This might be the year I finally go to the Telluride Bluegrass Festival in Colorado. It's been on my mind for a long time, because the lineup always looks incredible, and you just can't beat listening to music in the mountains. This year, I'm most excited to see Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova -- who just won the Oscar for Once -- because those songs ... I don't know how to explain it, but they somehow still affect me, months later. Hansard's other band, The Frames, is one of the most dynamic bands I've ever seen in concert. I'm also a big fan of Ryan Adams and Tift Merritt, who are making their first appearances at the festival as well.

On my flight to Austin tomorrow for SXSW, I plan on reading the cover story in the latest (and second-to-last) issue of No Depression, about neo-traditionalist acoustic bands. A good number of them are going to be at Telluride, including Punch Brothers featuring Chris Thile, The Duhks, Uncle Earl and Steep Canyon Rangers. It promises to be one of those cool events where you can see a classic soul singer like Solomon Burke, and then Ricky Skaggs & Bruce Hornsby. And I'll try to catch Sam Bush (a.k.a. The King of Telluride) just as often as I can.