海角大神

Normally, you can spend a weekend in October enjoying the Austin City Limits Music Festival. This year, for the first time, the Austin, Texas, festival聽needed two weekends to host the 130-plus bands on the eight scaffold-built stages at Zilker Park.

On Day 1 of the first weekend of the festival, Austin gospel group Belles of Joy performed 鈥淚 Saw the Light鈥� on one stage. Amongst the scattered wristband-clad hands, a toddler with white ear plugs did his best to clap along.

That afternoon, country crooner Holly Williams (Hank Williams鈥� granddaughter) took the BMI stage. Williams and the three other members of her band, including Kings of Leon member Chris Coleman, performed songs such as 鈥淲aiting on June."

Later on, the band fun. appeared on the AMD stage. Fun. frontman Nate Ruess and his band bounded around the stage and performed songs including 鈥淲e Are Young,鈥� 鈥淐arry On,鈥� and a Rolling Stones cover of 鈥淵ou Can鈥檛 Always Get What You Want.鈥�

Meanwhile, singer Jake Bugg took the Austin Ventures stage performing songs from his self-titled 2013 album, including his single 鈥淟ighting Bolt." At Vampire Weekend鈥檚 AMD stomping grounds, the band delivered such songs as their ditty 鈥淗oliday."

Depeche Mode performed on the AMD stage, with lead singer Dave Gahan twirling with his mic stand as if it were a dancing partner as his band performed such songs as 鈥淲elcome To My World,鈥� 鈥淲alking In My Shoes," and 鈥淧olicy of Truth.鈥�

Muse capped off the night with one of the largest crowds of the day. Although audio problems seem to have plagued the set on and off, it didn鈥檛 appear to faze the fans.

Day 2

On the second day of the festival, 21-year-old Austin native Max Frost, who was recently signed to Atlantic Records, stepped onto the Austin Ventures stage at noon and performed his single 鈥淲hite Lies.鈥� The female group HAIM took the AMD stage and delivered such songs as 鈥淔allin,鈥� 鈥淒on鈥檛 Save Me,鈥� and 鈥淭he Wire," followed by the Portland, Ore.-based band known as Portugal. The Man.

Passion Pit frontman Michael Angelakos and his band took to the stage next, sprinkling their set with mixes from their "Gossamer" and "Manners" albums as well as their hit "Sleepyhead."

At the nearby Honda grounds, Campton rapper Kendrick Lamar performed numbers including 鈥淏ackseat Freestyle鈥� and 鈥淧roblems."

The dark was setting in when Kings of Leon came on. 鈥淭exas," frontman Caleb Followill said to the crowd, 鈥淚 promise we won鈥檛 take as long to get back to y鈥檃ll as this last time.鈥� The Tennessee rockers ripped through songs across their seven-album history such as 鈥淐rawl,鈥� 鈥淏ack Down South," and 鈥淢olly鈥檚 Chambers.鈥�

Robert Smith and his band The Cure performed at the same time, delivering such songs as 鈥淲rong Number," 鈥淒isintegration," 鈥淥ne Hundred Years,鈥� and 鈥淭he Lovecats.鈥� As the hour approached 10 p.m., the time at which Austin decrees the music must stop, Smith said, 鈥淚f we play this really fast, we might end before they pull the plug," and the band launched into "Boys Don't Cry."

Day 3

Tired hands attached to sun-faded wristbands were dragged across gate scanners on the late morning of the third day of the Austin City Limits Music Festival. The final day consisted of 44 scheduled acts in the span of 11 hours.

A small plane with a red-lettered sign reading 鈥淭he Mowgli's Love You鈥� flew over the Mowgli's' stage as the eight-piece LA band woke up the crowd on the Bud Light platform. Over on the AMD platform, East Coaster musicians MS MR performed 鈥� the female lead singer, Lizzy Plapinger, has the pipes of a rawer-throated Florence Welch.

A short while later on the Honda stage, British band Noah and the Whale made spelling fun with 鈥淟.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N鈥� while Franz Ferdinand and his fellow Scots led a sea of fist-pumpers to their song 鈥淭ake Me Out鈥� on the Samsung stage.

The band The National opened with 鈥淚 Should Live In Salt鈥� from this year鈥檚 "Trouble Will Find Me" album and plunged through new tracks throughout their hour-long set on the AMD stage. Frontman Matt Berninger continually tossed mic stands to the side of the stage, the photo pit, and other locations until he ended up on his third stand only 20 minutes into the set. Somewhere around the time The National was performing the high-energy 鈥淎ble,鈥� Berninger jumped offstage and launched his body into the masses, dragging his mic and the thin chord attached to it along with him.

Across the park, country rocker Eric Church performed 鈥淪pringsteen鈥� from the Samsung Galaxy stage. Although the Grammy-nominated artist got lost in his guitar riffs and the second verse 鈥� 鈥淚鈥檝e actually forgotten the words鈥� he said, seeming a little dumbfounded 鈥� he soon got back on track. At the Bud Light stage, the French electronic group Phoenix performed their hit 鈥淟isztomania."

That night on the AMD stage, the group Atoms of Peace performed, led by Radiohead鈥檚 Thom Yorke and consisting of Red Hot Chili Pepper鈥檚 bassist Flea, R.E.M. drummer Joey Waronker, longtime Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich, and Brazilian instrumentalist Mauro Refosco. Between the five men, more instruments were passed along on stage than are often found in a middle-school band room.

Later that night, Lionel Richie arrived on the Samsung stage. The singer, wearing a black vest, performed a set that included 鈥淪ail On,鈥� 鈥淪ay You, Say Me,鈥� 鈥淟ady (You Bring Me Up When I鈥檓 Down),鈥� and 鈥淒ancing On the Ceiling."

鈥淎ll my friends at Austin City Limits,鈥� Richie told the crowd, 鈥淚鈥檓 mighty glad you stayed."

Laura Roberts is a Monitor contributor.