Top Acts, Tough Choices

Fans at the Austin City Limits Music Festival might have to miss one fave to see another

Photo from SherylCrow.com Sheryl Crow will perform twice during the festival, first at a fund-raiser Sept. 16 and again on opening day. Look for her at 8:45 p.m. on the SBC stage.

These are some of acts programmed against one another at the 2004 Austin City Limits Music Festival, the 3-year-old, three-day concert beginning Sept. 17 that features more than 120 bands on eight stages at Zilker Park.

Thursday, Austin City Limits, Capital Sports & Entertainment and talent buyer Charles Attal announced the final schedule for the festival, which is expected to attract more than 60,000 fans.

"Los Lonely Boys have been so popular in Austin, we wanted to make them a headliner along with Sheryl," Attal said. "We don't look at it as a conflict; we look at it as an opportunity. There's going to be thousands of people in the park and thousands in front of both stages."

Photo by Alex Jones for AA-S Los Lonely Boys -- also known as Ringo, JoJo and Henry Garza -- will take the Cingular stage at 8:45 p.m. Sept. 17 (yep, same time as Sheryl Crow).

Producer Terry Lickona announced that two Gibson guitars, one made from wood from the "Austin City Limits" stage, and the other signed by Armstrong and Crow, will be auctioned at the fund-raiser.

With sets from the aforementioned Pixies and Gomez, hot Canadian indie rockers Broken Social Scene and emo-rock superstars Dashboard Confessional, this year's festival features more contemporary and alternative rock acts than in years past. Lickona said this reflects changes in the long-running TV show, which is celebrating its 30th anniversary season.

"It's a major milestone for us," Lickona said before announcing several changes for the new season, including plans to shoot the show on high-definition digital video and give the show a new instrumental theme song written by longtime Austin songwriter Charlie Sexton.

"Charlie recorded and produced it from a melody that he said had been going on in his head for a number of years," Lickona said. "I think it goes well with the new opening we've commissioned from (local creative agency) Milkshake Media, which is a montage of lots of past acts. It's slicker than any opening we've had in the past, but that's appropriate for both the major anniversary and the new direction we're going in."

The show has not used the classic version of Gary P. Nunn's "London Homesick Blues" for about five years. For the 25th anniversary, studio Tequila Mockingbird created a more contemporary version of the song that has been used since.

That new direction also means more rock and a closer aesthetic relationship with the festival that has revived the TV show's fortunes. Fans can expect tapings from modern rock acts such as the Pixies, Bright Eyes, Elvis Costello and the Polyphonic Spree, all of whom are current or former ACL Fest participants.

Austin City Limits was dealt an unexpected blow earlier this summer when longtime sponsor Schlotzsky's filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Earlier this month, Schlotzsky's CEO Sam Coats said the Austin-born sandwich chain had withdrawn its sponsorship of the show.

When asked if some of the festival sponsors, which include BMI, Cingular Wireless and H-E-B, could one day become chief program sponsors, "ACL" vice president of branding Ed Bailey answered, "Yes."

He added: "I would anticipate that those companies are waiting for a spot to open up."

jgross@statesman.com; 912-5926