A warm and wild start to Weekend Two of ACL’s 25th Anniversary!
After last weekend’s rain, mud, and soaked shoes, ACL Fest Weekend Two opened with something that felt almost luxurious: dry grass, warm weather, and a cold breeze that showed up just when it was needed. Zilker Park felt like itself again. People were spread across the fields, groups were meeting up between stages, and the usual ACL mix of festival veterans, first-timers, teenagers, parents, and friends who clearly planned their entire weekend around music was everywhere.
There was a great mood in the park from the beginning. Fans were dressed for the heat, carrying drinks, checking schedules, and trying to figure out how to see three artists at three different stages without missing anything. That is part of the fun and frustration of ACL.
Our Day One took us across American Express, Miller Lite, Tito’s, and Snapchat, moving from emotional pop and stripped-back songwriting to R&B, dance music, and one of the loudest sets of the day. Faouzia opened our coverage with theatrical emotion, while Sienna Spiro reminded everyone how much a voice can do without a giant production behind it. Jesse Welles brought a pure spiritual vibe, and Paris Paloma created one of the quietest moments of the day. Then things got louder.
BUNT turned the Snapchat Stage into a dance floor, Turnstile delivered the kind of physical performance their fans had been waiting hours for, Leon Thomas brought the smooth, and The Chainsmokers closed the night with a giant party.
It was a long day, but the weather made it easy to stay in the park. After what happened last weekend, nobody was complaining.
FAOUZIA
There was something almost theatrical about Faouzia stepping onto the American Express stage. Her voice has always been the center of her music, and she made that very clear from the start. Rather than relying on a giant production to carry the set, she used her vocals, stories, and connection with the audience to pull people closer.
Songs like “Lost My Mind In Paris,” “Don’t Ever Leave Me,” “Sweet Fever,” “Weirdo,” “Peace & Violence,” and “Unethical” gave the set plenty of emotional weight, but Faouzia never made it feel heavy for the sake of being heavy. She talked with the crowd, shared pieces of the stories behind the songs, and allowed the audience to sit with those moments.
That intimacy worked especially well at a festival, where it is easy for an artist to get swallowed up by everything happening around them. People stopped walking. Fans moved closer to the stage. Phones came out, but so did the singing.
Faouzia has a dramatic quality to her music, but there was nothing distant about her performance. She made a large festival stage feel surprisingly personal, giving Day One an emotional beginning before the volume started climbing at the other stages.
SIENNA SPIRO
Sienna Spiro did not need pyrotechnics, giant props, costume changes, or anything designed to distract from the music. At a packed Miller Lite Stage, she simply stood there and sang, and that was more than enough.
Her performance leaned heavily into a stripped-back ’60s soul feel, with the focus staying firmly on her voice and the emotional weight behind the songs. Tracks like “The Visitor,” “Material Lover,” “Time,” “You & Me,” “You Stole The Show,” “Mono No Aware,” and “Die On This Hill” gave her plenty of room to show why her voice has become such a big part of her identity.
Of course, “Great Expectation” was one of those moments when the crowd seemed to lock in completely. There was no need to manufacture a huge festival moment. It happened naturally.
What stood out most was the lack of distance between Spiro and the audience. She felt close, even from farther back in the field. People listened instead of simply waiting for the next big production cue.
That kind of confidence is refreshing at a festival. Sienna Spiro trusted the songs, trusted her voice, and let the audience meet her somewhere in the middle.
JESSE WELLES
At the T-Mobile Stage, Jesse Welles gave ACL Weekend Two a set that felt personal without losing the easygoing spirit of a festival crowd. Armed with his guitar and joined by his band for parts of the performance, the singer-songwriter kept the focus on the songs and the connection he built with the audience. Fans sang along, creating a warm atmosphere that made the set feel more like a shared gathering than a performance from a distance.
Tracks like “The Nerd Reich,” “Join Ice,” “The Ballad Of Big Balls,” “Red,” “Horses,” “Malaise,” and “Bugs” gave the crowd plenty to connect with. He also delivered some great covers, honoring those great bands that are a crucial part of our rock culture, such as “War Pigs” by Black Sabbath and “I Won’t Back Down,” by Tom Petty. Welles moved comfortably between playing solo and performing with the band, and both approaches worked. There was no need for elaborate production or big stage tricks. The music did the job, and the audience responded with enthusiasm.
What stood out most was how natural everything felt. People weren’t just waiting for the next song; they were singing, listening, and enjoying the moment together. Welles brought a relaxed but engaging presence to the T-Mobile Stage, delivering one of those sets that reminds you how much a guitar, good songwriting, and a crowd ready to join in can accomplish.
PARIS PALOMA
The field got noticeably quieter when Paris Paloma took over the Miller Lite Stage.
That is not an easy thing to accomplish at a festival. There are always people walking by, conversations happening behind you, and another artist playing somewhere nearby. But Paloma created enough space around her music that the audience seemed willing to stop and listen. Dressed in an ethereal outfit and surrounded by simple, atmospheric lighting, she let the songs do most of the work. “Stem The Flow,” “Miyazaki,” “Good Boy,” “The Fruits,” “Good Girl,” and “Labour” gave the set a strong storytelling quality, with Paloma moving between delicate moments and songs that carried much more weight. Her fans knew exactly why they were there. There was very little of the usual festival chatter from the people closest to the stage. Instead, they watched, sang when invited, and listened.
“Labour” was especially powerful because of how naturally the crowd connected with it. There was a communal feeling without Paloma having to force one.
Her set was a reminder that a festival does not always have to be loud to be memorable. Sometimes the most interesting thing happening in a field full of thousands of people is everyone becoming quiet for a few minutes.
BUNT
If you were anywhere near the Snapchat Stage when BUNT started, you probably knew pretty quickly that standing still was not going to be an option.
The German DJ and producer, Levi Wijk, brought an immediate party atmosphere to the stage. The beats kept coming, and the audience responded by dancing, jumping, waving their hands, and singing whenever a familiar vocal came through the speakers. “Best Day Of My Life,” “Love Tonight,” “Renaissance,” “Trippin,” and “Rock That Body” were among the tracks that kept the set moving, but the bigger story was what was happening in front of the stage. People were not just watching BUNT. They were participating.
There was a loose, carefree feeling to the whole set. Friends danced together, strangers joined in, and every drop seemed to give the crowd another excuse to get louder.
BUNT understands that a festival DJ set is not only about what happens behind the decks. It is about reading the people in front of you and keeping them involved. He did that extremely well.
After several hours of walking between stages, the Snapchat Stage became an easy place to forget about the schedule for a while. Just dance, enjoy the breeze, and let the music take over.
TURNSTILE
Hours before Turnstile was scheduled to play, their fans were already waiting.
That told you almost everything you needed to know.
When Brendan Yates, Pat McCrory, Meg Mills, Franz Lyons, and Daniel Fang finally hit the stage, the response was immediate. The field became a moving mass of people jumping, shouting, pushing forward, and singing every word they could. Turnstile’s sound is difficult to put into one box. There is the speed and aggression of hardcore punk, but also melody, groove, and huge hooks that make songs work just as well with a festival crowd. That combination was all over their ACL set.
“Birds,” “Real Thing,” “I Care,” with Faye Webster as a guest on stage, “Dull,” “Look Out For Me,” “Holiday,” “Blackout,” and “Never Enough” were met with a level of excitement that felt different from almost everything else happening at Zilker that day.
There was a real sense of community in the crowd. Fans looked out for each other while the field kept moving. People who had clearly followed the band for years stood next to people discovering them for the first time. Turnstile did not simply play to the crowd. The crowd became part of the performance.
And judging by the faces leaving the field afterward, nobody seemed ready for it to end.
LEON THOMAS
After the controlled chaos of Turnstile, Leon Thomas offered a completely different kind of energy at the Miller Lite Stage. The singer, songwriter, musician, producer, and actor brought together R&B, soul, funk, and rock, creating a set that felt smooth without ever becoming sleepy. There was plenty of movement onstage, but Thomas always seemed comfortable letting the music lead.
Songs like “How Fast,” “Dancing With Demons,” “Far Fetched,” “My Muse,” “Yes It Is,” “Not Fair,” and “Mutt”gave the crowd a good look at the range in his music.
What worked especially well was the balance between polished musicianship and personality. Thomas can clearly handle a big festival stage, but there was still a sense that he was having fun with the performance instead of simply moving from one song to the next.
The audience responded to that. There was dancing throughout the field, plenty of singing, and a noticeable shift in mood from the heavier sounds happening elsewhere.
Thomas also has the kind of voice that makes even a busy festival environment feel more focused. He can go from soft and controlled to powerful without making it feel like he is trying too hard.
By this point in the day, the sun was starting to drop, and his blend of soul and groove fit the changing atmosphere perfectly.
THE CHAINSMOKERS
By the time The Chainsmokers closed the Snapchat Stage, the festival had already given us just about every kind of show you could ask for. So Alex Pall and Drew Taggart decided to turn the final stretch into one giant dance party.
Their set was packed with EDM drops, pop vocals, lights, production, and plenty of movement, with the crowd dancing from beginning to end. It was the kind of performance where even people who did not know every song seemed to recognize something.
The duo also had fun with the music itself, dropping in recognizable tracks including Daft Punk’s “One More Time” and Skrillex’s “Bangarang,” among other surprises. Those moments kept the set from feeling like a simple run through the biggest Chainsmokers songs. Of course, the final stretch belonged to “Closer.”
The reaction was immediate. Thousands of people sang along, phones went into the air, and the Snapchat Stage became one giant chorus.
There is something interesting about hearing a song like “Closer” years after it became unavoidable. For some people, it brings back a specific summer, a relationship, a road trip, or just a particular point in their lives. At ACL, all of those memories seemed to collide. The Chainsmokers closed the stage exactly as they should have: loud, fun, and impossible to stand still through.
There was something satisfying about the way Day One unfolded. It did not feel like we were chasing one single big moment. Instead, the day kept changing shape every time we moved to another stage.
Faouzia gave us emotion. Sienna Spiro gave us a voice powerful enough to hold a field without much production around it. Paris Paloma made thousands of people slow down and listen. Then BUNT flipped the mood completely and turned the field into a dance floor.
And then came Turnstile. Their set was probably the clearest example of what makes festivals like ACL work. Thousands of people who may have arrived with completely different plans ended up sharing the same patch of grass, singing the same songs and looking out for one another. Later, Leon Thomas brought a smoother side of the festival, before The Chainsmokers closed the Snapchat Stage with one last round of dancing.
Most importantly, the people made the day. Everywhere we went, there were fans laughing, trading recommendations, posing for photos, finding friends, and making the most of being outside with music all around them. After last weekend’s rain and mud, the dry field and cool breeze felt like a gift.
