I recently had the pleasure of taking in a Wilco show at Stubbs BBQ here in wonderful Austin, Texas. Let me just say that my history with Wilco is spotty at best. What I mean by that is that for me Wilco has always been "that other band" that came from the demise of Uncle Tupelo. This is not to say that I've never liked Wilco, in fact I've loved them at times. But...I've also nearly hated them. You see, I'm a purist when it comes to "alt country" or whatever name you'd like to use. Of course it's been many years since Wilco could claim to be any part of that genre, but that's where they came from and in some ways will be linked to that music forever. I love the first record, "AM" and I mean LOVED IT...of course if you've read any quotes from Tweedy, that record will never be a favorite of his. To me it was the perfect transition from UT to Wilco. It was not as perfect an album as Son Volt's "Trace", and that I think is where the love/hate relationship began for me.
I wanted every Wilco record to sound like UT, or at least follow in the footsteps of "AM", and continue the "alt country" sound. I have never argued that my views on "good music" can be very myopic. If it doesn't have a pedal steel, or some type of twang, it's not on my radar. Exceptions have been made over the years, as I do love to get my rock on, but it always leads me back to country music....and not that CMT, Brooks and Dunn, Big and Rich bullshit that gets played at nauseam on way too many radio stations around the country.
At any rate, Wilco decided to buck tradition and over the past many years have gone in several different directions musically, and I've loved and hated a ton of it. It's amazing to me now how many times I declared a new Wilco album as shit, or used my knee jerk reaction claiming "this sucks" after only one listen. Wilco grows on you, and that is why, years later, I'll say without any doubt, reservation, or lack of conviction, that Wilco in 2008 is the very best live band I've ever seen in my life, and I can't imagine this not remaining true for the foreseeable future, or...hell....forever.
Yes, in this same blog, I've lauded bands like The Hold Steady, and Richmond Fontaine as putting on shows akin to a "religious experience", and I stand by those comments. Those shows were spectacular, but after seeing Wilco on this tour, and having heard many bootlegs of recent shows, not to mention their stellar Austin City Limits taping, they simply put...RULE. They are tight but spontaneous, perfect in their timing and execution and above all, some of the best musicians and songwriters currently playing music anywhere today.
The set list for the show I saw will be posted at the end of this rambling love letter to Tweedy and Co. The show started with Via Chicago...how can you go wrong with lyrics like "I dreamed of killing you again last night and it felt all right to me..." This song goes in to a crazy, all over the place, out of sync, but perfectly in sync rock and roll orgasm and then suddenly it's quiet and again with only Tweedy's voice and some base and guitar strumming...and then boom, it's back again. It's not even anything I can explain, so look it up. It's one of the best songs Tweedy has ever written. Anyway, it's really all a blur, but the remaining feeling I have days later is that it was not just a show, but an experience...I wish they were all like this. I've also added a link with some live video from the show as well. Cool.
Wilco5/12/2008Stubb'sAustin, TX
One set
01 Via Chicago
01 Via Chicago
02 Hummingbird
03 Ashes of American Flags
04 Airline to Heaven
05 You Are My Face
06 Box Full of Letters
07 A Shot in the Arm
08 Side With the Seeds
09 War on War
10 Handshake Drugs
11 Nothing'severgonnastandinmyway(again)
12 Jesus, Etc.
13 Impossible Germany
14 Shouldn't Be Ashamed
15 Passenger Side
16 Theologians
17 I'm The Man Who Loves You -encore-
18 Cars Can't Escape
19 Spiders (Kidsmoke)
-encore-20 California Stars
21 Hate It Here
22 Heavy Metal Drummer
23 Walken
24 Kingpin
25 Red Eyed and Blue
26 I Got You
27 Monday
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