Another weekend of Austin City Limits Music Festival is in the books, and we have the sock tan lines to prove it. Weekend Two often feels sleepy, but crowds were out in full force Friday and Saturday before thinning out on Sunday. Band after band praised the audience for their energy compared to the first weekend’s.
There were plenty of new artists this weekend, breaking up a slew of sets that stayed largely the same. Sunday headliners The Killers offered a shining example of how to play two weeks in a row without the show getting old, and some smaller artists like rap duo Joey Valence & Brae seemed to benefit from word getting out that their set was worth seeing.
Enough people already know the headliners; we’re here to wrap up 2025’s festival with another round of our personal favorite moments. (Our picks from Weekend One are here.) We’re considering whoever made this list to be a must-see for any future festivals and tours.
Here are our top 10 non-headliner highlights from Weekend Two of ACL Fest 2025.
Friday
Girl Tones make a powerful first impression
Girl Tones’ Friday set was a burst of vintage style and raw sisterly rock. Kenzie and Laila, with a matching baby blue guitar and drum kit, gave the crowd a fun, powerful, and electric sound that recalled early garage rock with a dash of Blondie, as the crowd crammed into what little shade they could find. Lead vocalist Kenzie jumped and danced across the stage in her white Mary Jane Docs and sharp vintage suit, and her sister brought just as much energy on the drums. Kenzie is made for the stage, playfully bantering with the crowd about being an older sibling, ripping her suit “jumping through a car window” for a recent music video, and of course, reminding all to stay hydrated. Girl Tones, fresh off tour with fellow Arkansas rockers Cage the Elephant, proved they’re one of the most exciting rising duos in indie rock. — Natalie Grigson, contributing writer
Confidence Man brings the chaos
The show opened with suspense: a countdown from ten flashing across a clock labeled “LA” at every mark but 3 am. Before the first beat dropped, it was clear this was going to be a party. Lead singer Janet Planet and her partner in crime Sugar Bones stormed the stage in all-white retro-futurist outfits, channeling the delirious energy of late-night Los Angeles afterparty. Behind them, Reggie Goodchild (DJ) and Clarence McGuffie (drums) loomed in long black fabric, like mysterious shadows. Despite being on crutches acquired between festival weekends, Janet bounced, sang, and danced on one leg with fearless charisma, while Sugar Bones danced and posed beside her. After a mid-set outfit change, Janet reemerged in a wheelchair, wearing LED Madonna cones, perfectly embodying Confidence Man’s ridiculous, infectious, and unstoppable pop chaos. — NG
Cage the Elephant does no such thing
Some folks were disillusioned last weekend when Julian Casablancas of The Strokes was not jumping for joy while performing. (That’s normal, by the way.) Those attendees should be at Cage the Elephant, instead. Frontman Matt Shultz sheds massive amounts of energy onstage, leaping, thrashing, and pointing grandiosely skyward, while somehow maintaining his somewhat disaffected vocals. His unbridled sincerity makes him seem brand-new, and maybe that’s how he feels, too, touring again after recovering from serious health complications. Toward the end of the set, Shultz said, “[this is] one of the best shows I’ve experienced in a long time.” Audiences who expect highly engaged performers probably felt the same. — Brianna Caleri, Austin editor
Saturday
Olivia Dean aces the live sound
Flashy sets grab attention and are obviously easier to write about. But sometimes the reason to attend a show is just to appreciate how great the artist sounds live. Olivia Dean impressed media and casual audiences alike with her rich, lightly textured vocals and confident stage presence — plus, with so many canned tracks floating around the festival, it was exciting to see a live brass section. (Yes, we understand touring is expensive.) Dean did add some flavor, including dedicating the track “Carmen” to “brave” immigrants like her grandmother, who moved alone from the Caribbean to London, had four kids by Dean’s current age (26), and inspired the song. “These people deserve to be celebrated,” Dean said. — BC
Olivia Dean had a fan keeping her glamorous and hopefully cool.Photo by Kenn Box
Fujii Kaze is the drama
A listen to a few Fujii Kaze tracks makes it clear that versatility is this artist’s specialty; the unexpected appeal is his sheer force of attitude. (Watching a music video would have negated this; live and learn.) Kaze and his sharply dressed band, all from Japan, dabbled in all kinds of styles from jazz to rock, funk, pop, and more, often in dense arrangements clearly crafted for live appeal. Kaze knows how to use movement to amplify every moment: removing his sunglasses as if revealing a secret with a pursed smile; sweeping his open hand like offering a platter before playing “Careless Whisper” on the saxophone; banging out classical piano solos with a hand on his hip or cluster chords with his wrist, shaking the keyboard either way. Lyric subtitles in both English and romanized Japanese on the screens rounded out the thoughtfully planned set. — BC
Magdalena Bay is the stuff of dreams
Magdalena Bay, the Los Angeles-based synth-pop duo featuring Mica Tenenbaum and Matthew Lewin, transformed the Lady Bird stage into a surreal dreamscape. Their show felt like a cosmic fairytale, with mythical props, a keyboard stand disguised by a winged eye, and a magic mirror flashing retro visuals. Tenenbaum, in a blue silky jumpsuit, danced, sang, and at one point strapped on a keytar, sending the crowd into ecstatic motion. The 80s and 90s-inspired dance-pop felt like stepping into a technicolor dream. Songs like “Death and Romance” had Gen Z fans screaming in delight. Through shifting costumes — blue, to red, to ethereal white — Tenenbaum staged a mysterious mythic tale of rebirth, ending it all with a trilling, Disney Princess-like “Thank you, Austin!” — NG
Zeds Dead did their homework on Austin
Zeds Dead’s Saturday night set opened with pure Austin nostalgia: the sound of an old TV flipping channels and vintage ACL Live clips of Stevie Ray Vaughan and BB King. The backdrop even featured the Austin skyline, modeled after the PBS show. The Canadian duo — Dylan “DC” Mamid and Zachary “Hooks” Rapp-Rovan — took the stage dressed like Pulp Fiction’s Jules and Vincent, dropping their signature bass-heavy, reggae-tinged remixes. They tore up classics like “Hi My Name Is (Zeds Dead),” “Summertime,” “Hit the Road Jack,” “Closer,” and “The Chain,” as pyrotechnics blasted and the crowd went wild. The finale mixed Willie Nelson and Dolly Parton’s separate ACL Live clips for a new, heartfelt duet, then led into a mashup of “Pure Imagination” and John Lenon’s “Imagine” — a surprisingly emotional and Austin-centric close to an unforgettable set. — NG
Sunday
Local band The Point. make a hypnotic debut
It’s not easy to get to Zilker Park for a 1:45 pm show, but we knew we had to for The Point., a local group making their ACL Fest debut. We’re always proud of our local bands, and The Point. does something extra for us by repping cumbia, the African-influenced Latin American dance genre that Austinites are often surrounded by, yet many visitors have never heard of. This is not your tia’s cumbia, though. The Point. puts some heavy psychedelic flavor on their wordless jams, which are also largely shaped by Saharan rock. The result is frenetic but organic and completely locked-in; infectious to listen to. The impassive guitarist, Jack Montesinos, even cracked a small smile, seemingly against his own will. — BC
The Dare makes the heat almost bearable
At 3:15 pm in the blazing sun, New York-based musician Harrison Patrick Smith, better known as The Dare, took the stage alone, clad in a black suit and Adidas. Despite the punishing heat, he delivered a performance full of manic energy, high kicks, and tongue-in-cheek charisma. Enhanced only by an elaborate, flashing light rig (which was, frankly, hard to see during the day) and his backing track, Smith turned what should’ve been a nighttime party into a midday sweaty dance break. His set mixed funky 80s sounds with a more EDM-style bass, and punctuated everything with wry banter: “I’m sure it smells amazing down there.” He topped it all off by parading around with a cymbal overhead. Though it was hot, The Dare’s unhinged enthusiasm made the heat almost bearable. — NG
Hey, Nothing and Gregory Alan Isakov dance around country
ACL Fest dipped at least eight toes into country this year (looking at Friday headliner Luke Combs), but to me, the most compelling sets are those that build on and subvert country and folk styles. Two Sunday performers put on memorable shows in this realm, and both included very sweet nods to having best friends for band members. Earlier in the day, Atlanta, Georgia-based Hey, Nothing delivered upbeat emo-folk with super-combatible duet vocals and a ton of rowdy energy. Later, singer-songwriter Gregory Alan Isakov and his band (visiting from Colorado) slowed things down dramatically with gentle banjo, pedal steel, and harmonica; plus semi-classical violin and bowed bass; all wrapped up in an especially beautiful light show. For the closer, “The Stable Song,” the whole band crowded around one microphone as if playing the most cinematic barn dance Austin’s ever seen. — BC