Saturday night started off with a bump when halfway to meeting Wawa, I realized I left our tickets sitting on my coffee table back at home. What a rookie mistake -- shows you how out of sorts I am with going to concerts with this crazy early work schedule that usually puts me in bed by 10pm most nights. Oy. But we still managed to walk into the doors and find Artie on the floor just before the lights dimmed. As annoying a shlep it might have been to get out to Montclair, and as much as this show furthered my sleep-deprivation, tonight's Wilco show was so worth it.
I was originally thinking no to this show; times are tough, and I had just seen Wilco twice in December opening for two very expensive Neil Young shows. Plus, shlepping out to Coney Island is rarely ideal. But then, Yo La Tengo was announced as the opener, so your humble narrator found herself facing the prospect of not seeing two of her favorite bands together on one bill. That would obviously be most incorrect. So I hustled and bustled for a ticket, even to the point of shamelessly asking James McNew of YLT for a ticket sortof (he said no). My patience paid off as this afternoon I landed a ticket for well below face. I made my way to Coney Island, scarfed down a Nathan's hotdog with onions and sauerkraut, and scooted to the stadium. I got there early enough for a nice spot right on the front rail and prepared for an evening of wow.
And WOW I got. Not only were Yo La Tengo superb (I could have seriously gone home after them and been fine with it), but Wilco once again killed it. They played for nearly 2-1/2 hours, employing a mix of the familiar as well as cuts off their latest self-titled album.
I was pleasantly surprised by the appearance of Feist, who did her duet with Jeff Tweedy on "You And I," and subsequently also by Edward Droste of Grizzly Bear, who lent his voice on backup vocals. Yo La Tengo came back onto the stage to join the boys in "Spiders (Kidsmoke)" to close out the first encore. It. Was. Like. My. Mind. Exploded.
Perhaps most fittingly, Wilco finished the evening with Woody Guthrie's "Hoodoo Voodoo" off their Mermaid Avenue collaboration with Billy Bragg. The always amazing Nels Cline engaged in a guitar solo duel with utility player Pat Sansone -- at this time, it is still unclear who won.
On the last night of a tour, Wawa said, sometimes bands like to mix it up. So we looked forward to what might happen, and the night did not disappoint. This time we (and Julie1) got to MSG at about the same time as the night before, just before opener Everest hit the stage. We had enjoyed this new band, and this second occasion proved no less interesting. Yes, The Watson Twins showed up again, but on a cover of Bob Dylan's "You Ain't Going Nowhere," Wilco members John Stirrat and Pat Sansone came on to lend backup vocals. Cute!
Next, it was Wilco's turn to get the crowd going. Wawa pleaded that they not start with "Via Chicago" and perhaps they heard him because we heard the opening notes of "You Are My Face." We looked at each other bemusedly, wondering if anything would be switched up for this set -- would it just be song order, or additional songs (please no "Kidsmoke!"), and surely, Wilco didn't stick to the program. They made us happy with three songs in a row that they hadn't played on Monday ("I Am Trying to Break Your Heart," "Handshake Drugs" and "A Shot in the Arm") before going back to probably the most impressive track off their latest album, Sky Blue Sky, with "Impossible Germany" (I am a big fan of the extended buildup of guitar layering leading to what looks like Jeff Tweedy and Sansone having guitar sex). For fun, Tweedy brought out his son Spencer to play drums on "Late Greats" and we sang Happy Birthday to him as well. And if things couldn't get more interesting, on "Jesus, Etc." Norah Jones and two other ladies came out to sing backup:
I was happy to see the boys all loose and happy. They might not have been as tight as the night before, but they were charming as always. As they closed out their set with "I'm the Man Who Loves You" and Glenn Kotche stood up above his drum kit, drumstick raised in air, Tweedy said that might be the last time we'd see that. What did that mean??, we wondered. Is Kotche quitting the band? Are they retiring that song? God, I hope not to both!
So, yeah, Neil Young truly is the bat shit crazy old uncle of Rock 'n Roll. With the same messy hair, paint-splattered jacket and running shoes on again, he played essentially the same setlist as the night before (with the addition of another 'car' song and the flipflopping of two songs at the end) but brought the same amount of energy that would be impressive for anyone, let alone someone in his 60s.
We were breathless through the first third of the set (the more electrified portion), kinda bored during the seemingly neverending middle stretch of car songs (dude, we get you like electric cars and stuff, but really? "Cough Up the Bucks" really is a lemon if you want to extend the metaphor!), and restored in the grungy last part, especially when everyone on the tour came out to sing along with "Rockin' in the Free World." Yeah, it is a corny-ass song but we loved it anyway.
I was happy to see all the bands come out and take their bows. It really was a memorable night. Seeing Jeff Tweedy with Neil Young gave my music geek self quite a thrill.
(Jeff Tweedy, Pegi Young, Neil Young, Tweedy's younger son, Everest's Russell Pollard)
I was able to record two of my favorite Neil Young songs last night -- the rockin' "Cinnamon Girl" and "Needle & the Damage Done." Enjoy!
(I owe this blog a review of TVOTR from October -- eek! -- and of Fishbone from November, but I couldn't resist putting last night's amazing show up!)
Last night was my first time seeing the legend, Neil Young. I have always considered him to be one to cross off on my list of must-sees, but difficulty in scoring reasonably priced tickets to his prior shows had kept me from seeing him. When he announced two nights at MSG a few months ago with the added bonus of my beloved Wilco as an opener, I jumped at the opportunity, especially since they made the front GA/Pit section affordable (well, sort of).
Wawa and I got there early enough to be at the front of the Pit and to catch the first opener, a sleepy band called Everest. They had a solid, jammy sound -- reminded me a bit of the time I saw Sam Roberts -- and even pulled out the not-so-creepy-anymore Watson Twins as backup for a few songs. I could envision really enjoying them at a smaller venue like Bowery Ballroom.
Wilco came on and played a short set of nine songs -- about 50 minutes worth. They were tight and did a nice sampler platter of their music, giving the audience a bit of the old and the new, the alt-country, the jam and the blips and boops. Wawa was dismayed to hear "Spiders (Kidsmoke)" even though it is a great song because it is such a time-consumer, and they were working under time limits, but whatevs. I'm generally happy to see Wilco whenever I can. They are so fantastic live, and it was great to see them play a large venue like MSG. And Jeff Tweedy's awkward little dance during "Hummingbird" always makes me happy!
I had been looking at recent setlists from Neil Young's Fall tour and was surprised that he did not hit the stage until 10:10. Would New York be shafted by a curfew and get a shorter setlist? No way, man! Neil did not disappoint -- he played a full set of 25 songs for about 2 hours and 25 minutes. It was chock full of old songs I knew including my favorite "Cinnamon Girl" and "Heart of Gold" and a stunningly gorgeous "Needle and the Damage Done."
I was surprised by how hard this dude rocked! He did not pause for much banter and played every electrified hard song as though it were his last one of the evening. Even a stale song like "Rockin' in the Free World" felt fresh and new to me. I felt fortunate to be able to see him so close and hear ever word during a surprisingly good sound mix for the front. Unlike the times I've seen Bob Dylan, another old fogey, this rumpled mess of a man brought it. He closed out the evening with a nutso cover version of The Beatles' "A Day in the Life" which broke several of his guitar strings so bad, he ended up thrashing his guitar with the broken strings.
Man, that was insane! I really felt like I got my money's worth with this evening, and can't wait to repeat it all again tonight! =)
It had been a year and a day since the last time I came to McCarren Pool for a gig. I'm not the biggest fan of this venue -- oftentimes, I feel the sound can get muddled between the acoustics of the concrete and the din of the hipsters. However, for tonight's show, Wilco ought to pay their sound guys beaucoup bucks because they sounded great. Just like the green jacket that lead singer Jeff Tweedy sported, the band was sharp and played like the professionals that they are, albeit kind of a safe set, if you ask me.
Now, don't get me wrong -- I LOVE Wilco, especially after winning a contest to see them in Chicago six months ago. And prior to that, I saw them up close and personal the last time they played Brooklyn, at the intimate Warsaw. So, perhaps my slight feeling of ennui had to do with my socks being knocked off by the rarities dropped on us at those two prior gigs, and not much to drool at tonight. Or maybe a symptom of having now seen them 4 times in the last year promoting Sky Blue Sky. Or maybe choosing to stand on the side of the stage away from the guitar hero blazes of Nels Cline (although Pat Sansone's antics were pretty damn amusing). Today I even got McCarren Pool early and managed to secure a spot right up front on the rail. But despite such a great position, somehow the performance, while fun and exciting as usual, felt like it was missing something and merely ranked a solid from me. Mind you, a Wilco solid does blow most other bands out of the water, however...
Perhaps I just prefer the rumpled, denim jacket look -- when the boys seemed looser and freer while rocking out. That green jacket, while a fine garment, I'm sure, seemed to lend an element of formality that I've never really encountered before with Wilco. They usually have such a carefree sense to them that translates into their playing. Part of me even missed Nels' red pants.
Anyway, I look forward to the next time they come to town, with new songs in hand.
Here are the guys playing "Pieholden Sweet" from Summerteeth:
(Sorry it's been so friggin' long since I should have posted this review! Today, a friend sent me the bootleg of this show, which I'm listening to now, and it has reminded me how awesome it was to be there, and that I should POST! Thanks, M.!)
Sometime in early February I was IMing with Wawa about the latest Wilco contest -- a pair of tickets to one of their sold-out 5-night residency at their hometown Riviera Theatre during which they supposedly would cover a majority of songs off all their albums. He declined to enter since he had a wedding that President's Day Weekend, but I figured I had no real plans, so why not? Well, lo and behold, on Valentine's Day, Thursday the 14th, I got a call from Wilco's management that I had won the contest, and would I be able to join them in Chicago two days from then? You betcha!
For the rest of that afternoon, I scrambled to find someone to share in my winnings -- people either were already committed to plans or didn't quite jump at the idea of booking a last minute plane ticket to Chicago. Luckily for me and for my old roommate Fer, we both had enough frequent flyer miles to merit a cheap ticket each. So we packed our bags and off we went the very next day!
We got put up in a nice room at the Hard Rock Hotel in Downtown Chicago, and this was our spectacular view:
After a dinner of Chicago-style deep dish pizza, we cabbed our way up to the theater, and were slightly dismayed to find a line already blocks long emanating from the entrance in the freezing cold Chicago temps. I decided to go into the lobby and talk to security and the management, and explained that I had won the contest and was supposed to pick up tickets up front, and miraculously, they told me and Fer to wait right there indoors and to wait for the lady with the guest list. Cool beans! I started getting a little antsy as doors opened, and people streamed by, and the guest list lady was still nowhere to be found. The floor was general admission, and I could sense my chances of being up front like I had been for the last time I saw Wilco diminishing rapidly. Finally she showed up, and instead of handing us tickets, gave us those cool stickers that you see guest list people often wearing:
Fer and I headed towards the floor, but the usher directed us to go upstairs. Crap! I didn't want to be stuck up in the mezzanine. But then the next usher upstairs directed us to go to the very front and center of the mezzanine. Sweet! It was a perfect view of the stage, and was wonderful placement acoustically-speaking, and we were seated as opposed to dealing with the standing crowd below us.
The show itself was utterly amazing. It clocked out at just over 2-1/2 hours, and as promised, the setlist drew from all of Wilco's albums, with about 2/3 of it coming from pre-Yankee Hotel Foxtrot songs, which was good, since the last few times I had seen them, they had focused on their latest release, Sky Blue Sky. From my ideal seat, I was able to record eight of their selections, including the ultra-rare "Dash 7" for which violinist Andrew Bird joined them:
The guys, as always, were a pleasure to watch, and you could tell that Jeff Tweedy was having a good time playing to the folks of Chicago who supported each song, rarity or not, with loud roars. In fact, after the show seemed to be over, the crowd refused to budge and kept chanting for another encore even after the house lights and the back curtain went up and the roadies started putting equipment away. The guys came out after a good amount of coaxing and treated us with a final encore of two more songs, "ELT" and "Hoodoo Voodoo." I felt so happy!
As part of my prize, I also got hooked up with a bunch of merchandise, including a limited edition poster screened specifically for that night. It's the second one from the left:
The next day, I received a pair of tickets in the second row by a goal for the Chicago Blackhawks hockey game, and some merchandise for them as well. I wore this dorky baseball cap, which was a good move because the die-hard Chicago fans around me immediately accepted me as one of their own, and high-fived me as their Hawks skated to victory. I had never had such great seats before, and got to see everything mega-close-up:
including a FIGHT!!! Funny thing is that my Wilco weekend didn't end the night before; the bassist, John Stirratt participated during one of the challenges during an intermission:
How random was that?
All in all, it was a super-amazing weekend, including visits with an old friend and Fer's family, and plenty of good eats:
A Chicago-style dog at the airport. For breakfast. It doesn't get any classier than that, folks!
"Curfews are for suckers," Jeff Tweedy said with glee, once he addressed the crowd well into the set. Wilco impressed me last night at Hammerstein, but tonight for my inaugural visit to Warsaw in Brooklyn, NY (and yes, I had some pierogies and kielbasa), they made it extra special, playing a solid two hour and fifteen minute set chock full o' oldies, opening and closing with songs from Being There ("Sunken Treasure" and "Outta Mind (Outta Sight)"). They also played "Why Would You Wanna Live" from the same album, and "Hoodoo Voodoo" from Mermaid Avenue!
For those keeping score at home, they started at 9:22 and stopped at 11:37. They played 12 songs in this set that were not heard on Monday at Hammerstein. Over the two nights, they played all of their latest album, Sky Blue Sky, except for one track (no "What Light"), and almost all of their beloved Yankee Foxtrot Hotel, and a majority of their previous A Ghost is Born.
The crowd for Warsaw seemed to possess more energy and enthusiasm than the audience for Hammerstein, despite being only a fourth in size. Whether you were quick enough to get your ticket through the Wilco presale (as I did), or by waiting for hours in line at the box office, or by paying a scalper loads of money, you were there probably because you really, really wanted to be, and it showed. We were sweating like dogs but nobody cared.
Julie1 and I even got to witness a classic Wawa spazz out moment during "Pot Kettle Black." Holy Christ, this show was good.
Welcome back, Wilco! Good to see you again, especially after that kinda tired show last year in Jersey. I love your new album, Sky Blue Sky, and have been listening to it non-stop. I enjoyed every second of your two hour set, which included a bunch of older songs like "I'm Always in Love" and a seizure-inducing "Via Chicago" from Summerteeth. I was happy to see Jeff doing his goofy dance again to "Hummingbird" and Nels and Jeff playing patty cake. I was especially psyched to hear the opening chords to "Impossible Germany" when you returned to the stage for the first encore.
Sure, there are always tracks I would have liked instead, but you put on a pretty rockin' show tonight. I am excited to see you tomorrow night at Warsaw.
This time, did a "road trip" to Sayreville, NJ, (home of Bon Jovi, yeahhhh!) for a sold out Wilco show. Hopped in Wawa's car with the Indie Twins for the little over an hour drive. While heading towards the Lincoln Tunnel, Stacey told us how she had to come up with car related songs for her job (she's at VH-1) and so Ministry's "Jesus Built My Hotrod" came up. Amazingly enough, it was one of my songs on my iPod -- I guess that's what having a 10,000 song capacity will do for ya. I don't think I had listened to that song since it was big in the early '90s. Stacey and I dug it over Wawa's car speakers. I don't think he was too pleased, so he made us listen to some Cheap Trick live album. Ugh!
After a pleasant dinner at what seemed to be the one sit down restaurant in the area -- Bella Napoli, check it out! -- we missed the opener and headed to Starland. The only other time I went there, it was pleasant. I caught Ryan Adams there with the Britta and the floor was loosely packed. I was left with the impression that it was easier to weave to the front in Jersey cos maybe they don't care as much. But when we got to the Wilco gig, it was immediately apparent that it was packed. And packed with meat heads. Hipsters were the minority here. There was no weaving through the crowd for this one. So we settled for a spot to the right of the sound board, with some view of the band. Julie1 and her sister and bro-in-law showed up too, but there was no standing with them.
Wilco hit the stage around 10:15, I think. I love Wilco and always will, but soon we concluded that perhaps it is time for them to go back into the studio and record new stuff. They played a lot off of their last album, A Ghost Is Born, and a few cuts off of Being There and Summerteeth, and the requisite "I'm The Man Who Loves You" and "I Am Trying To Break Your Heart." They sounded fine, but I think they too are probably tired of touring.
At points during the performance, Jeff Tweedy addressed the crowd and seemed kinda annoyed with the boozers and frat boy atmosphere. He even asked some people to "stop being a dick." People laughed, but I think he was 100 percent serious. I saw him last November at the free solo show he did at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center. He was much more mellow and chatty then. This time, although they sounded fine, it felt like they were going through the motions a little bit.
They finished their main set and did two encores of 3 songs each. We didn't stick around to the end, tho. Wawa had spotted the setlist from where he was and then convinced us to ditch the standards "Heavy Metal Drummer," "War on War" and "Late Greats" so we could get a jump on traffic before the one lane got all jammed up. It felt as if we were leaving Yankees Stadium with only 1 out left in the top of the 9th, and the Yanks were up by 5...maybe cos that was as soon as we got in the car, Wawa had to listen to WFAN to get the latest MLB scores...
Saturday night started off with a bump when halfway to meeting Wawa, I realized I left our tickets sitting on my coffee table back at home. What a rookie mistake -- shows you how out of sorts I am with going to concerts with this crazy early work schedule that usually puts me in bed by 10pm most nights. Oy. But we still managed to walk into the doors and find Artie on the floor just before the lights dimmed. As annoying a shlep it might have been to get out to Montclair, and as much as this show furthered my sleep-deprivation, tonight's Wilco show was so worth it.
