The Wilco Concert
As mentioned in my previous entry...
First of all, the circumstances weren't great. It was a Thursday evening and Matt and I both had to take off work early because the tickets and website said that the show started at 6:30 (which I thought sounded crazy early, but I then I thought... well it's an outdoor venue, maybe they want to do it while it's still light out?), and there was no mention of an opening band (again... weird). So we wanted to make sure we got there on time (I know what rush hour beltway traffic is like). And we got there earlier enough to have dinner before hand at the Cheescake Factory. And while we were eating there was a thunderstorm... which could be distressing for an outdoor concert, but I was smart enough to buy tickets for seats under the roof. They weren't great seats, but at least we didnt have to worry about getting wet, and we had actual seats to sit in. We got to the concert close to 6:30 and surprise surprise, there was an opening band, that didnt go on until around 8:00! (so much for me doing research). And the opening band was TERRIBLE. I think they fit in the "post-rock" genre (I've only seen that termed used in DC Metroblog so I'm not sure if it's a real term yet, but it definitely fit this band). Anyway, they were perfectly capable and talented musicians, but the music was BEYOND boring and repetitive and had NO energy whatsoever, which is kinda the point of post-rock I think (with my limited knowledge of it). Anyway, I dont want to print the name of the band here, because, well if you really want to know who they are, you can find out, and if not, I'll spare them the embarrassment. Then after that, Wilco came on. The set was simple, no backdrop or fancy lights, or explosions or anything. In fact the stage was covered in amps, so there really couldnt be any of that (though I joked with Matt that the amps were the backdrop and lead singer Jeff Tweety joked that this small, decorative macrame owl was the backdrop.)
The sound was great, especially for an outdoor concert. The band sounded just as good live as they do on their CDs, which surprised me only because there is a LOT going on on the albums (as in instrumentation-wise... though they do have 6 people in the band, which allows for fuller sounds I suppose). Jeff Tweedy's singing was great, and the song choices were pretty good. I heard a lot of my favorites: war on war, jesus, etc., and was exposed to some songs that I wasn't too familiar with but definitely listen to a lot now: via chicago, hummingbird. I think one of the things I was most impressed by was the audience response. The place was PACKED (including the lawn), and these people clearly loved Wilco. Matt pointed out that because the band really doesnt have a "hit" or popular radio singles that everyone knows a lot of Wilco's material (as opposed to only 2 or 3 songs). And this was definitely true as people were singing along with nearly every song (to the point where sometimes Tweedy would back off and just let the audience take over.) And he invited everyone to sing along with Jesus, etc. which nearly everyone did... and they knew every nuance to the song too. There was one point where the band started playing a slower song and people began sitting down (or going out for beer) and then all of a sudden, while Tweedy and the back up singer continued on with their singing and playing as if everything was normal, the guitarist, keyboard player, and drummer started going CRAZY. At first, I honestly thought they were setting off fireworks in the middle of this tame song, but turns out that it part of the song. Everyone went crazy, and then it went back to the tame mood the song began with (this happened another time or two). I wasn't familiar with the song, so I totally wasn't expecting what happened, and in all honesty, wasn't sure what to make of it at first (it sounded like they band was playing 2 totally differnet songs) but in the end I really liked it. (turns out the songs was Via Chicago). Anyway, the set was full of surprises and they played a mix of new and old, with definite emphasis on their current album Sky Blue Sky and the popular Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. And they played for a LONG time, we defintely got our money's worth even though we left before the second encoure (we did get to hear Heavy Metal Drummer as we walked to the car though).
How on earth could we have left early? Well it was a Thursday and we both had work in the morning. I also had 3 book reviews to write that night (I got a grand total of 1 hour of sleep before my last day of work... wahoo!) But we were trying to be responsible. Though now I think that we'll just have to see them again. Matt wants to do it soon before they hit it big (it seems like Wilco is everywhere we look now... selling albums in Starbucks, #60-something in Entertainment Weekly's "celebrities we like" (or something along those lines) and their music is even being used in new VW commercials-- we found that out AFTER we bought our Jetta-- we're not that obsessed) ) and we can only see them somewhere like the MCI center (or is it the Verizon center now?) so we may be making a trip somewhere this summer/fall.
Anyway, I know that I recently wrote a post about Wilco and how good they are, and all that... but after seeing them live, I think they are on their way to becoming one of my favorite bands. And if you haven't started listening to them yet... you should start... now!
First of all, the circumstances weren't great. It was a Thursday evening and Matt and I both had to take off work early because the tickets and website said that the show started at 6:30 (which I thought sounded crazy early, but I then I thought... well it's an outdoor venue, maybe they want to do it while it's still light out?), and there was no mention of an opening band (again... weird). So we wanted to make sure we got there on time (I know what rush hour beltway traffic is like). And we got there earlier enough to have dinner before hand at the Cheescake Factory. And while we were eating there was a thunderstorm... which could be distressing for an outdoor concert, but I was smart enough to buy tickets for seats under the roof. They weren't great seats, but at least we didnt have to worry about getting wet, and we had actual seats to sit in. We got to the concert close to 6:30 and surprise surprise, there was an opening band, that didnt go on until around 8:00! (so much for me doing research). And the opening band was TERRIBLE. I think they fit in the "post-rock" genre (I've only seen that termed used in DC Metroblog so I'm not sure if it's a real term yet, but it definitely fit this band). Anyway, they were perfectly capable and talented musicians, but the music was BEYOND boring and repetitive and had NO energy whatsoever, which is kinda the point of post-rock I think (with my limited knowledge of it). Anyway, I dont want to print the name of the band here, because, well if you really want to know who they are, you can find out, and if not, I'll spare them the embarrassment. Then after that, Wilco came on. The set was simple, no backdrop or fancy lights, or explosions or anything. In fact the stage was covered in amps, so there really couldnt be any of that (though I joked with Matt that the amps were the backdrop and lead singer Jeff Tweety joked that this small, decorative macrame owl was the backdrop.)
The sound was great, especially for an outdoor concert. The band sounded just as good live as they do on their CDs, which surprised me only because there is a LOT going on on the albums (as in instrumentation-wise... though they do have 6 people in the band, which allows for fuller sounds I suppose). Jeff Tweedy's singing was great, and the song choices were pretty good. I heard a lot of my favorites: war on war, jesus, etc., and was exposed to some songs that I wasn't too familiar with but definitely listen to a lot now: via chicago, hummingbird. I think one of the things I was most impressed by was the audience response. The place was PACKED (including the lawn), and these people clearly loved Wilco. Matt pointed out that because the band really doesnt have a "hit" or popular radio singles that everyone knows a lot of Wilco's material (as opposed to only 2 or 3 songs). And this was definitely true as people were singing along with nearly every song (to the point where sometimes Tweedy would back off and just let the audience take over.) And he invited everyone to sing along with Jesus, etc. which nearly everyone did... and they knew every nuance to the song too. There was one point where the band started playing a slower song and people began sitting down (or going out for beer) and then all of a sudden, while Tweedy and the back up singer continued on with their singing and playing as if everything was normal, the guitarist, keyboard player, and drummer started going CRAZY. At first, I honestly thought they were setting off fireworks in the middle of this tame song, but turns out that it part of the song. Everyone went crazy, and then it went back to the tame mood the song began with (this happened another time or two). I wasn't familiar with the song, so I totally wasn't expecting what happened, and in all honesty, wasn't sure what to make of it at first (it sounded like they band was playing 2 totally differnet songs) but in the end I really liked it. (turns out the songs was Via Chicago). Anyway, the set was full of surprises and they played a mix of new and old, with definite emphasis on their current album Sky Blue Sky and the popular Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. And they played for a LONG time, we defintely got our money's worth even though we left before the second encoure (we did get to hear Heavy Metal Drummer as we walked to the car though).
How on earth could we have left early? Well it was a Thursday and we both had work in the morning. I also had 3 book reviews to write that night (I got a grand total of 1 hour of sleep before my last day of work... wahoo!) But we were trying to be responsible. Though now I think that we'll just have to see them again. Matt wants to do it soon before they hit it big (it seems like Wilco is everywhere we look now... selling albums in Starbucks, #60-something in Entertainment Weekly's "celebrities we like" (or something along those lines) and their music is even being used in new VW commercials-- we found that out AFTER we bought our Jetta-- we're not that obsessed) ) and we can only see them somewhere like the MCI center (or is it the Verizon center now?) so we may be making a trip somewhere this summer/fall.
Anyway, I know that I recently wrote a post about Wilco and how good they are, and all that... but after seeing them live, I think they are on their way to becoming one of my favorite bands. And if you haven't started listening to them yet... you should start... now!
Comments