Not going to Austin City Limits Music Festival? FREE/low cost parties/events for Oct 3rd - 6th

Every year I struggle with the idea that Austin gets taken over by an influx of folks who are heading out to Zilker Park for the annual Austin City Limits Music Festival.  Traffic is a headache, all of the local coffee shops and restaurants are overcrowded, Barton Springs Road is a nightmare and closed, the taxi cabs are completely inconsiderate, all of my friends coming in from out of town want to stay with me, there are a ton more people on bicycles and on foot in the heart of the city, etc etc. Don't get me wrong the festival and the festival goers add fantastic revenue to our city, local shops, restaurants, and stores - specifically last year the city pocketed $102 million dollars! Now, this year C3 decided to have TWO weekends, of the same lineup, so you can imagine how stoked the City of Austin must feel to benefit TWICE the amount of revenue and perks of having the festival in the heart of Austin. I get it! I GET IT! People love Austin and people love music.

If you are like me I try avoiding Central Austin and Zilker Park area whenever ACL comes around. In the past I used to be a part of the chaos, but since ticket pricing has gone up & the demand for everyone to squeeze into our beloved Zilker Park all for the same bands I love just seemed way too much for me. Since 2010 I have explored what other events and parties take place in the other local spots, sometimes away from the chaos near Barton Springs Rd, have fun events and things going on the same weekend everyone else is in town. Here is my list of things to get into if you are a local and not working but want to get out into the city and support the local scene and do thangs.

Thursday Oct 3rd
Holy Mountain and Red 7 (both right next to one another) will be hosting the Knuckle Rumbler Art Disaster No. 16.  This event happens every year to kick off the ACL Music Fest. They are 'unofficial' ACL fest but shit, they been doing it since I can remember (they even host SXSW shows too).

9pm - 2am

Bands slated to play include locals
The Black and White Years (they just did a set after Tegan & Sara a few weeks ago at Stubb's)
Driver Friendly (they will be opening up for Motion City Soundtrack in November at Emos)
Night Drive 
Gobi 
Totally Consensual (Dj's) (KOOP dj's mixing up on mixing tables!)
Good Field
Politics (these are cool kids, man!)
Multi-Tracker
Magna Carda
Apollo Zeigiest (I have been following this guy on Twitter for years! he's a great philanthropist)
Looshuss
$5 at the door and $3 if you RSVP here.

Queens of the Stone Age will be performing at The Moody Theater for an Austin City Limits taping!

Boy oh boy if you can get into this please let me know how it goes. I will try my luck as soon as ACL puts up a link to try for free tickets to this taping. Go here and watch for the link to be posted up sometime around 9/26-9/30.

Friday, Oct 4th
KUTX is holding a Live at the Four Seasons session - which tend to be much lower key and affordable too! 
$10 bring your blanket and/or chairs to post up at the hotel's lawn with your taco & coffee (included in admission)

9am - 1pm
Court Yard Hounds (2/3rds of Dixie Chicks) go on at 9:30am
Austin's own White Denim goes off at 10:30am
Local Natives performs an hour after at 11:30am
and Austin locals Okkervil River plays at 12:30pm
All sets are 20-30 minutes long

Quantic DJ Tour will be happening at Empire Control Room (I was a stage manager at this venue the last 2 years for SXSW). 
FREE admission before midnight ($5 after) with DJ sets from
Oro11
local Peligrosa mastermind DJ Orion
another local Peligrosa mastermind Manolo Black
RSVP here and support some bad ass la raza dj's


Also this is happening at The Scoot Inn- What Kind of Bird Are You? - a Wes Anderson costume party hosted by Foxing Quarterly (local print-only arts journal published in ATX)
6pm - 2am
$5 with costume / $10 without

 

local acts include

Grace Park & The Deers 

Old Potion
Linen Closet
Alex Napping
& Milezo & The Noize

Saturday Oct 5th
MTV, CMT, VH1 , & MTV2 are throwing a shindig (and pairing up with Pizza Hut) called Discover Great that is taking place at the American Legion Building @ 404 Atlanta Street (next to the old RunTex off of Lake Austin Blvd).

10pm - 2am
Promised performances and appearances will include
Walk the Moon

Nabiha (Danish Music Award's new Female Artist of the Year)

Striking Matches (has 3 songs on CMT's "Nashville"show)
DJ Set by Penguin Prison too!

RSVP here before everyone and their momma RSVP and crashes the link. (You can also RSVP for one other so you ain't going alone.)

ALSO
DITCH THE FEST is back again with Ditch the Fest # 4 AND 5!
October 5th is Ditch The Fest #4 / October 12th is Ditch the Fest #5 @ The Scoot Inn

Local bands and local art for $5!

More events and shows to come as we round out the end of September.  I will post and update this post as I hear about those events and things happening around ACL time.