Lukestar

7 minutes ago, Chez said:

After staying out of the concert pool for three months, I'm diving back in this weekend:

Friday:  Hiss Golden Messenger

Saturday:  Parquet Courts and Mdou Moctar

Saw PC last Halloween. They were a knockout. Have fun!

The Liar Song (!) God she's funny.

Looking forward to watching the stream. Thanks for yer on-the-spot reporting, bböp!

...and don't throw out the envelope without looking carefully!

This here is just a topic to rave about and plug Scott McCaughey's album SCOTT THE HOOPLE - NEIL (Vol. 1), his cover album of Neil Young songs. I picked it up from his Bandcamp last week and can't say enough about how great it is (forgive if there's a thread somewhere already)....

https://scottthehoople.bandcamp.com/album/neil-vol-1

First, the reason it exists is amazing enough, in and of itself.....as therapy to recover from the debilitating stroke he suffered just 4 years ago. The fact that he went from a condition of having to relearn how to talk and play music to this recording (as he writes about in the b-camp liner notes), is nothing but an inspiring tale of will, talent and spirit. NEIL (Vol.1) digs deep, and it's so great to hear these renditions. How they create a new perspective while getting just as psychedelic and out there as Neil does. Each song is a beauty.

I can't say where The Minus 5 album STROKE MANOR fits in with this set of songs, in regards to when they were all recorded and how they might represent different stages of recovery (or not), but each record is a triumph, IMHO acronym. It was a beam of light and a thrill to see Scott at 2019's Solid Sound with the Minus 5, but to hear these songs, the way he interpreted and played and recorded them, is exactly what it means to overcome whatever might be bringing you down, through the beauty of creativity and craft. 

I recommend it!

On 10/15/2021 at 9:32 AM, Chez said:

Wore this record out....Firefly Child!

21 hours ago, bböp said:

 

Yeah, really fun opening set by the Fellows. Thought they were much more comfortable tonight and just having a blast. Their energy was definitely infectious, even if only a small fraction of the room was filled.

 

Here was the complete YFF setlist from tonight, for those interested:

 

No One Really Knows

Taco Wagon

Picture Book [The Kinks]

Sittin' On A Pitchfork

Lamp Industries

Becky Doll

Gear Summer 2013

???-Inside A Bank

Back Room Of The Bar

Rock 'N' Roll Pest Control

Thanks, bböp! Such a great opener. One of those "no-brainer"s.

Thanks for the review, bböp! That setlist gets my blood flowing. How about Westerberg's wedding band? How were the old Young Fresh Fellows?

WARNING: More personal account than review. 

This was the first I've seen Wilco since Toronto in Oct. 2019 and what a welcome relief. Having seen Tweedy at MASS MoCA in July, I already had my jones fixed for live music in a large(r) venue  setting. The weather circumstances that July weekend shrunk the venue, but it was still the largest stage I'd seen in 21 months. 

Hailing from Western New York (Rochester), I found myself working in the Boston area the same day that Wilco would be playing in town. It was also my birthday and, although I'm quite old enough to be over the fact that I was away from home and working a 13hr day on my b-day, it was when I saw the news that Charlie Watts died that really got to me.

Getting to the pavilion after NNAMDI and SK had finished was a bit of a bummer but again, after a long day and feeling melancholy about Charlie passing, I was just happy to be seeing a Wilco show. 

Glenn writing Charlie Is My Darling on his kick was very sweet and I thought to myself "There's the tribute. How fitting, because what would you play to salute the drummer?" and left it at that.  Well, after the show ended (which I thought was great and will leave the actual critical reviews to others) and they came back out with Corin Tucker, I wondered what was up.

When Pat started kloncking the cow bell, my head exploded. Of course! And they proceeded to become the headiest bar band across the nation, knocking out Honky Tonk Woman. 

Once again, Wilco playing music that includes and connects everyone, during the right and specific moment, to make people feel better and ultimately acknowledge a shared feeling, comes through and works. What a great, fleeting night.

Bonus was going to Artpark and seeing SK (crushed it. Missed NNAMDI again, but have hopes for SSF) and having a comfortable spot pretty close throughout, with my 5'7" wife having a great view for once. Artpark handled the Front of Stage sales very well.

Btw, why aren't we talking more about Tweedy's Morrison impression to open HMD? He performed the full on "mic stand lean" that night. I'd love to know the joke/story that prompted that creation.

Quick thoughts....opening w/ A Shot In The Arm?! To quote KRS-1 at the end of Intergalactic "I'm TELLIN you!"

They're very loose, tight and in such a groove with one another (like they're ever not?)

Pat is all over everything

The Nels love is heavy

The setlist is abbreviated but hits all the right notes (One Wing in Lewiston, which thrilled my wife)

That's all. Here's to an album announcement for the spring!

Definitely.

I read Adam Granduciel comment once how Wilco was a big influence in his guitar playing. Holding notes longer than conventionally held for and in a different octave (paraphrasing) for example, etc. This was around the release of A DEEPER UNDERSTANDING and it struck me that Wilco had entered the territory of influential legacy artists. Until that point, I'd just considered them my favorite band that I'd go see always, who kept making great music. Not until then had I taken a step back to consider their body of work and its impact on art and pop culture at large, and that it is substantial. I've never taken them for granted, but hadn't fully considered that deep horizon before.

And yet, you can log onto the internets and catch Tweedy in the tub from time to time. Such a humble legend.

On 8/14/2021 at 7:09 AM, bböp said:

"you seem like a fan, bro,"

Stop the presses....THIS should be the new t-shirt design!

Per usual, great re-cap bböp.

Interesting info up top regarding the mixing of YHF and all that went into it. How reducing and/or backtracking the original mix process to remix would be difficult, if not impossible. Typically there are many studio and session logs, etc. to reference. Maybe there were and those are what give credence to the impossibility. I kind of make sense of it all by recognizing...that is what makes YHF a true piece of art. The creativity, passion and skill that went into creating it, during any given moment and using whatever technique or tool at hand to make it sound what they wanted it to sound like.

Neko...as in Case, btw

https://nekocase.substack.com/p/moon-rant?token=eyJ1c2VyX2lkIjoyMzMxNzExMiwicG9zdF9pZCI6MzkxMzAwMTIsIl8iOiJlQ2lQQyIsImlhdCI6MTYyNzM5MDE2OSwiZXhwIjoxNjI3MzkzNzY5LCJpc3MiOiJwdWItMzU0MjUzIiwic3ViIjoicG9zdC1yZWFjdGlvbiJ9.n-_nqF_olKh9-Ay2TNUsjvwNQm6BozpPZe95Amo9sr4

12 hours ago, u2roolz said:

Nice! 
 

I’d love to post all of the Conan videos, but I think a few of them are missing on YouTube. 

Wilco posted on FB the I'M THE MAN WHO LOVES YOU video from their 7/17/2002 performance on Late Night. I remember to this day seeing them perform on television for the first time, that night it was broadcast. Have looked for it since on YT etc., to no avail, so how nice it is to see it again.

10 hours ago, u2roolz said:

-- Sammy plays Sisters And Brothers from Free To Be on his iPhone which Jeff & Spencer play along to. 
 

Wow. Fell asleep before this part, because I'm old, and that's also the reason I remember Free To Be. Which I haven't thought about in 40+yrs.

That was my 'go-to' phrase when I was a kid and my mom would call me out on a faux pas or infraction of some sort...."free to be, you and me, mom".

References like this is one the reasons it's so fun watching the Tweedy Show.

Last night's show was so much fun. Angst can make for a good time, on occasion. 

Haven't seen any other posts regarding this yet, so.....just listened to a good conversation between JT and Malcolm Gladwell on Gladwell's (and Rick Rubin's) podcast Broken Record. They talk about the HOW TO..... book, of course, and there's a great breakdown of OPALINE. It's really interesting to hear Gladwell become so engaged and excited. He keeps probing and it gives some insight into his own process, given how in depth his work gets.

https://brokenrecordpodcast.com/#/episode-77-jeff-tweedys-songwriting-masterclass/

Thanks to the Tweedy's for this bright highlight in 2020. The Tweedy Show's been a warm reminder that things can be normal, sweet and fun amidst the chaos. Here's to 2021, live music and a few more TS's before we settle into the future, without the looming menace of COVID around every corner. 

Btw, my wife and I were just chatting about how we watch the re-runs on YT, but can mirror the Insta re-runs to get them sooner if we want. I prefer YT because the comments come with it, which is a huge part of the show. Susie Tweedy is the hostess with the mostess; an MC who brings out a lot of laughter on our part.

Thanks again, Tweedy's! Happy New Year everybody!

Thanks for these recaps. They are a great guide, as we usually watch the YouTube's well after original air.

Last night the alert popped up that the show was starting but we were not quite finished zooming a John Hiatt performance, which was good for the soul. It was the first of two (pkg ticketed), the next being 8/31. 

Last night he played BRING THE FAMILY and SLOW TURNING, each in full, and the next will have a set list and banter. It was basically like being on a zoom call with him.....and 30 others. 

I'm going on about this because I think what the Tweedys are doing is more genuine and much more fun, from an experiential perspective. John Hiatt is as kind and genuine as any human could be, and was very happy to be playing and seeing many faces while doing so, but the venue (which you can rightly assume was an arrangement of management) was a bit too 'community television' and out of step. The Tweedy Show is of the time and that's what makes it enriching. We watched episode 84 last night afterwards (loved it) and the difference really struck me. 

One other tech note...oddly (or not), the sound is more organic over the phone, as you'd expect once you think about it. Hiatt was mic'd and mixed and therefore removed what should have been intimacy, as well as being of subject to the defects of the platform. Susie's phone picks up the raw sound, resonating in their room and it always sounds like you are there (which we are, in a real sense). Listening through our stereo speakers from our tv when watching YT helps, of course.

Anyways, we're going to airplay (#lightbulb) an O.G. broadcast next and watch in real time. 

note* - not sure exactly what was said about the Jacob Blake shooting, but he remains in stable condition (tragically but thankfully). For the record.

This is great....simply because Billy Gibbons and Jeff pair up for a Casino Queen bonus track...

https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/12289

Great photos! What a weekend.

I'll see you in the front row at SSF! Ohmme are terrific!

Hell yes!

Saw OHMME last night at the Bug Jar in Rochester, NY. They were great! Beautiful voices and great guitar interplay. Drummer is good, too.

Go see them....Detroit tonight @ Deluxx Fluxx, and touring the midwest and west until end of May. Then, SSF on 6/29. We'll be in front.

Friday prediction.....they debut a new album by playing it in its entirety.

Hell Is Chrome.....for the imagery, minimal production and the guitar solo, which sounds like ice forming on a window pane in time lapse. The bouncy open of the song, which fades, is the yellow gold morning sun getting slowly fazed out by a bitter snow squall, that begins with tiny ice crystals and becomes an enveloping gray-blue haze.

Thumbs up