Day 3: Sunday, September 19

Ben Kweller

Finally, after two days of trying to keep their miniskirts mud-free and being forced to listen to "old" people's music, the 13-year-old girls at ACL had something to squeal about. Brooklyn-bred Ben Kweller--who, though already a well-established songwriter, left his teens not long ago himself--hopped on stage alone with an acoustic guitar, starting with most likely the first ever folk-rock version of "Ice, Ice Baby." He moved on to his lyrically cute-and-clever love songs ("She just wants me wanting her again"), and "It's Up to You," which he dubbed his one "political song" (though it, too, could easily be called cute and clever). Then his band joined in for bigger rock effect, while "BK," still having fun with words ("Sex reminds her of eating spaghetti/I am wasted but I'm ready"), continued to jump and strut across the stage, ending with his most well-known tune, "The Rules." The kid may be, well, a kid, but his obvious influences and hipster-geek charm help him rock just as well as the big boys.

Elvis Costello & the Imposters

Speaking of which, it must be surreal for a newer performer like Kweller to finish a set and immediately hear "Accidents Will Happen" suddenly swell up on a stage nearby. Elvis Costello, in his classic black suit, started off with his oldies, following "Accidents" with "(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes" and "Radio, Radio." As he ventured into newer ballads with the sun still high and scorching, however, he may have lost some listeners to water refills and shade. But, thankfully, he rounded out the show with a strong version of "Alison" into "(What's So Funny About) Peace, Love & Understanding."

Jack Johnson [ tickets ]

Across the park, Jack Johnson was doing his mellow, I'm-just-strumming-on-a-beach-in-Hawaii thing for listeners happier to lie flat on their backs than to get up and jam. Keeping things simple, alternating between acoustic guitar and ukulele, he brought up guests who'd performed earlier--like Donovan Frankenreiter and G. Love--to help him provide some peaceful moments within the crowds, beer lines and dust. His music showed it may actually be impossible not to relax when you hear that casual strum and the words, "Slow down everyone/You're moving too fast/Frames can't catch you when/You're moving like that."

Drive-By Truckers [ tickets ]

A late-afternoon show proved the spirit of Lynyrd Skynyrd is alive and well in the Alabama band Drive-By Truckers, whose members, while young, still strongly carry on the tradition of songs that tell stories of travelin', breakin' hearts and waitin' for the good life. Sticking mostly to songs off their just-released album "The Dirty South," including the great ode to early rock, "Carl Perkins' Cadillac," the multi-singer band pulled out older pieces too, like "Marry Me," "Let There be Rock," and a contender for the best-ever-named southern country-rock song, "18 Wheels of Love."

Wilco [ tickets ]

Clearly infused with new energy since returning to the road, the latest incarnation of Wilco--now six members strong--was an ideal act to almost close down the festival (Ben Harper, starting around 9:00, seemed a little too late for the Monday-morning working crowd). As they played the majority of their latest album, "A Ghost Is Born," against a pale pink sunset, lead singer Jeff Tweedy seemed positively gleeful, jumping and jigging around, with or without a guitar strapped to his back. Songs from this album, like "At Least That's What You Said," and "Spiders (Kidsmoke)"--made up of so much distortion and experimenting, you'd never think they could translate well on stage--came out as more compact creations that had the audience mesmerized.

The 2002 album "Yankee Hotel Foxtrot" was also well-represented, with revamped tunes like "I Am Trying to Break Your Heart" and "Jesus, Etc.," and the horn section from the earlier-performing Calexico joined in on "I'm the Man Who Loves You." Walking away with these kinetic sounds still bouncing between the trees seemed a perfect way to leave the park, back to the world where dozens of eclectic bands don't perform for you at every turn, day after sun-filled day.

Click here to read liveDaily's review of Friday's (9/17) action at the Austin City Limits Festival.

Click here to read liveDaily's review of Saturday's (9/18) action at the Austin City Limits Festival.