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I’m glad that I can get to hear this music from the comfort of my air-conditioned living room, because I don’t think I’d be as pleased as most attendees seem to be here, considering the size of the crowd and the high temperatures. Despite conditions that would send me reeling in search of the nearest air-conditioned tavern, the oversized crowd is apparently enjoying themselves, which makes sense as you listen to (or watch) these excerpts.
Diversity is the key here, with acts from virtually every corner of contemporary music contributing a song. Perhaps the best thing about this release is its diversity, because it allows the viewer to familiarize themselves with acts that otherwise might have been overlooked. Fans of the Pixies get a chance to hear My Morning Jacket (and vice-versa), while fans of Sheryl Crow get a gander at The Soundtrack of Our Lives (both on the DVD only).
The DVD is the better deal here, since it contains two disks, and contains eight performances not included on the CD release. Oddly, some of the best performances are edited from the CD, particularly the stellar performance of Soundtrack of Our Lives (perhaps the best of all included here) and Howie Day’s odd ‘solo’ performance with multiple tape-looped versions of himself as accompaniment.
Consistency is in short supply, though, and both the disk and the CD drag at times. Broken Social Scene’s “Anthem for a 17 year-old Girl” is about as tedious as the title suggests. Los Lonely Boys make an attempt to channel the spirit of Stevie Ray Vaughan on a track called “Crazy Dream”, but they end up falling far short of their mark. Better is the Old 97’s, who get by just fine by sounding exactly like their smart-ass selves on “The New Kid”, and Roseanne Cash, whose understated presence lends some grace to the disk with “Seven Year Ache.”
Unfortunately, though, 100-degree temperatures can suck the energy out of a person, and the languid, mid-tempo pace of many performances included here seems to reflect the heat in ways that might not translate, especially in the comfort of my regulated, 68-degree environment. All in all, the Austin City Limits Music Festival is impressive for attracting a wide variety of musicians, but its occasional lack of energy and continuity render it ultimately less than satisfying.
Grade: 
 
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