COLUMN: ACL is the ultimate music festival, but it's also sold out

Have you ever wondered what makes Austin a haven for all things music?

In a lot of ways, it seems like the Nashville of everything that isn’t country. Maybe it’s that liberal glow coming from the college campus, or maybe it just happened one day and no one ever questioned the change.

The end result has us coming out on top, both spatially and figuratively speaking, with Austin being less than a day's drive away and constantly having something to offer for music lovers.

Since 2002, Austin City Limits Music Festival has been the festival to go to if you live even remotely close to Austin. Named after the PBS televised concert series from the 1970s, Austin City Limits is three days packed full of live music.

The 11th iteration of this festival will happen Oct. 12 to 14 is no exception to the awesome that has came before it, boasting 130 bands topped with headliners like Jack White, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Neil Young and Crazy Horse to name a few.

Looking away from the headliners, ACL has some really cool bands that you should definitely see if you find yourself in Austin.

While looking down the list, some of my favorites stuck out to me. Crystal Castles and M83 both will really tickle your electronica bones. Die Antwoord and Big K.R.I.T. will keep your head bobbing with raps and beats. If indie sounds are more of your thing, Freelance Whales and Metric will fit that bill.

Even if you don’t go to Austin, check these groups out as well as the others on the lineup list.

Here’s where the depressing part that no one wants to hear, but everyone needs to know, comes in.

While everyone wants to spend Oct. 12-14 in Austin, the tickets are already sold out — no three-day passes, no VIP passes and no single-day passes. It’s the sad truth about music festivals: The early bird gets the worm.

Not all is lost, though. Some of those tickets will inevitably end up on eBay and Craigslist for much more than their original price. Getting scalped sucks, but if your favorite band or bands are on that list, you know as well as anyone that love has no price tag.

So, my fellow music lovers, I hope you’ve got your tickets safely in your possession. If not, I wish you the best of luck in finding a fair price (and if you do, spread the love my way).

Shawn Stafford is an international and aera studies junior.

Shawn Stafford

Shawn is a former staff member of The Oklahoma Daily who worked as Life & Arts Reporter.