The “dream” lineup made for the toughest ticket in town and served as a more than capable finale for the Austin City Limits festival.  M. Ward, drenched in blue stage light, rocked ACL Friday with a two percussionist set, but brought a much different dynamic to La Zona Rosa.  Sans backing band, M. Ward’s solo, acoustic performance was rousing enough.  Throw in guest performances by Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, and the set was something special.  His lo-fi mix of Americana, alt-country, and indie dabbled in the political (“Sad Sad Song”), but mostly just enlivened an already energetic audience.  “I came here to see you!” shouted a fan, and Ward responded with a sly smile.  

Jenny Lewis slinked out on stage all smiles and sass.  Despite her musical prowess, Lewis is as much of an indie celebrity as a musician (which became evident by the number of girls in the crowd that took a fashion statement or two from the Rilo Kiley frontwoman).  With drink in hand, Lewis hid her large eyes behind her brown/red bangs, shyly smiling towards a zealous crowd and sitting at the piano for the opener, “Jack Killed Mom”

“My name is Jenny Lewis, and this is my wonderful band,” said the soft-spoken Lewis, twirling her hair as she talked. Somewhat paradoxically, Lewis does her best to make the performance a group effort rather than a solo endeavor (to which we may ask why she would do a solo album at all?).    She ensures that her five-piece backing band is heavily interwoven in the set, introducing them at great lengths and playing off of them during the set.  Guitarist/boyfriend/vocalist Jonathan Rice drew his own fair share of applause, and the duets between the pair were warm and charming.  The group’s chemistry is fantastic, and the band rolled through tracks off of Acid Tongue and Lewis’s 2006 effort, Rabbit Fur Coat like they’ve been together for years.

Still, the crowd wanted Lewis, and her solo acoustic number, “Acid Tongue” was the highlight of the set.  Stripped down (shame on you) and poignant, the rest of the band (along with a few guests, including M. Ward) gathered around the mic and did harmonizing backup vocals, allowing Lewis to fully shine.  Her fantastic set – identical to her ACL set on Friday –included a soft cover of The Everly Brothers’ “Love Hurts", perfectly sung between Lewis and Rice.

Conor Oberst, like Lewis, put together a set similar to his ACL performance.  (Read Soundcheck’s coverage here).  Also, like Lewis, Oberst was played a “solo” performance outside of his normal day job (“Bright Eyes”).  "I only thought I was gonna die, like, three times," remarked Oberst about his prior set.  This time around, if Oberst was on the brink of death, he didn't show it.  Backed by the Mystic River Valley band, Oberst played choice tracks off his recently released self-titled LP.  Once again, Oberst broke out Paul Simon’s “Kodachrome” amidst tracks like “I Don’t Want to Die (in a Hospital)” and “Moab”.  The group also broke out a blues standard, “Corrine, Corrina”, as if to reaffirm its eclectic talents.  No longer the lonely, frail, vulnerable frontman, Oberst dominates his songs with a vigor and a fierceness that belied his shaky vocals.  Leaving the hurt puppy dog demeanor at the door, Oberst brought out a rocking set that had an inebriated crowd in his clutches.

Between the charm of Lewis, the snarl of Oberst, and the six-string prowess of Ward, each act brought a degree of individuality to a bill that was perfectly arranged.  An encore performance between Ward and Oberst (including “Lenders in the Temple” and “Smoke Without Fire”) only made sense, because, for as great as these artists are individually, it’s what they have in common that made the night unforgettable.  You could argue each of these acts borrows something from the other, and as the set ran deep into the night, the cross-collaboration effect proved to be the theme of the night, particularly when Welch and Rawlings came out for one more cover: Lucina Williams’ “Sharp Cutting Wings”.