thinmyheart

Agreed: lovely evening, delightful show. I took a friend for his first Wilco show and he was suitably impressed. He’s into musicals, done a little performing, etc. and was enthralled by the theatrical nature of Via Chicago: a murderous narrator remaining calm while the music/lights reveal his disintegrating mind. Not really news to anyone, but kind of cool to see an old favorite through new eyes.

Nice (and charitable) write up. The “spazzy” guy (and his wife) went with friends of mine and I can at least offer that they were genuinely excited to be there, though they could have found a less obtrusive way to express their enthusiasm. That first half-hour gave me a little dilemma: I was just a couple of seats too far away to quietly say “tone it down,” but as I was sitting front row I didn't want to pull out my phone to text my friend. Fortunately, there was a professional on stage to quiet them down:) One amusing side note. Madison recently experienced some flooding and duri

Perhaps a mid-life crisis the dip of the U-curve? I'm 42, so I am sympathetic to this thread. I have seen more live shows in the last 3 years than the previous decade now that my kids are old enough to leave alone while me & my wife go / don't feel like I am burdening my wife when I go with friends. But not sure than any of them are as exciting as the best shows of my youth. PS six friends are meeting up at Pitchfork, average age of 39. We're debating between 1) we're older. we've been front row for Wilco, let's just enjoy the festival and appreciate Wilco from the back 2) but if they

Joe Z: yes, comfortable was the wrong word. Emotional, in the best sense of the word. Encore. . .

Joe Z: doesn't this feel like a really comfortable show? i.e. I agree with your comments and the set list makes sense in light of Tweedy's comments Clarification: happy for everyone there tonight.

Yeah, the Susie comment explained the subdued/epic tone

Blue Eyed Soul sounds lovely

M.Q.K., you are "ace" for posting this. And kudos for only posting the front page. I grew up in England and have had a few conversations with US friends who refuse to believe that "Page 3" really exists.

In addition to the collaborations, the 75 minute limit is making for some focused shows. I'm not seeing many potential bathroom breaks in the set lists so far. Really looking forward to this next week.

Yeah, saw them a couple of weeks ago in Madison: the only show I can think of where I was bored enough that I left early. I think the issue was playing country in such a serious manner. That applies to both the band and the fans in the front half of the place, it all seemed so serious for sounding like a 50s country bar. I remember listening to my grandmother sit in on a few songs at a country restaurant and everyone enjoyed themselves. At the Son Volt show, it felt like both audience & band seemed to be up for "serious art." Well, in the front at least. In the rear, everyone settled d

By way of contrast, I took my daughter to see Taylor Swift a couple of months ago. Concert was actually quite enertaining in its own way, but it was much more like watching a musical: I can tell you exactly when the red & white confetti is going to be shot out ouf the streamers on every concert of that tour (no spoliers in case anyone else is going:). On the T.Swift fan board, there's no discussion about which songs she should have played. Looking forward to guessing which songs Dylan is playing next week. Plus, it's always fun to play "guess the song" with friends: can sometimes tak

Well said. Likewise, there seems to me a world of difference between "I didn't like the setlist" and "Dylan shouldn't have performed that setlist."

I agree with both views. I glance at that set list and think "I would love to cut any of those new songs if I got to hear, say, Visions of Johanna." With that logic, I could easily switch any of the new songs for songs I've loved for years. But, even when I don't like a new album, it just makes me like/respect him more that he continues to make music and not cash in on the same greatest hits show year after year. Same logic for Wilco and when they choose to play [new song I dislike] rather than [old song I prefer]. Even though I got really annoyed anytime they played Capitol City over th

Great show. My friends and I arrived at 2:30 to ensure we were right at the front; well worth the wait. That's the closest I've been to seeing Nels on stage, and he's something else. My favorite moment was during California Stars: Nels gestured to Andrew Bird to take it away on the violin. In fact, the entire band seemed to step back to let Bird have the light. It seemed genuine and generous, "we might be the best live band around, but we'd really like to hear you play the violin." Lovely moment on a great night.

Hmmm, Perhaps my least inspiring of five Wilco + one Tweedy-solo shows. First few songs (inc. terrific version of Poor Places) leading up to and including Art of Almost were great; thought this might be really good. But then, despite Impossible Germany, Handshake Drugs, and Via Chicago, the show just never quite took off. To be fair to the band, Tweedy's first comment was whether the crowd was more interested in the Milwaukee Brewers game that was going on at the same time. He had a point, because the not everyone on the first floor was standing and it seemed like everyone in the three bal