Post-ACL wrap up

This year's Austin City Limits was a great festival in so many respects: the weather was perfect (if a little hot), the crowd didn't set fire to the infrastructure, beer stands and bathrooms were represented at a decent ratio, and the good nature in general of Austinites meant that gently nudging to the front of even the largest crowd never once resulted in a firm elbow to the ribs (try that at any NYC or DC show!)Gnarls was in charge during their set. Great mic chat and no shortage of charisma kept a firm connection with an amazingly large audience for a mid-afternoon stage time.Thievery Corporation was on top of their game. It's funny that I've lived within walking distance of the club that bears their label's namesake for years and yet I had to travel 1500 miles from home to see them live for the first time. I bumped into them the night before at the Beauty Bar and chatted with a couple of the band members about miscellaneous things without realizing who they were until I saw them on stage at the festival. Yet another fine example of why you should never randomly throw a drink in the face of a stranger at a bar or club (dinner theater's another matter altogether.)And Sparklehorse, well, sparkled.Federico Aubele rocked the Thievery after party with Ocote Soul Sounds - those guys were awesome! Latin jazz/funk/down-tempo with plenty of 50's, Cuban-influenced vocals. What a combo!That was Friday.Saturday, I managed to catch the end of String Cheese's set and watched Brazilian Girls teeter on the edge of spontaneous combustion. If they'd been any hotter, I'd be in a burn ward having some cadaver's skin overlaid on my charred flesh instead of writing this post. Fortunately, with epidermis intact, later that night and well into the following morning, the Girls (well, the guys from the Girls), some friends of their and some friends of mine saw regular visits from annoyed (and a little star struck) staff at a local hotel where impromptu music and makeshift instruments ensured little sleep for anyone within a few room radius.Good music, cool people, and as far as I know, nobody lost an eye. That's all the makings of a successful show!