Livin' in New Orleans Posted October 8, 2009 Share Posted October 8, 2009 Radiohead may actually be recording another one...I am already excited Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sweet Papa Crimbo Posted October 9, 2009 Share Posted October 9, 2009 The fact that both bands got bigger as they got more experimental probably has a lot to do with it. Not a particularly common occurrence. Frustrating as it may be, I don't see how it can be a bad thing for either band. I believe I've read Jeff give props to Radiohead (obviously by covering Fake Plastic Trees). I haven't read anything, but I assume someone in Radiohead likes Wilco. They've both got praise poured over them from every possible direction, so I'd consider a comparison to be an honor. That being said, people that continually reference each Wilco move as "their *insert Radiohead moment*" are annoying. These kind of media driven rivalries are nothing new in music.Remeber the Beatles vs. the Stones? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Alan Posted October 9, 2009 Share Posted October 9, 2009 These kind of media driven rivalries are nothing new in music.Remeber the Beatles vs. the Stones?The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Wilco, Radiohead...... one of these things does not belong, one of these things is not like the others.... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Shakespeare In The Alley Posted October 9, 2009 Share Posted October 9, 2009 The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Wilco, Radiohead...... one of these things does not belong, one of these things is not like the others....Well, Radiohead is the odd band out in that they've never had line-up changes, and they have not seen a band member/former band member pass away. But Wilco is obviously American. Still, Radiohead wins, 2 to 1. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Alan Posted October 9, 2009 Share Posted October 9, 2009 Well, Radiohead is the odd band out in that they've never had line-up changes, and they have not seen a band member/former band member pass away. But Wilco is obviously American. Still, Radiohead wins, 2 to 1. I'm thinking that Wilco isn't on the same level as the other three bands when it comes to popularity and success. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Gobias Industries Posted October 9, 2009 Share Posted October 9, 2009 Two of the best bands of the past decade and a lot of people's favorites on this board. I don't think it has much to do with a comparison of their sound as much as a comparison of their career arcs and how they relate. This, but I still think it's absolutely loony to compare them in the "who is better?" sense. If it makes a difference, Radiohead is almost impossible for me to listen to unless I'm in the right mood. Wilco can generally go on at any time and work just fine for me. But that does not mean Wilco > Radiohead or vice versa. In the right mood, Radiohead makes boatloads more of an emotional connection with me than Wilco will. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
GLHawk Posted October 9, 2009 Share Posted October 9, 2009 If I may further digress into a Radiohead opinion...HTTT has some absolutely killer tracks. Then it has some non-killer tracks. If it had been trimmed down to a 10 or so track album...it would be a classic, in my opinion. Sorry to keep digressing, but I absolutely agree with this. "2+2=5" and "There There" are two of my favorite Radiohead songs ever, but the album as a whole doesn't quite measure up. I know this isn't supposed to be a Radiohead thread, but it's nice to see so many fans of both bands here. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Shakespeare In The Alley Posted October 9, 2009 Share Posted October 9, 2009 Sorry to keep digressing, but I absolutely agree with this. "2+2=5" and "There There" are two of my favorite Radiohead songs ever, but the album as a whole doesn't quite measure up. I know this isn't supposed to be a Radiohead thread, but it's nice to see so many fans of both bands here.Wolf At The Door is my favorite Radiohead track. 2+2, There There, Drunken Punchup, Myxomatosis, and a couple other songs are stone-cold classics. The others aren't bad, they just pale in comparison to the greatness of the album's high points. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jesusetc84 Posted October 9, 2009 Share Posted October 9, 2009 I'd say W(TA) is more consistent than Hail to The Thief, but HTTT had more interesting ideas when they got it right. Both albums kill Sky Blue Sky. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bjorn_skurj Posted October 17, 2009 Share Posted October 17, 2009 I am listening to W(TA) right now, and despite this thread telling me it's no good, I am really liking it! "You Never Know" is great! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
janglyrecords Posted October 18, 2009 Share Posted October 18, 2009 I love the record. I love this line up and have seen them live a lot this year. That said, I prefer them live. I want a Wilco record that captures that sound. It seems the studio albums are a particular sound. I just am not in love with that sound. The exception to this is Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. Just shows how instrumental Jim O'Rourke really was to that record. My 2 cents. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Calexico Posted October 18, 2009 Share Posted October 18, 2009 I am sad to report that I haven't played this album since the first couple of weeks I had it. It did very little for me I'm afraid. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LouieB Posted October 18, 2009 Share Posted October 18, 2009 I played it yesterday in the car.... LouieB Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Livin' in New Orleans Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 I enjoy W(TA)... good songs, as a whole it doesn't match up to the others for me, but this could change with time. Regardless, the three song of Deeper Down, One Wing, and Bull Black Nova makes it wort it.. I also like Country Disappeared and Solitaire a lot. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sweet Papa Crimbo Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 I was sitting in my office listening to some Cds this morning... Monters of Folk, U2live boot and W(TQ). I find it charming and still really like it. Additionally, I had a younger cohort come into my office and heard it playing and said "I love that CD." Enjoy the moment folks. They aren't going to be recording forever. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Speed Racer Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 The more I listen to SBS and grow to enjoy it, the more I also enjoy W(TA). When each new album comes out it has a way of seeming fleeting; I'll listen to it for a while, but it will make me miss old Wilco. What's missing from the new albums, to me, is the emotional connection I build with them over time - not unlike moving to a new home. Now that I'm listening more to SBS I found that, without thinking I did, I have built an emotional connection to a lot of the songs. With W(TA), there are a few songs that I'm sentimentally attached to at this point, but it doesn't have the lived-in feel that other albums have. I can call it anything I like, but the simple fact is that each album feels the way it does to me because of how I've broken them in over the years. I shouldn't expect this one to feel "lived-in" until I've lived in it for a while. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Good Old Neon Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 The more I listen to SBS and grow to enjoy it, the more I also enjoy W(TA). When each new album comes out it has a way of seeming fleeting; I'll listen to it for a while, but it will make me miss old Wilco. What's missing from the new albums, to me, is the emotional connection I build with them over time - not unlike moving to a new home. Now that I'm listening more to SBS I found that, without thinking I did, I have built an emotional connection to a lot of the songs. With W(TA), there are a few songs that I'm sentimentally attached to at this point, but it doesn't have the lived-in feel that other albums have. I can call it anything I like, but the simple fact is that each album feels the way it does to me because of how I've broken them in over the years. I shouldn't expect this one to feel "lived-in" until I've lived in it for a while. Well said – that is my experience as well. I have to sort of develop a deep emotional attachment/relationship with a piece of music before it really cooks. Unfortunately, the new one and I aren’t really seeing eye to eye, but given time, that could certainly change – it has before. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Speed Racer Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 the new one and I aren’t really seeing eye to eye, but given time, that could certainly change – it has before. Exactly! That's why realizing I not only got through SBS without puking, but even enjoyed it and missed it when I wasn't listening to it, made me so happy in terms of W(TA) - which I like, but was questioning its lastning power. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Livin' in New Orleans Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 The more I listen to SBS and grow to enjoy it, the more I also enjoy W(TA). When each new album comes out it has a way of seeming fleeting; I'll listen to it for a while, but it will make me miss old Wilco. What's missing from the new albums, to me, is the emotional connection I build with them over time - not unlike moving to a new home. Now that I'm listening more to SBS I found that, without thinking I did, I have built an emotional connection to a lot of the songs. With W(TA), there are a few songs that I'm sentimentally attached to at this point, but it doesn't have the lived-in feel that other albums have. I can call it anything I like, but the simple fact is that each album feels the way it does to me because of how I've broken them in over the years. I shouldn't expect this one to feel "lived-in" until I've lived in it for a while. Agreed. I tend to associate music with different times, and I started to think that W (TA) wasn't clicking, but now I realize that I associate it with the frenzied excitement of the leak, and then listening to the songs when the album came out in June.. it was a happy time, summer and all, and I associate the album with it Quote Link to post Share on other sites
GammaRay Posted November 10, 2009 Share Posted November 10, 2009 I think the album has one great moment (Bull Black Nova) and a few very good moments (Deeper Down, Country Disappeared, I'll Fight) and the rest is just okay... except for 'You Never Know' which is just an awful, awful, cringeful song and doesn't help whatsoever in loosing the, dare I say it, 'dad-rock' label. Whilst Sky Blue Sky was a little weak in places, the rest of it was beautiful and the album sounded well crafted and sincere. WTA isn't very cohesive as a whole, sounds rushed and sounds a little ordinary. After seeing them live in London recently and seeing what they are capable of - the record just seems like a waste of their talents. I feel bad saying it but it's the truth. I agree with the comments from a previous post (cant rememeber who) that a record that captures their live sound and energy would be awesome. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Runaway Jim Posted November 10, 2009 Share Posted November 10, 2009 Gave (the album) another listen on the way to work this morning. Still not a fan. I think I will officially shelf this one. That said, I think One Wing is definitely a great song. The rest, eh, not so much. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Speed Racer Posted November 10, 2009 Share Posted November 10, 2009 Maybe I'm an exception, but applying the "dad rock" label to my childhood, that meant Paul Simon's Graceland, John Fogerty's Centerfield, and lots of CCR. Pleasant memories and good music that remind me of summer vacations in Michigan and running Saturday morning errands with my dad. If some 5 year-old listening to W(TA) and SBS today and feels as pleasant 20 years later as I feel thinking about and listening to my dad's rock, well, we should all be so lucky. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Analogman Posted November 10, 2009 Share Posted November 10, 2009 Maybe I'm an exception, but applying the "dad rock" label to my childhood, that meant Paul Simon's Graceland, John Fogerty's Centerfield, and lots of CCR. Pleasant memories and good music that remind me of summer vacations in Michigan and running Saturday morning errands with my dad. If some 5 year-old listening to W(TA) and SBS today and feels as pleasant 20 years later as I feel thinking about and listening to my dad's rock, well, we should all be so lucky. I always thought that term meant laid back soft rock, but according to the Urban Dictionary, it is music of the baby boomer generation. Dad Rock I guess that definition fits the music I prefer to hear. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MarkyMark77 Posted November 10, 2009 Share Posted November 10, 2009 I like W(TA). But, as a recent (this year) Wilco convert (although casually listening since "Being There"), who is still currently digesting the entire catalog, I would say that W(TA) is a tight album, and recorded "by the book", the book being a pop-rock handbook. The melodies, lyrics and arrangements aren't experimental, but straight forward. And, as a straight forward pop-rock record, it works very well. But it doesn't fit into any of the other categories that the other records fit into, because Wilco just hasn't made a pop record before. My favorite part? The instrumental middle part of "One Wing". I love the chord progression there. As an aside, echoing Speed Racer, who cares if Wilco is "dad rock", or whatever other term people (read: critics) can come up with. CCR? Paul Simon? Extremely talented musicians whether or not you personally like them. Then again, I love old blues and jazz. Does that make me a fan of "grandpa rock"? That's alright by me. My grandfather listened to great music! Personally, I think all those critics like it but won't admit it, and think that they should love Animal Collective or Grizzly Bear or The Fiery Furnaces. And, while I like those acts, they're no Wilco, to be sure. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Speed Racer Posted November 10, 2009 Share Posted November 10, 2009 Oh, and I was in a bakery this weekend with my girlfriend (who only knows Wilco through me), when "My Sweet Lord" came on. She grabbed me and said, "It's WILCO! Aren't you excited?!" I haven't listened to W(TA) that much lately either, but I still get a fair amount of the songs in my head day-to-day. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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