Partly Cloudy,
Chance of Rock
Save some energy at the Austin City Limits Music Festival, happening in exactly three weeks, because so many artists have saddled club dates onto their festival appearances that downtown will be more crowded than a weather map. Here’s the forecast: Look for a high concentration of beards in the West End all weekend long, as La Zona welcomes Robert Randolph & the Family Band and the North Mississippi Allstars Friday, Keller Williams and the Charlie Hunter Trio Saturday, and Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe with Soulive Sunday. It’s twangs ‘n’ tattoos on Sixth Street Saturday when the Drive-by Truckers invade the Mercury with the Damnations, while sensible and sentimental indie-rockers converge on Antone’s for the Old 97’s and Li’l Cap’n Travis Friday and the Shins with Zykos Saturday. Over on Red River, conditions call for a high probability of girl-on-girl action at Ween‘s Saturday perv bonanza at Stubb’s, with everything N’awlins steamy the next night for the ReBirth Brass Band and Kermit Ruffins. Astute weather-watchers will also want to check the Web sites of the String Cheese Incident, Mavericks, and Lucinda Williams to see when and where they might blow through.
This article appears in August 29 • 2003.