali 2na: New Orleans funk mob Galactic teamed with an all-star cast of MCs on 2007’s From the Corner to the Block and J5’s Chali 2na joins the party to spit rhymes over signature second line grooves. (Sunday, 7pm, WaMu stage)
Del tha Funky Homosapien: It’s official. Del now has albums older than some of his fans. The left coast lyricist dropped I Wish My Brother George Was Here in 1991 and latest album Eleventh Hour is his first in eight years. (Friday, 3:30pm, AT&T Blue Room stage)
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March 19, 2022
ACL 2008, Austin City Limits Music Festival 2008
