Top 12 bands to see at Austin City Limits

The lineup at this year's Austin City Limits Music Festival, going on this weekend in the state capital, is absolutely unbelievable. Period.

When the final list of artists was released in late April, I have to admit I was a little disappointed; there was nothing there that really caught my eye. It felt like Lollapalooza had horded all the best talent and sent the leftovers to Austin.

Not so.

It seems as if the people from C3 have once again pulled off another stellar line-up. The entire weekend is filled with tons of hidden gems scattered throughout the day/park. Sure everyone wants to (and will) see Pearl Jam, Dave Matthews and KOL, but some of the best performances at ACL have been the relatively unknown up-and-coming artists such as Bloc Party (2005), Wilco (2004), The Arcade Fire (2005), St. Vincent (2007), The Killers (2004), Fleet Foxes (2008) and Julieta Venegas (2003). If you’re feeling a little adventurous this year, I suggest the following:

Top 12 Can’t Miss Shows

1. Them Crooked Vultures
2. The Dead Weather
3. Ghostland Observatory
4. Mos Def
5. Girl Talk
6. Phoenix
7. Mute Math
8. The Dodos
9. Thievery Corporation
10. Dirty Projectors
11. K’Naan
12. !!!

Top Acts To See If You Haven't Already

1. Ben Harper & Relentless 7
2. Yeah Yeah Yeahs
3. The Scabs
4. Andrew Bird
5. Bon Iver
6. Heartless Bastards
7. STS9
8. Arctic Monkeys
9. Grizzly Bear
10. Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears

Breakthrough acts

1. Ben Sollee
2. White Lies
3. John Vanderslice
4. Cotton Jones
5. Sarah Siskind
6. Here We Go Magic
7. Sam Roberts Band
8. Bell X1
9. The Henry Clay People
10. Mike Posner
11. Sarah Jaffe
12. Jess Woods
13. School of Seven Bells

Homer Rios is a guest writer for Festiva. He assembled the lineup at this past spring's Another Music Festival in McAllen.