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)

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This article appears in October 6 • 2017.

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San Francisco native Raoul Hernandez crossed the border into Texas on July 2, 1992, and began writing about music for the Chronicle that fall, debuting with an album review of Keith Richards’ Main Offender. By virtue of local show previews – first “Recommendeds,” now calendar picks – his writing’s appeared in almost every issue since 1993.