Friday ACL Fest Record Reviews

Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real

(Fantasy Records)

Friday ACL Fest Record Reviews

Promise of the Real proved just that on Lukas Nelson's previous three LPs. Number four delivers. Where previously Americana-tinged alt-rock teetered precariously on the bandleader's reedy whine, here that country DNA seals a seamless blend of Farm Aid authenticity. A Crazy Horse ferment leftover from apprenticeship with Neil Young (opener "Set Me Down on a Cloud"), Texan twang ("Fool Me Once"), beatific Fred Neil/Harry Nilsson lilt ("Just Outside of Austin"), and Gulf Coast soul ("Carolina") all red carpet the genuine Southern literature of acoustic bootlegger "Runnin' Shine." The ladies of Lucius, kinfolk Willie and Bobbie Nelson, and even Lady Gaga get in on The Real, all songs by Lukas – Red Headed Austinite. (5:15pm, Miller Lite stage)

****

A note to readers: Bold and uncensored, The Austin Chronicle has been Austin’s independent news source for over 40 years, expressing the community’s political and environmental concerns and supporting its active cultural scene. Now more than ever, we need your support to continue supplying Austin with independent, free press. If real news is important to you, please consider making a donation of $5, $10 or whatever you can afford, to help keep our journalism on stands.

Support the Chronicle  

READ MORE
More Music Reviews
Album Review: Will Johnson’s Pensive Trip to <i>Diamond City</i>
Album Review: Will Johnson’s Pensive Trip to Diamond City
Folk-rock troubadour strips down for 10th solo album

Miranda Garza, May 30, 2025

Sounds of Survival: SIMS Marks Three Decades of Supporting Music Professionals
Sounds of Survival: SIMS Marks Three Decades of Supporting Music Professionals
Austin music community celebrates community of care

Caroline Drew, May 23, 2025

More by Raoul Hernandez
The Opera, a Laboratorio, and One Wild Nothing in This Week’s Crucial Concerts
The Opera, a Laboratorio, and One Wild Nothing in This Week’s Crucial Concerts
Shoegaze, black metal, jazz, punk, and more

May 16, 2025

Lucy Dacus, a Gary Floyd Retrospective, an EXTC, and More Crucial Concerts
Lucy Dacus, a Gary Floyd Retrospective, an EXTC, and More Crucial Concerts
Sounds all over town and all over the musical spectrum

May 9, 2025

KEYWORDS FOR THIS STORY

ACL Fest 2017

MORE IN THE ARCHIVES
One click gets you all the newsletters listed below

Breaking news, arts coverage, and daily events

Keep up with happenings around town

Kevin Curtin's bimonthly cannabis musings

Austin's queerest news and events

Eric Goodman's Austin FC column, other soccer news

Information is power. Support the free press, so we can support Austin.   Support the Chronicle