Do you like Wilco?

So critically overrated in the US that I might *almost* not get mad if Tom were to describe them as irrelevant rockist crap.

I'm glad that none of these people going on about 'rockism' mean it seriously.

But, hey, it's all in good spirit.

(and I say that as someone who's indifferent to Bragg musically, and left the Tolpuddle rally early last year because his performance was resembling a self-parody and I couldn't take it so close up, but I'm glad he's around.)

While I agree, remember that the whole thing was in the can before 9/11, and untouched thereafter. Which makes it all kinda spooky, methinks.

wl: That's why it works so well- it's a 9/11 album untainted by post 9/11 sentiments!

"Yankee Hotel Foxtrot" = r0x0r (tries to be Flaming Lips)

"Summer Teeth" = sux0r (tries to be Beach Boys)

Word.

"Yankee Hotel Foxtrot" = r0x0r

True dat.

(tries to be Flaming Lips)

Errr... don't hear it.

"Summer Teeth" = sux0r

Nah.

(tries to be Beach Boys)

Word.

Daniel your aesthetics are in severe need of regime change.

I know! I should paint my room pink...

performance of "Hate It Here" (with added horn section) on SNL tonite fucking RULED

looking forward to the second cut ("Impossible Germany" maybe?)

Agreed. I never liked that song before just now.

ok for 2nd song "Walken" was AWESOME choice although I wasn't as blown away by the performance. uh, performance-wise.

the "Hate it Here" was totally inspiring , best-band-in-the-uni type stuff. The "Walken" was sort of "eh". which is kinda doubly weird becuz "walken" is the Little Feat-aping track that lends itself to such band solidarity. kinda seemed like the boys did not really grab that one like they could've. oh well. they sounded great.

What's the provenance of that Nudie suit Tweedy wore?

Leave it to a Wilco thread to feature the word "provenance".

Out of curiosity, has anyone looked into whether or not their role in Volkswagen commercials resulted in the 'Nick Drake effect?' Sales-wise, not mortality-wise, mind.

like, after wilco's adds woksvagen accidentally overdosed on anti-freeze?
i'm 'pparently mis'standing something there, amn't i?

no

I thought it was odd that VW uses non-lp trax in the ads.

haven't paid attention since YHF which is a pleasant-bordering-on-interesting listen. I always had a soft spot for Being There cause when it came out my Faces and Big Star Third/Sister Lovers love was at its peak. I think I eventually came around to Summerteeth, too.

Summerteeth is the only Wilco cd I have, actually. I'm sorta lukewarmin' to it, mildly.

THe New Haven a few weeks back show was pretty great. Nels Cline and Glenn Kotche really bring the band to the next level.

meant to say New Haven show

has there been a backlash to the backlash on Sky Blue Sky?

has there been a backlash to the backlash on Sky Blue Sky?

I think so. The disc got lukewarm reviews when it was released (overall not bad, tho; I think the disc has a 79 METASCORE), but then it turned up on lots of critic's Top 10 lists last year. And it deserved to be on those year-end lists, I think. Great, underrated album.

I hope Nels Cline stays with the band. Such a good, innovative guitarist.

I have to say I resisted them for a long time- living in Chicago, it's sort of like too much to also listen to Wilco. Its like reading "Devil in the White City" on the CTA. And the boring people and middlebrow radio dj's of Chicago are just nuts for Wilco. But that's a stupid reason to avoid them, plus I ran out of music, and I gave in. So now I think they're great. Especially, She's a Jar, Jesus etc, and Handshake Drugs.

I used to have a similar opinion to jsimp. Fuckin hated these guys. and yeah, largely due to the lunkhead north-side beer garden lunkhead idiocy of the whole think. But quite frankly I never even liked Uncle Tupelo back in the day. And then I remember when 'A.M.' came out and "Xrt" used to cane that ridic "Passenger Side" track, where Tweedy's all oh yeah dude I am totally ROLLING ANOTHER NUMBER. just sounded so fucking weak. ain't no Neil Young.

but then a couple things happened. Friend had a free extra ticket to one of the Vic shows that ended up on that 'Television' live CD or whatever its called. so I went. and I enjoyed myself. Seeing Nils Cline live was a revelation ( his first stint with the group .. he of course not on 'Ghost is Born' which those shows were supporting.) Also closing that show with the great Charles Wright cover did buy my respect

then 'Sky Blue Sky' came out and random samples trickled over to me .. random tracks where I heard some Cline guitar that appealed and perked my ears up .. then finally stumbling upon them guesting on 'Prairie Home Companion' (i am a fan) where they fucking ripped and i heard the ghost of my guy Cipollina in Cline's liquid flow.

Stumbled into a store a couple weeks later, noticed the 2lp of SBS on the wall, and bought it, fuck it. Really kinda fell in love with it. Still hate Tweedy's voice a lot of the time but the band is swell. Like Tweedy when he does Lennon on 'Hate It Here' and Lowell on 'Walken'. I dig the band.

but yeah, fuck the north side.

You guys are right. The worst thing about Wilco is their hardcore fans.

I have been known to troll around their discussion group boards and it is striking at the hate the addition of Nels Cline has inspired in many of them. It's almost as if they are saying "How dare they stop being so alt-country."

If you ask me, they didn't get good until they got weird(er).

Its like reading "Devil in the White City" on the CTA.

lol

but yeah, fuck the north side.

He's still got it, folks!

(xpost) that is weird, because Summerteeth and YHF are their weirdest albums, and Nels wasn't involved in those, and Jay Bennet was. I'd say Ghost and Sky Blue Sky are their most folky albums since AM.

The worst thing about Wilco is their hardcore fans.

Until recently, I had no idea Wilco had a lot of "hardcore fans." I guess -- maybe unsurprisingly -- there aren't many of them living in South Florida.

I have been known to troll around their discussion group boards and it is striking at the hate the addition of Nels Cline has inspired in many of them. It's almost as if they are saying "How dare they stop being so alt-country."

That's amazing to me. Cline is so agile and talented. I hope they keep him in the band.

that is weird, because Summerteeth and YHF are their weirdest albums, and Nels wasn't involved in those, and Jay Bennet was. I'd say Ghost and Sky Blue Sky are their most folky albums since AM.

The thing w/the Bennett albums his he did so many overdubs with so many different instruments. (Didn't he claim that he played 75% or so of the instrumentation on YHF?) whereas the last couple are more homey, "band" records.

Until recently, I had no idea Wilco had a lot of "hardcore fans." I guess -- maybe unsurprisingly -- there aren't many of them living in South Florida.

Yeah, I'm friends with at least two or three people (here in Chicago) who would probably describe themselves as hardcore Wilco fans.

I used to love them so much. Being There and especially the first Mermaid Avenue album. Summerteeth had its moments, and obviously YHF is a force. But after that they just left me cold.

The beginning of the end was when Jeff Tweedy started to believe he was a poet.

this came out last month:

Greetings friends,

As we hope you've noticed, we've been lying low on the emails, trying to avoid being part of the last-minute discount, order-now-before-the-holiday-crush deluge of spam that is presently blowing up your inbox.

That said, we do want to thank all of you out there for making this, yet again, a great year for Wilco. Thanks to you guys for supporting the band & the entire Wilco org. by continuing to turn up in droves at shows and frankly, for buying stuff. Your support makes everything possible.

We've got a lot to look forward to in to '09 -- many cool things on the horizon. First, we (w/ Nonesuch) will be releasing Wilco's first concert film/DVD, and despite the obvious negative connotations associated with that category, we think you'll really like this one. It's called "Ashes of American Flags" and was put together by our friends Brendan Canty and Christoph Green at Trixie Films (Sunken Treasure, Burn to Shine, etc.) Filming took place on the band's February '08 tour and includes material from Cain's Ballroom in Tulsa, The Ryman in Nashville, and more. "Ashes of American Flags" should hit store shelves and the internet in February/March '09. Look for clips and other information at Wilcoworld.net beginning in January.

Post-holidays, the band will head back to the loft to resume work on their next studio album which we suspect will see the light of day in Spring '09. Again more details, streams, photos etc. coming to the site soon. So hang in there.

Re: touring: Well, there's not much until Spring. Jeff Tweedy has a handful of solo shows in late January (Kalamazoo, MI; Champaign, IL; Ann Arbor, MI). Ticket information here. Nels Cline also has a run of shows in January, info here. And there'll undoubtedly be other solo-ish events popping up here and there. But Wilco have no shows planned between now and April as they'll be pretty much hunkered down in the studio. We are in the final phases of working out a handful of gigs in southern US (April) and an extensive tour of Spain (May) followed by, most likely, the usual summer hijinks with a new record and gigs everywhere imaginable.

So, without further adieu, happy sledding through the holidays and into the New Year. And remember, when it comes to gift giving, it truly is the thought that counts (spoken like a true last minute shopper....). On that note, we'd be remiss if we didn't add that there's a sale on in the Wilco store and we've extended it through January 15. So feel free to, you know, order something and put a note in the card, saying "coming soon....", or whatever.

thanks again for everything. Here's to you guys. Happy Holidays... with love.

the HQ staff.

been listening to sky blue sky again lately and i think it might actually be my favorite album of theirs now. simple and pretty, but as if they'd stretched things way out on YHF and now are trying to distill that weirdness back into more measured song forms and instrumentation. and the lyrics are great.

Thread title reminds me of that one kid in the Beasties' "Fight for Your Right" video: "Do you like Willllco?"

Answer: no.

Yes, I like Wilco.

I used to. But hearing/seeing a video of "What Light" on the jumbotron while waiting for the Inaugural weekend Lincoln Memorial concert to start has me convinced that they have become a dull un-pop jam band.

it's like, you like neil young-y country rock occasionally filtered with a little bit of weirdness?

Remove neil young-y and this is why I don't like them. Country rock in general is dull as dishwater (and Neil rarely is). When I first heard Summerteeth and Being There I was comparing them to the first few Old 97's albums + Uncle Tupelo/Son Volt (obv) + I dunno, the Jayhawks or something. And all those were exciting and passionate and interesting, where Wilco sounded like Muzak.

classic thread, gr8 read:
I'm really fucking drunk and can't pull the jewel case of Wilco's "A Ghost Is Born" out of the cardboard sleeve

oh man

Up until the last year or so, the answer would have been "Meh" but last two albums are pretty great 90s indie rock.

Im not sure what to make of the new one yet. I like "normal american kids" a lot tho

I think they're probably splintering their fanbase a bit, so it's hard to know what to recommend, but I get taken in about halfway through the album during the run from happiness to locator especially.

not really caring any more, they have too many records. I'll always love Summerteeth

I think they have their own beer

Actually dug out my old Fuck (sorry, really wish they'd chosen a different name) albums, and yeah, there is a little bit of the same thing going on, though I like the recent Wilco stuff better.

Not a fan of early Wilco (anything earlier than Summerteeth) and a pick-and-choose relationship with the band for any album after Sky Blue Sky. Usually a couple of standout tracks on all of the latter-day albums. The new one and Star Wars were kind of dull to me, though.

(sorry, really wish they'd chosen a different name)

it's ok buddy

Expanded Reissues of AM & Being There Coming: http://www.rollingstone.com/music/premieres/wilco-details-reissues-of-first-two-lps-am-being-there-w508163

I was surprised by how much I loved the Alpha Mike odds and sods box. I'm in on these reissues, I adored "Being There" when it came out.

I loved AM and BT back in the day but fell off the bus after YHF. That comp of rarities looks good though, have to check that out.

Vouch for a ghost, summer teeth, yhf and especially sky blue sky, with the total classic "impossible Germany"

I guess up until YHF he had an effective foil in Bennett

I really dug "Germany" when I first heard it but it does zero for me now

I still don't know what the hell happened on Wilco (The Album), it's just so uninspired. It sounds to me how I imagine people who actively hate Wilco hear them all the time
Star Wars was pretty excellent though, which was something of a relief

i haven't loved anything since YHF (though I've liked some albums), but yeah Wilco (The Album) strikes me as by far their worst.
wonder if Farrar is on that last Uncle Tupelo track, or if it was just recorded pre-breakup?

Wilco (The Album) is like Beethoven compared to Wilco Schmilco. That is a bad record.

Schmilco sounds like what it is - the uninteresting outtakes from those sessions

W(TA) sounds like Tweedy actively persuing sub-Fleet Foxes/Feist blandness

I guess up until YHF he had an effective foilcollaborator/multi-instrumentalist/co-writer/producer in Bennett

W(TA) is easily their worst. The bookends on The Whole Love are worth the try.

Best record post-YHF to me is Star Wars, and I actually enjoy Schmilco.

I am curious if the extra stuff on these re-issues have already seen the light of day on the box set, which is, for the most part, pretty great. And I happen to love Schmilco. It's like Star Wars awkward little brother.

I couldn't get through 3 songs of that b sides comp

And Bull Black Nova is the only redeeming thing about W(TA).

"Alpha Mike Foxtrot" (a code for Adios M-F) is a bounty of riches. I love the band through YHF and it's got lots of live cuts from that period as well as fun alt takes and b-sides. The stuff from their later period was eye-opening for me. There's a track that sounds like a Fall outtake! And I've often found bands detritus is fascinating where they're being experimental or the song doesn't fit the album's vibe.

I saw them twice on the current tour and they were fantastic.

And Bull Black Nova is the only redeeming thing about W(TA)

"Deeper Down" is lovely

http://www.weepaperpeople.co.uk/2017/10/08/wilco/

https://wilco.kungfustore.com/new-items/jeff-tweedy-bobblehead-wil920.html