There’s always a buzz around the ACL Fest lineup, but this year feels a little bigger with the festival celebrating its 25th anniversary. 

As soon as the lineup dropped, social media filled up with people debating headliners, planning out weekends, and trying to decide which days they’re heading to Zilker Park. This year’s lineup leans pretty heavily into indie, pop, electronic, and alternative music, with names like Lorde, Charli XCX, RÜFÜS DU SOL, Twenty One Pilots, and The xx leading the way. Skrillex will appear during Weekend One, while Kings of Leon are set for Weekend Two.

What stands out most though is the depth further down the lineup. Artists like Turnstile, Bleachers, The War on Drugs, Cannons, Lola Young, and SOFI TUKKER help give the festival a little more balance across the weekend. There’s also a noticeably larger electronic presence this year, which already has people talking online. Some fans are excited about the direction, others miss the heavier rock focus ACL used to have, but that debate honestly feels like part of the festival experience at this point.

If you’re planning on making the trip into Austin for the weekend, now’s probably the time to start looking at hotels before prices climb even higher. Hotel Van Zandt has always been one of the better spots for festival weekends, especially if you want to stay somewhere that still feels connected to Austin’s music culture. Hotel ZaZa Austin is another good option if you’re looking for something a little more upscale while still being close to downtown, restaurants, bars, and everything happening around the city during ACL weekend.

Part of what makes ACL fun every year is that people show up excited for the big names, but by the end of the weekend there’s always one artist everyone suddenly can’t stop talking about. So who are you most looking forward to seeing this year, and which band or artist do you think ends up being the surprise set everyone talks about after the festival wraps up?

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Cover Photo Rylan McCoy

Brian Maass is a native Austinite, writer and photographer covering live music, travel, and culture, with a passion for storytelling through the lens of his camera. He lives in Round Rock with his wife, Dr. Dana Kent Maass, and their rescue dog, Chester. Instagram @brian_maass_adventures.