Three days, seven stages, 126 bands. Yes, it’s that time of the year: Oct. 2-4 is the Austin City Limits Music Festival, the weekend when thousands of audiophiles unite in central Texas to hear their favorite bands and discover new ones as they weave in and out of crowds and consciousness. Scour eBay or become best friends with a scalper, because it’s not too late for a spontaneous road trip and music-filled weekend.

Why would you want to trek three hours south for some live shows when talented bands fill the entire Dallas-Fort Worth area with a soundtrack on Friday and Saturday nights? Because this festival gives you the chance to cut loose in “The Live Music Capital of the World” and see scores of shows in the space of three days – but choose wisely, because you’ll have to take your pick between more than 100 skilled and internationally-touring artists.

CAN’T MAKE IT OUT TO AUSTIN?

Don’t sweat it. Listen up in the coming months for the dates of the 2010 festival, sure to be as audiovisually delicious as this year’s, and spend next week catching these ACL acts when they pass through Dallas on their way out of Texas.

SUNDAY

Thievery Corporation at House of Blues

John Legend at Morton Meyerson Symphony Center