The Austin City Limits music festival will bring an average 65,000 fans a day to the newly sodded grounds of Zilker Park Friday through Sunday. With temperatures predicted to be cooler than normal and a $2.5 million new lush green carpet, fans will be out to capture Austin live music at its finest.

Friday

Kick off the festival Friday morning by heading straight to the H-E-B stage for a performance of local teen band Stoosh at 11:30. The band, loaded with Westlake High School student artists, plays rock songs from the 70s forward, with one or two original numbers thrown in. If you want to keep up the karma by supporting artists with a Westbank tie, head over to the AMD stage for nine-time Grammy winners, Asleep at the Wheel, fronted by longtime local Ray Benson for some reliable Western Swing. Or get a little adventurous and give a listen to Sarah Siskind at BMI. Siskind’s original deep South blues are from-the-gut, belted out in a voice that can carry the songs all on its own.

The Avett Brothers take the AMD stage at 2:30 p.m. for the rootsy, rock-pop magic of the sibling trio. Find out why mega talent scout Rick Rubin signed the band to his American Recordings label last year.

Todd Snider takes the Austin Ventures stage at 3:30 p.m. with his humorous, Dylan-like songs with political message. The San Marcos’ Cheatham Street Warehouse alum can hold his own, rivaling even James McMurtry for Americana prose.

For something different, catch Grammy nominated blues charmer Raphael Saadiq on the Xbox 360 stage at 5:30 p.m. Voted best 2008 Album on iTunes, the R&B “The Way I See It,” featured Stevie Wonder and Joss Stone.

It’s always a good time with high-energy hometown boys Reckless Kelly on the Austin Ventures state at 7:15 p.m. Brothers Cody and Willy Braun and their Austin-based band of merry men have described themselves as a rock band with a fiddle, as good a description as any.

Close out Friday night with a deliberation, a choice between big draws Kings of Leon on the LiveStrong stage or the Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs on the AMD stage. More than 25,000 fans have already added rock royalty Kings of Leon to their ACL schedules, hoping for a taste of what some critics have called evolving music talent reminiscent of the Beatles. Indie-rock Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs will bring to bat its powerful emotion-locked ballads.

Saturday

There is no shortage of options to get the day off to a good start Saturday at the festival. For a dance back in time to catch some solid Chicago-style gospel quartet, don’t miss the Rock and Roll Hall of Famers the Soul Stirrers at the Wildflower Center at 1 p.m. The band itself has been around for 70 years, spawning solo careers for lead singers including Johnnie Taylor and the Sam Cooke. Smooth and solid.

With the opening of the House of Song, the Denmark and Austin coalition to grow great songwriters, the local music scene will likely be seeing more Danish artists in the future. Get your feet wet with The Ravonettes at the Xbox at 1:15 p.m.. Wickedly cool, hookishly pop. Or, for a little more Americana with a Dylanesque sound, check out The Felice Brothers at the Dell stage, also at 1:15 p.m. Talented poets of rural America. Bound to be a festival favorite.

Funky bluesman Papa Mali takes the Austin Ventures stage at 3:30 p.m. With deep ties to Austin, Mali has been a dark horse local favorite for years. The swamp rat guitar savant was born in Mississippi, grew up in Louisiana and never fails to deliver. Earthy, gritty and soul pleasing.

It’s hard to pass up the good time to be had with one of the country’s favorite Celtic punk bands, Flogging Molly. The band was born in an Irish bar in Los Angeles, but front man Dave King was born in Dublin. A rocking bar band that can get anybody clogging and put a smile on your face, even if you don’t imbibe. At AMD at 4 p.m.

Former vocalist and drummer for The Band, Levon Helm has done as much as anyone to put the roots into rock by merging country, blues, folk, funk into his own version of American legend music. Helms survived throat cancer, his spirit and musical gifts in tact, to earn a Grammy for his 2008 comeback album, “Dirt Farmer.” Rolling Stone put him on its list of the 100 greatest singers of all time and the Americana Music Association named him 2009 artist of the year. At LiveStrong at 6 p.m.

At 7:15 p.m., it’s time to tuck the kiddies away and head over to the Austin Ventures stage for The Scabs. Raunchy, booty-shaking and totally Austin, the band, led by Austin icon Bob Schneider, can get anybody smiling, shaking and in the mood. Make yourself proud of your live music heritage. Not for the underage.

Festival headliner The Dave Mathews Band hits the LiveStrong stage at 8 p.m. for a two-hour set. Take the kids. With a career spanning two decades, you can listen to your golden oldies and let the kids feel cool with the new tunes. The summer touring band with a social conscious released a new CD in June, “Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King,” that peaked at number one on the Billboard 200, giving the band another platinum trophy. Can’t miss.

Sunday

Ease into the festival Sunday morning with Alela Diane at the Dell stage at 11:45 a.m. Billed as a happy median between old-school, Fairport Convention-style roots music and modern freak folk, the California native with an English cult following will provide a soft lullaby for the final day of music heaven.

If you are looking for raw blues and love-gone-wrong lyrics, it’s Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears at the AMD stage at 12:30 p.m. Lyrics are not for the timid.

Honey-voiced Texas soul with a smile will drift from the Austin Ventures stage at 2:20 p.m. via San Marcos independent artist Terri Hendrix. Female Texas spirit and darn good picking.

Rain or shine, it is hard to beat the “fast-and-loud, post-punk indie sound” of the Arctic Monkeys. Music to bob you head to, hold your arm in the air and celebrate being at the top of the food chain. AMD at 4 p.m.

Worth the ticket price for the day all by himself, Raul Malo will be at the Austin Ventures stage at 6 p.m. Don’t miss this one. With a voice proven to master any genre, Malo can take a classic like “You’re Only Lonely,” and make it feel new.

Catch a dose of authentic New Orleans jazz from The Preservation Hall Jazz Band at the Wildflower Center at 7 p.m. After you have had your fill, head for the Austin Ventures stage for Dan Auerbach at 7:15 p.m. The the primal powerhouse guitarist and vocalist for the Black Keys will be sharing songs from his February solo debut, “Keep It Hot.” A soulful don’t miss.

ACL concludes, not with a whimper but a big loud band with Pearl Jam at the LiveStrong stage at 8 p.m. The festival handed over it’s climax to the band to perform single-handed at the final time slot.