quarter23cd

Count me as one of the ones who really doesn't care a lot about the format. Hell, usually the first thing I do when I download something is convert it to MP3 so it doesn't hog so much space on my hard drive and/or iPod, so d/ling in MP3 just saves me a step. But I can understand a certain amount of the frustration from the traders. I mean, if you're going to circulate something, you should probably do it in the best quality possible which then gives people the option of converting it if they so desire. Or upload in both lossy and lossless formats, but who is going to put that much effort

What are the current Vegas odds on the inclusion of a drone?

Come on, you know it doesn't get any better than Rod Stewart's version of Forever Young.

I think I've been stuck on page 50 of "Underworld" for about 5 years now. Same with Pynchon's "Mason & Dixon", which if I remember correctly, I bought at the same time and I fizzled out pretty quickly on both. Not that I dislike either, but I think I got overwhelmed at the thought of trying to wade through 600 pages of it. Someday I'll get through em...

I would have gone with Ice Cold Ice, personally.

I think "I'm a Wheel" would have benefited from having "Kicking TV" to compliment it in the tracklist. Not that I think it sounds terribly out of place as it is. I like it when contrasting sounds and styles get thrown together like that...then again, that might just be my ADD acting up. As for the new album, I have no idea what a few of these new songs sound like, but I'm hoping that at least a couple of them are upbeat rockers.("Hate It Here" seems like a good bet) I'm not a huge fan of "Lets Not Get Carried Away", but agree that this album needs a few rockers, so we'll see...

Sorry, Jeff, I've had my heart set on opening with Walken, so I'll just have to rearrange the tracklist on my iPod when I get this.

But they'd be defining a whole new genre! Sprog-Rock? Progern? Sprock? Actually, I was thinking the other day that, in terms of a single, I could actually see "Lets Fight" getting some airplay. Dunno if that speaks well or ill of the song, but yeah, I'd agree that something like "Walken" would seem pretty out of place on the radio. (not that I've actually ever heard Wilco on the radio, so this is really more of a hypothetical situation)

I took my wife to see the DCs as a birthday present. I can't remember the name of that song that Gary wrote, but at the concert I had a surreal moment when I realized I was listening to what essentially sounds exactly like a Jayhawks song being played in a bigass arena show. And it actually translated well to that environment. The DCs are a little bit plasticky, but at least by Nashville standards these days they're actually more on the "real" end of things. Hell, at least they can play their instruments.

Umm....Being There? Yeah, sure, I'll go with that. Picking one album is kind of impossible, if only for the fact that moods and tastes are constantly changing. Being There wins for its resilience...its the album, probably more than any other I've ever owned, that I keep coming back to over and over again. No matter how long it may get shelved, whenever I come back to it I fall in love with it all over again and it never seems to age. So, yeah, I guess this is the right album to pick, especially since I'm on a Wilco board and all. Ask me on other days and I might toss out: "Crooked R

I have their first album and, yes, his voice is that band's sole reason for existence. The songs are just okay, but that voice is the reason I still pull it out for a spin every once in a while. Saw them live once--just a short set on the second-stage of a HORDE-fest show, but it was quite nice. Nice call on this one.

Kind of a scattershot list of people I didn't see getting much love yet. I don't necessarily go for "technical" singers, I guess, but I just love these voices: Van Morrison Mark Sandman Gregg Allman Bob Marley John Fogerty ...and if we're going for "ugly can be beautiful", I'll add: Tom Waits Tim Armstrong

It will destroy any hipster cred I may have ever accumulated, but WSP easily occupies a spot in my top 3 concert experiences. Granted, that was over 10 years ago and I can't say I have too much urge to see them again at this stage of their/my life, but I still say dammmn that was a cookin' show. I guess this comment is on topic since we're talking about making apologies for certain artists/acts. Most of the time I'd say there are no apologies necessary. John Mayer I still don't like, tho.

That song title (and the delivery that follows) is like a nice gift-wrapped present to Pitchfork. I don't totally dislike the song, but it does kind of tend to go "on and on" without really getting anywhere. Who knows, maybe it has been spiderized in the studio. I'm thinking it could work nicely as a peppy ska rave-up.

Agreed. Personally, I've always felt that Tweedy is at his best when he is most direct. That quote above from "Company" is an interesting reference-point because, to me, those lines work better in print than they do when set to music...and I kind of find that to be the case with a lot of his more abstract lyrics. Not knocking his writing at all, and maybe I'm just admitting to being a big dummy whose mind can't multi-task enough to extract the poetry from the music, but sometimes when the lyrics get more cryptic I swear he might as well just be singing "la la la doo be doo" because all I he

Greenwood, yes. White, no. I agree, however, that seeing somebody live can totally alter one's perception of a player. Jack White has never really appealed much to me on record, tho maybe the energy of a live show could win me over. Clearly everybody on the list is talented, and the rest is very subjective. For example, my earlier comments raving about Derek and Warren--I mean, due to the band they play in (or at least the one they get the most attention for) their style of playing is clearly a throwback to a kind of music that isn't so much in fashion currently. Putting them next to

Isn't music great? For me, I'd flip your comment around and say Jack White and Johnny Greenwood don't do much for me, but several of the others listed are quite good. McCreedy and Gossard are fine, but I agree that they probably wouldn't make my list of the best, if such a list existed.

I thought it was interesting a couple years ago when Modest Mouse popped up in a minivan ad. It didn't really bother me or anything, but it was an eyebrow-raiser. Not sure if there is a subconscious connection or not, but looking back on it now, I don't really care to listen to Modest Mouse anymore. I do, however, now own a minivan. Somebody explain this one to me.

Didn't Jeff already say that that one wouldn't be on the album? Kind of a shame cuz I like it. Maybe they'll keep it around as a concert staple. The obvious choice off that list seems to be "On & On (& On & On, etc)", but maybe that one has undergone some changes behind closed doors since they debuted it. Who cares, I'm just ready for some new Wilco. Leak already, dangit!!

I saw this show. I didn't think it was badly done or anything, but by the end of the show I couldn't tell if I was watching a show or listening to a greatest hits compilation. I found myself trying to guess which song would be played next based on plot twists. ("Ok, that guy is getting in his car. I bet he is driving to Atlantic City." And then the music started and I was like "Yep, I was right!") Dunno if it made for effective storytelling (I forget what the show was about), but at least its a fun game for music geeks.

Indeed. Warren gets style-points deducted for his melodramatic facial expressions and singing, tho. As for this: The most obvious point of reference is Duane Allman. Its an occupational hazard of the spot he fills for the ABB that he will be compared to Duane, but Derek doesn't seem to shy away from it. Often, his style and sound are eerily reminiscent of Duane, but he has really evolved into his own identity. I'd say his style is somewhat more restrained and cerebral, but the dude can wail, as well. He's like the Buddah of guitar players. He'll stand still as a statue and stare a

Didn't watch any of this. My wife was pretty pleased about the Dixie Chicks--she's a big fan. I thought their record was pleasant and listenable (particularly that one song that Gary Louris wrote), but a little on the bland side. Decent, but not a record that screams "OMG, best album evar!", unless you take into consideration the circumstances surrounding it. I dunno if that makes it a justifiably great album or if it is overcompensation. In any case it probably balances out. Prediction: Country Music Awards won by this album = -5

"Love Song" - Tesla

Only in a live setting?? The sound of that man's nasal whine sends me running for the hills. I even went through a bit of a 90s nostalgia mood lately where I revisited a lot of stuff from high school/college that I haven't listened to in ages, and even through the rose-colored glasses of nostalgia, I still can't stand 'em.

I've heard Wilco a handful of times in restaurants and once in Borders, I think. As for actual radio broadcasts, I heard "Too Far Apart" (of all things) on the local college station about a year ago. That is all.