Post About Wilco

[nath]

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Son Volt's first album "Trace" is their best, imo, and is definitely worth acquiring.

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Agree.

[SEABEAST]

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I never could get into Wilco, though I like different music and certainly have an open mind for it.

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i felt like this until my gf made me go with her to see them live here earlier this year. even through the first few songs it only seemed ok, but then we found a good spot on the stairs for a while where we could see every band member and even the mixer very clearly, and the nuances began opening themselves up for me as i watched each of them closely and concentrated on what they were all doing and how well it gelled. i really enjoyed the rest of the show (well ok maybe the double encore and 2 hours 45 mins was a bit much, but still one of the best shows ive seen this year)

[Los Feliz Slim]

I'm having the same experience with Summerteeth as I've had with each album.

First time through: That was pretty good.
Second time: I can't wait to listen to this again.
Third time: Holy [censored], this is [censored] amazing.

With all the references to other bands being thrown around, I'll add Cracker to the list. Many times they sound almost eerily similar.

I think I'm glad I listened to SBS first, because if YHF, Summerteeth, A.M., were what I had heard first I might be prejudiced against SBS like many of you seem to be. I still thinks it's a really good album.

Next stop: Being There and the documentary. Also, a friend thinks he might have an extra ticket for the show at the Greek. If anything's worth doing it's worth going completely overboard, right?

[danzasmack]

I started listening to Wilco because they seem to get bunched in with The Old 97's a lot. I guess I kinda see the connection, but not really.

I like their stuff, have 3 of their albums I think but it didn't hit me as it seemed to hit most of you.

[talentdeficit]

my first and last experience with wilco was grabbing yankee hotel foxtrot off slsk based on talk on the ilovemusic forums. i liked it, a lot, but it led me down the dark path of art rock which eventually wore me out. i never got around to listening to any of their other albums. based on this thread though, i grabbed summerteeth off itunes and oh my gosh is it great. i feel a little betrayed, as no one has ever in my recollection mentioned this as a great album, and it is great. thanks everyone who contributed to this thread.

[Wilco23]

ahem, i dig them (see avatar ldo). if you're a fan of wilco, i highly recommend getting hold of any jeff tweedy solo shows you can. if you want to hear the structure of the songs in a stripped down and pure form, that's how to do it.

wilco has been lauded for stretching creative boundaries and
outgrowing their "alt country" label. they have been favorites of a ton of critics and generally have been left to create their own sound. (ok, not exactly, but what does warner brothers know about music anyway? if you've seen i am trying to break your heart or know the story about yankee hotel foxtrot, you'll know what i mean.)

after sky blue sky came out, i said that album was 70's am gold with a hint of neil young. the album is more relaxed than their previous efforts, and the band seems to be finding a groove and just riding it.

a ghost is born was good, albeit somewhat inconsistent. more electronic elements than their other efforts, at least in the sense of electronics being in the forefront rather than provided texture and atmosphere (see yankee hotel foxtrot).

kicking television, their only official live album, is worthwhile. i've managed to collect more than 200 wilco bootlegs so it's nothing special to me. there's a whole community of wilco bootleg collectors, and the band historically has (maybe had now) been willing to allow people to make soundboard recordings.

one can't go wrong with the pop goodness of summerteeth. 'nuff said.

being there, a double album, is more in the alt country vein and contains some of the songs that form the band's live show staples (e.g., misunderstood - never thought i'd get into a guy yelling "nothing" about 43 times in a row, but it works live).

a.m. is the debut of the band as it rose from the ashes of uncle tupelo and jeff tweedy was coming into his own as a songwriter and frontman. it has the staples casino queen, i must be high and box full of letters. however, i find myself going back to dash 7 all the time.

obviously i'm into the band. i've seen them live (but will miss them in september when they hit dallas, where i live), and i've seen tweedy live. if you get a chance to see them or him, it's ok to want to hear heavy metal drummer - just do the rest of us a favor and don't yell it out like you want to hear freebird.

last, if you want to know more about the band, check out viachicago.org. i'm not affiliated with the band or the site, just a fan.

now, who wants to start a ryan adams thread?

[Wilco23]

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Can anyone recommend me some specific songs that have some piano in them? I'm really liking this stuff.

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the demos for yankee hotel foxtrot can be found on the internets, if you're interested, and they have some good ones including cars can't escape and magazine called sunset. cars can't escape is part of a scene in the i am trying to break your heart dvd where jeff is playing guitar and jay bennett is playing keys. one of my favorite moments of the dvd. i was bummed that cars can't escape didn't make the record.

[rbdog]

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I would love to listen to Summerteeth again for the first time.

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i have been a huge wilco fan for a long long time.
my favorite album changes (has many times) but i really do love summerteeth, so very well put dave.

i have seen them in concert 3 times (once in a tiny tiny venue after they were dropped from their label and were playing songs off of y.h.f.) it was epic. jeff tweedy is a genius.

my favorites in order today, studio albums only.

summerteeth
yankee hotel foxtrot
being there
mermaid ave. vol. 1
sky blue sky
a.m.
a ghost is born
mermaid ave. vol. 2

do yourself a favor and def. check out the dvd "i am trying to break your hear" and tweedy's solo dvd "sunken treasure"

i try to pass them on to everyone. start with summerteeth of y.h.f. and then you will end up having to buy them all.

cheers. J.

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Opened up for R.E.M. Were you there? I thought so. The crowd wasn't quite ready for 'Ashes' as it is a long song with a dubious ending for the non-fan. Applause, yes, but a smattering.

[samsonite2100]

I know I'm gonna get flamed for this, but I think Wilco's somewhat overrated. Not saying they don't have a good sound or that Jeff Tweedy's voice isn't great, but I think a lot of the songwriting is kind of blah. Like, there's always a few really strong songs on each album, but there's a lot of filler, too--Summerteeth is a perfect example of this, as the first five or so songs are amazing and then the album just kind of lulls into nothingness.

Also, Tweedy seems to get a free pass on a lot of lyrics that are actually pretty bad ("I'm an American aquarium drinker, I assassin down the avenue?") I dunno, maybe if they hadn't been praised to high-heaven by every critic in the world for ten years as the greatest band on planet Earth, I'd expect less and like them more. Fwiw, they are a great live band.

[Wilco23]

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I know I'm gonna get flamed for this, but I think Wilco's somewhat overrated. Not saying they don't have a good sound or that Jeff Tweedy's voice isn't great, but I think a lot of the songwriting is kind of blah. Like, there's always a few really strong songs on each album, but there's a lot of filler, too--Summerteeth is a perfect example of this, as the first five or so songs are amazing and then the album just kind of lulls into nothingness.

Also, Tweedy seems to get a free pass on a lot of lyrics that are actually pretty bad ("I'm an American aquarium drinker, I assassin down the avenue?") I dunno, maybe if they hadn't been praised to high-heaven by every critic in the world for ten years as the greatest band on planet Earth, I'd expect less and like them more. Fwiw, they are a great live band.

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you're not gonna get flamed. hell, i'm a huge fan and i don't think jeff has a great voice. as for the lyrics, they do take some thinking to get into. the one you quoted - as i see it - basically means that the speaker feels like a badass (assassin down the avenue) but in reality he's just simple and maybe not that deep (aquarium (water) drinker). just my $.02.