jff

9 hours ago, lost highway said:

 

Oh, don't be a tease!

Cate Le Bon

This is exciting news.  I've been on a three record losing streak with Wilco.  Hopefully this new one will be something very different than the last three and my streak will come to an end.

7 hours ago, tinnitus photography said:

i guess the Dead have deeper pockets and could afford to pull the plug.

 

 

nah, they just have better lawyers. 

Again, you’ve misrepresented the situation, this time by conflating “pulling the plug” with “offering refunds.”

I’m sure you’re correct about them (Dead and Co)  having better lawyers, though. That seems plainly apparent, and is frankly the most favorable light in which to view this if you’re looking to excuse Tweedy.  The alternative, less favorable view, is that Tweedy does have great lawyers but he chose not to go to bat for his fans.

2 hours ago, tinnitus photography said:

they canceled because Mayer got covid before the event. 

That's less than half the story, and the irrelevant part, at that.

Dead and Company were offering refunds at the end of December (with the full intention of the festival going on for those who chose to attend.)   

Mayer got Covid on January 5, which forced the cancellation.  But that happened a week after refunds were offered.   https://variety.com/2021/music/news/dead-company-refunds-festival-mexico-covid-concerns-1235144609/

1 hour ago, Madcap said:

Not to rehash this exhausting debate, but I'm genuinely curious what you think they could have done that would have been even remotely realistic.

They could have done exactly what Dead and Company did.

11 hours ago, tinnitus photography said:

the band signed a contract to perform at a four day event. what the hell was his lawyer gonna do?

Lawyers break or renegotiate contracts everyday.  No contract is ironclad, and if Wilcos lawyer thinks contracts are unbreakable, they need a better lawyer.

4 hours ago, Chez said:

I still have a bitter taste in my mouth over how Cloud 9 handled the last one.  I'm going to Newport FF in July so, as much as I loved the first one,  I think we're gonna pass on Sky Blue Sky.

Same.  I'll come right out and say it...I'm pretty much retired from Wilco over that experience.  Tweedy and his lawyer could have gone to bat for his fans in a number of ways and at least tried to find some kind of a solution, but he chose not to. 

8 hours ago, chisoxjtrain said:

 

Talked to a Reverb rep at Solid Sound 2019 . He told me it was a joke.

The Joke Explained?

Did someone really buy that obnoxious cow guitar for $999,999?

This adds little to nothing to the conversation, and is more like an excuse for me to post here for the first time in a long time, but I recently read an interview with Bill Frisell (not a musician one would necessarily associate with the Allmans) and his quote about the Allman Brothers was interesting to me.  I love when people are inspired by something and use that inspiration to create something drastically different, as Bill has.

https://www.guitarplayer.com/news/it-was-just-so-shocking-bill-frisell-recalls-seeing-jimi-hendrix-perform-in-1968

“By that time, my parents had moved to New Jersey and I was going to school in Greeley. I came to visit them during the Christmas break and ended up going to the Fillmore East to see Blood, Sweat & Tears."

“And the amazing thing was, some unknown band from Georgia was opening that night for Blood, Sweat & Tears called the Allman Brothers Band. This was before they had recorded anything. They came out and were like, ‘Oh, hi, we’re kind of nervous being in New York for the first time.’

“It was their Fillmore East debut and they just fuckin’ kicked ass! 

I've heard virtually nothing released this year.  Weird music year for me.  For some reason, I just didn't give a crap about the new albums by artists I've been following for a long time.  The Wilco, Big Thief, Julian Lage crowd. None of that is connecting with me for whatever reason.

Today I listened to Jim Lauderdale - Game Changer.  (Very good country music.)

Last week I listened to Dolan, Mendel & Wong - Rhythms of the Apocalypse (very good instrumental guitar rock)

I guess I've mostly been listening to old music this year.

Hate is such a grossly misused word.  Unfortunately, it is as ubiquitous as the Dead, for whom nobody here has expressed hatred.

I think it's plainly obvious that the whole world has gotten carried away with the Grateful Dead thing.

I'm under no illusions that Tweedy will ever hire a producer.  Why would he?  He's very comfortable, happy, and financially prosperous staying the course he's been on for the past several records.

I'm only stating what I would like to see happen, and what I think might be necessary in order for the band to pull my waning interest back from the cliff.  I'm certain that is of zero concern to Tweedy, nor should it be.  I'll try again when they put out the art-pop record that always seems to be next in line but never materializes. 

It does seem a bit weird, though, that as an outside producer for other artists, Tweedy doesn't seem to feel that there is value in bringing in an outside producer for his own music.

10 hours ago, lost highway said:

 

(Pat's) more of a Pet Sounds to Jeff's Highway 61 common sense.

I think that's an accurate description.  There's obviously nothing wrong with the Highway 61 style, but even that could be helped along with a good producer.  It might be interesting to hear Wilco lean harder into that approach by using someone like Buddy Miller or T-Bone Burnett.  I'd also like to hear what they sound like under the production of, say, Nick Lowe.  Or Daniel Lanois.  Or going in a more baroque direction, Todd Rundgren.

It'd be really interesting to see them do a series of singles or EPs, each with a different producer at the helm, and see what comes of it.  An experiment like that would shake up any band's processes.  I think it'd be really fun to see any established artist do something like that.

I think they do and it would help me like their newer material more.  I'd love to hear what they come up if they worked with a strong producer somewhere other than the Loft.  The Loft is great and all, but It's good for a band to get out of their comfort zone, especially when the comfort level has reached critical mass, which I think has happened to Wilco.  

55 minutes ago, summerdai said:

 

Yes.  I am a vinyl person, but personally I find for these archive type sets with demos, alternates and live tracks that a digital format is much better. Easy to skip tracks and one doesn't have to get up every 18-20 minutes to flip them over. I wonder how many plays in particular these huge vinyl sets actually get or do they mostly sit in the corner of the room looking like the monolith from 2001. Prince's Sign O The Times super deluxe vinyl set had 13 LPs. Great album but who's going to get through that more than once?

Even with the five LP Summerteeth box set that I bought last year, after one play through the full set, I'll only end up playing the studio album in the future, and even that might not be worth the trouble of digging through a pile of vinyl and inserts.  If I ever want to hear the extras again, I'll stream them.  

I've been a dedicated vinyl listener since the '80s, but these mega sets, of which I've had many, don't translate to vinyl imo.  They're just not a pleasant enough experience compared to listening to a few regular albums.  They're like the coffee table book that looks really cool but that you open once and then forget about.

That's not a Wilco complaint. I find that to be true of vinyl box sets in general.

With the vinyl delays causing problems all over the globe, I think we're at a point where no band should be allowed to put out 11 LP sets.  At least until the supply issues are worked out.  How many bands do you suppose have had their vinyl releases sidelined in part because of these types of vanity projects?

YHF deserves to be celebrated, but creating 11 LP sets causes damage the music ecosystem and is a selfish ego stroke.  Tweedy should have read the room and scaled it back.

Hope it'll happen.  Cruel Country is still averaging out at mediocre to me.

I don't know much about pressing CDs, but it's definitely incorrect to claim the vinyl release is being held up by supply chain issues.  The hold up is the production capacity of the very few vinyl pressing plants that currently exist.  It has absolutely nothing to do with the supplies needed to make the records.  

My opinion:  put an end to Record Store Day.  Regular bands can't get their albums pressed in anywhere close to a reasonable time frame because there are so many pointless RSD pressings of otherwise readily available oldies and classic rock titles.   This won't solve the problem entirely, but RSD is a huge drag on the ability of existing bands to have their records manufactured.

I'm not going to rank them as to which is best or worst, but rather, which one I'd be most enthusiastic about listening to at this point in time.

AGIB

SBS

SW

YHF

BT

TWL

WTA

St

Sch

AM

CC

OTJ

2 hours ago, 5hake1t0ff said:

 

Disc One ends with The Universe and is 39 minutes. Disc Two is 38 minutes.

 

 

 I may get the CD version when it becomes available and try it that way.

18 hours ago, 5hake1t0ff said:

 

 

In general, like jff, I definitely prefer albums to be less than 45 minutes 

 

I guess having grown up mostly listening to vinyl, I have become accustomed to 35 - 45 minutes as the right length of time for an album.   I can focus intently on 22 minute album side, with a break to turn it over, and then another 22 minutes for the other side. And I can keep that focus going for several hours worth of albums.  

I got my first CD player when I was 16, and noticed right away that new releases were longer just because there was room for more songs.  The added length almost never resulted in better albums. I guess you could say you're getting more for your money when there's more music, but if you thoroughly enjoy 45 minute albums as a general rule (with a pause in the middle) and find 60-70 minute CDs inconsistent and less enjoyable as a general rule, is it really a better value?

Now I'm curious, how long is each CD in the two CD CC release?  Two 40 minute CDs might be a good way to hear this album. 

24 minutes ago, lost highway said:

 

I'll check it out!

It helps if you look at the band photos inside the gatefold record cover.  I’m not sure if it comes across as well without that element.

Hope Nels will have a speedy recovery and very mild symptoms.  And I hope his hotel has a great view.  What a place to be quarantined!
 

A silver lining is that the upcoming shows will have to be somewhat experimental in nature. It’ll be interesting to see how they adjust to the absence of Nels.