This year I went to the Austin City Limits festival. It was my first ACL and first festival ever. It was an interesting experience, there were so many people you couldn't even walk at some points without rubbing against someone else. Today at school I was looking at an Austin newspaper and it said that 75,000 people were in attendance. On top of that it was unbearably hot between 1:00-5:00 pm. I think I've decided that I'm not a festival person. You definitely have to settle for back row and you have to be comfortable with seeing nothing but the back of people's heads and faint glimpses of band members from far away. As someone that likes intimate concert experiences, I was not very satisfied with my views of the stages. In spite of the overwhelming crowd its pretty cool to hear the sound of a cheering audience and the choir of a massive crowd is beautiful. Also, it's best not to take pictures and videos at a festival because your not completely enjoying the moment. I also learned not to try and get at the front because then its hell getting out of the crowd and you don't even have a good view if your 5'6''. I would definitely go to a festival again but I'd probably bring a hat, binoculars, no camera, and settle for the back.
I only went FRIDAY and I saw...
GIVERS
Soft Pack
CHIEF
Black Keys
Beach House
Vampire Weekend [ only 3 songs :( ]
The Strokes
My favorite was Beach House and the coolest show of the day was The Strokes. Givers and Soft Pack were also memorable shows.
