“Austin City Limits“ presents an hour with national music sensation Eric Church. The episode premieres at 9 p.m., EST/ 8 p.m. Central Standard Time. This is one of the ACL milestone Season 40’s  iconic PBS music series.

Church has blazed his own trail to super-stardom and now makes his ACL debut with his signature brand of no-holds-barred country music. ACL airs weekly on PBS stations nationwide (check local listings for times) and full episodes are made available online for a limited time at http://video.pbs.org/program/austin-city-limits/ immediately following the initial broadcast. The show’s official hashtag is #acltv40.

Famous for a game changing live show, Church performs songs from his critically-acclaimed, chart-topping 2014 album The Outsiders in his ACL debut. The music rebel’s distinctively hard-rocking spin on country, influenced as much by AC/DC andMetallica as Merle Haggard and Waylon Jennings, has earned him a huge audience outside the confines

of country radio. . Delivering a host of hits,Church’s crowd-pleasing set is filled with anthems about youth, family and outliers that ignite through songwriting skill, powerful riffs and energetic vocals.”Eric and his band know how to rock harder than many rock ‘n roll bands,” says ACL executive producer Terry Lickona, “and his music and the words behind it have a way of reaching fans way beyond the usual borders of country music. He’s a perfect fit for ACL.”

Eric Church set list:  “Creepin’,””Guys Like Me,””Give Me Back My Hometown,” “Cold One.” “Sinners Like Me,” Homeboy,” “Drink In My Hand,”   (Click HERE for a preview clip of this song) “These Boots,”,”Smoke A Little Smoke,” “Springsteen,” “The Outsiders,” and”A Man Who Was Gonna Die Young”

The complete lineup for the full 13-week season, including six new episodes to air beginning Jan. 3, 2015, will be announced in the coming weeks. Check the news section of acltv.com for additional episode updates.

ACL is the longest-running music series in American television history and remains the only TV series to be awarded the National Medal of Arts. This year marks the 40th anniversary of the pilot episode taped in 1974 with Willie Nelson. In 2011, ACL moved to the new venue ACL Live at The Moody Theater in downtown Austin. ACL received a rare institutional Peabody Award for excellence and outstanding achievement in 2012.  Learn more about Austin City Limits’ programming and history at acltv.com.