Central Scrutinizer

Show started about 7:55 ... 25 minutes late. Savannah is a slow crowd to show up Setlist: Wilco (the song) Bull Black Nova You Are My Face I am Trying To Break Your Heart One Wing Shot in the Arm Side with the Seeds At Least That's What You Said Company In My Back Pot Kettle Black Deeper Down Handshake Drugs Impossible Germany California STars Poor Places (interesting segue into acoustic set during "noise" Acoustic Spiders (Kidsmoke) Forget the Flowers At My Window Sad and Lonely (I padded the request with this one, along with ....) Laminated Kat (dunno if this was already on the list, b

Cool. I guess I started some of the squawking, because I thought $70 is a little stiff. If you're a collector, then it may seem a bargain. To each his/her own! I'm off to Savannah!

It was a great answer! Thanks!

I think if you're looking to introduce someone to Wilco, though, this live album is the best way to do it. It's an easier entrance over any of the studio albums. The current lineup definitely gives a spin to things, but its a coherent approach to a catalog that to describe would be like a group of blind people describing an elephant. If they're not familiar, then YHF, and then let them wander based on their tastes that bring into listening to the band. Get them in the door and let them walk about and explore.

I am very saddened to hear that. I think someone was using his image of Johnny Cash flipping the bird as an avatar. Some incredible stuff. http://www.marshallphoto.com/

I am taking my family to the Savannah show, and my daughter wants to try to meet the band. In the times I've seen the band, part of me would like to try to get an autograph, but mostly I would feel, 1) like a dork, and 2) that the attempt would somewhat taint the experience; that there's value in the distance between artist and fan. I've gone back through the archives and didn't have much luck (great stories about meeting band members before/after concerts and other settings). So I ask here: what is the approach for, err ... approaching the band after the show? Is there usually an area roped

Fortunately, they don't have to worry about their health care plan.

It's been mentioned in Kot's book and oodles of other places, but both Uncle Tupelo and Wilco were out on the edge of the alternative wave as far as making money primarily on the road, and became a blueprint for other alternative bands to follow. Whether Wilco ...

The band is definitely at a crossroads. But going independent vs. finding another label becomes an issue of overhead. If the band goes it alone, they become an employer beyond just Tweedy and five bandmates and the direct hirings. It would require more hands on management of all facets -- certainly much would fall on Tony's shoulders. But each band decision begins to directly affect a growing number of people and their families. (I can't remember where I read it, but that was arguably one of the many issues that weighed upon the Grateful Dead as they became more commodity than performers). At

I understand what you're saying and thanks for being patient with me in your response. From a business standpoint, when an artist reaches a critical mass, there are decisions he/she/they have to make that create a whole new set of decisions based on the one (like a "subset" of heavy metal contract negotiation). Big label takes big slice of pie. But a slice of a 500K pie is different than a smaller slice of a 5M pie. And they require a choice in oven sizes.

I am just musing, thinking out loud. Dismiss it. Music is a business. Tweedy and the band have issues to debate as they continue to grow an audience. That's my point.

You can say that again.

It's anyone's guess -- and I certainly was making a WAG, but this sounds plausible -- especially if, as people have noticed, Tweedy got P.Oed and started down people taping. I'll have to hold it in? The methane in the lobby would contribute to global warming.

Maybe. In publishing they call it a nut graph, a shorthand or rehash of largely known information. However the repetition among writers is something I trip over.

I'm having our rec room redone in death paneling.

There is a tier of marketing and distribution that all but the largest labels can't touch. There comes a time when an artist is approached as commodity as opposed to performer, however talented or essential the artist may be. Nonsuch couldn't handle that. It could be Tweedy and the band expected more out of W(TA), and it didn't come. A DIY approach makes sense, but not from a distribution standpoint. There's not much to be gained moving from Nonsuch to this, because a label would probably demand more of a cut of distribution because they're not getting a taste of the other aspects. IMHO

It may be over-analyzing, but I wonder if it isn't a product of the band planning to jump labels. Trying to rein in all of the imaging etc. to protect brand.

I don't mean this as a criticism of his review -- or of other reviews -- but it begins to grate that 20% of any review or story on this band requires a retelling of Wilco's most common, obtuse history. "from alt-country ashes" art rock, "genre-defying," "record-label-fighting" yada yada yada . If the reader doesn't know any of this, why on earth would they be reading? Anyone with the musical basis to consider listening to Wilco would know this already.

Did the Clearwater venue have a curfew? That might explain the lack of an intermission. Or Tweedy has brought back the bucket offstage for a different purpose.

They could also be shopping for a more mainstream label, figuring the fan base is reaching critical mass for a major release.

... I was referring to the turd. [edit: unless that's redundant]

Fair enough. And I generalized. I remember a few cases where issues were brought up and Obama acknowledged they were plausible options. Did you wash your hands?

I mean from a political standpoint, if you're working from ideology, that has to be your primary focus over opinion polls. Certainly war with Iraq and health there were no surprises for supporters of either politician. Lies Damned Lies Statistics

In many respects, he's right. This single fact creates much of the inaction in politics. A recent story in our magazine cites a book on governance by William Eggers and John O’Leary. In it they quote Michael Keeley, the former deputy mayor of Los Angeles. It's an indictment against bloated city government, but it could just as easily apply to public opinion polls (or becoming the Party of No®. “Think of city government as a big bus. The bus is divided into different sections with different constituencies: labor, the city council, the mayor, interest groups, and contractors. Every seat is e

One of the greatest things politically about the Republican party is its ability to publicly stay on message, to keep it simple, and to maintain strict party adherence. They maintain a devotion through a few core issues which, when you break down what the individual politicians represent, it is far more broad and divisive than party voters would be comfortable with -- not that it's questioned. It is only recently that there's been any chink in that armor, but it's a sizable one in the character of the tea party. Again it's a case of a political unit holding sway over an obedient following that