Wilco -- 4/7/10, Concord, NH

[augustus westerberg]

We tried to try a Concord eatery, the Draft was overflowing so we walked on and found the Green Martini - service was really slow so we had one beer and split for the show, the food that was brought out to other customers looked really good though. Just hope they made it to the show on time!

[tinnitus photography]

Yep, I had the aisle seat 101 and my friend had seat 102. You know it didn't even occur to me when I sat there to ask if that was you because the show started a bit earlier.

 

I'm thinking that the Stillwater looking folks were actually Grace Potter & The Nocturnals. I don't really know what they looked like until I just googled them and it's pretty damn close. If it is her then that Grace Potter is a very attractive woman indeed.

 

ah, then i walked past you a couple of times! the tall dude w/ the moustache was right in front of you at the start of teh show, then moved next to the other tall dude, right in front of my wife. oh well. i've not seen Almost Famous so i am not sure about the physical similarities. did that Stillwater band also have a little dude? i was trying to figure out his connection to those people.

 

funny, i found this shot:

http://musicalbox.bloginky.com/files/grace-potter-and-the-nocturnals.jpg

 

and the guy w/ the vest was definitely one of them. not sure if the woman was actually Grace, though.

[brewboy]

"that guitar", is used a couple of times on the "Austin City Limits" gig from '07

[radiowilco]

Just back in Burlington from Boston and Concord -- had a terrific time at both shows. Agree with much of what has been said in this thread. Boston was clearly ready for some Wilco as the city had not had a "proper" show in a few years. The energy was palpable from the Price is Right intro all the way to the end of the show -- much like the Montrel show in February. I think there were some folks in Concord who were less familiar with the band, but from my seat it was all good for the entire show. It was great to not have to deal with sit down/stand up thing at either of these two shows!

 

I was quite stoked that Jeff decided to play my request last night -- I am the guy that requested Why Would You Wanna Live and received a nice gift certificate to the Concord Co-Op for the effort. I love this song and had not seen it since '02 - I think??? Anyway, it was a nice little moment during the show when I walked to the stage to get my "prize" and thanked Jeff for playing my request. He asked how it sounded -- I said, "terrific!" -- and for those who were there, I think they would all agree. The Cars Can't Escape to follow was just icing at that point...

 

Working today -- off to Hartford in the morning -- then I will wait along with most of you for the three day event in W. MA in mid-August...

[upnorth]

Just back in Burlington from Boston and Concord -- had a terrific time at both shows. Agree with much of what has been said in this thread. Boston was clearly ready for some Wilco as the city had not had a "proper" show in a few years. The energy was palpable from the Price is Right intro all the way to the end of the show -- much like the Montrel show in February. I think there were some folks in Concord who were less familiar with the band, but from my seat it was all good for the entire show. It was great to not have to deal with sit down/stand up thing at either of these two shows!

 

I was quite stoked that Jeff decided to play my request last night -- I am the guy that requested Why Would You Wanna Live and received a nice gift certificate to the Concord Co-Op for the effort. I love this song and had not seen it since '02 - I think??? Anyway, it was a nice little moment during the show when I walked to the stage to get my "prize" and thanked Jeff for playing my request. He asked how it sounded -- I said, "terrific!" -- and for those who were there, I think they would all agree. The Cars Can't Escape to follow was just icing at that point...

 

Working today -- off to Hartford in the morning -- then I will wait along with most of you for the three day event in W. MA in mid-August...

 

That was a nice moment in the show and a great request! Tweedy seemed a little uncomfortable handing out the envelopes but you seemed to loosen him up a bit.

[u2roolz]

ah, then i walked past you a couple of times! the tall dude w/ the moustache was right in front of you at the start of teh show, then moved next to the other tall dude, right in front of my wife. oh well. i've not seen Almost Famous so i am not sure about the physical similarities. did that Stillwater band also have a little dude? i was trying to figure out his connection to those people.

 

funny, i found this shot:

http://musicalbox.bloginky.com/files/grace-potter-and-the-nocturnals.jpg

 

and the guy w/ the vest was definitely one of them. not sure if the woman was actually Grace, though.

Nope. Well, the little dude in the pic above had longer hair and a beard. The little dude is the curve ball. I think he isn't in the band. He's just a sad sack who looked like Charlie Brown - upset to be there.

Maybe he wasn't feeling well, since Grace (?) was rubbing his back.

 

They also kept leaving and coming back. I wonder if they were going backstage or sitting around the very lovely lobby.

[lane]

funny on webcast you hear Tweedy say this is best crowd of tour.....

Did it last 3 hours.... That might be why songs cut.....

 

 

Ya... i thought this was a excellent crowd, i thought it was great when the guy in the balcony called Tweedy out for not singing during Jesusetc. The singalongs are not a good choice...who wants to hear your drunk friend's drunk friend suzy belting out these great tunes...not me...get back behind the mike Jeff.

[Jahmazed]

Just back from Boston and Concord.. 6 hours of Wilco in two days, damn I'm beat! Both show were great in their own ways, Boston may have had the edge on set list and crowd energy, but from where I was sitting the sound was way better in Concord and the laid back NH atmosphere was sweet.

 

The banter when the crowd called Tweedy out on not pronouncing Concord properly was freaking hilarious. He was like Concurd? "really? you guys should change the way its spelled". It looked like he was still laughing even as he played the next song.

 

Some personal highlights for me were mind blowing Ashes, a cool rendition of Misunderstood, and a great rowdy encore of In the Street, hoodoo voodoo and I'm a wheel.

 

The crowd did seem to tire, but rallied for the end of the show, and in their defense this was the smallest venue of the tour, 1200 people aren't going to make nearly as much noise as 2500. Honestly I was impressed that they stood as much as they did.

 

Sitting on Nels' side reminded me again how incredible he is, that guy does things to guitar I've never seen anyone else do!

 

All in all a great couple of "evenings" and I will sleep well tonight!

[wilcomassmoca]

Grace Potter, Matt Burr, Benny Yurco and Scott Tournet from GPN were all in Concord. Grace posted on Twitter and I know a few folks who said hey.

[JukeJointJeff]

Nope. Well, the little dude in the pic above had longer hair and a beard. The little dude is the curve ball. I think he isn't in the band. He's just a sad sack who looked like Charlie Brown - upset to be there.

Maybe he wasn't feeling well, since Grace (?) was rubbing his back.

 

They also kept leaving and coming back. I wonder if they were going backstage or sitting around the very lovely lobby.

 

 

It was Grace, Matt Barr (Drummer) Benny Yurco (guitar) Scott Tournet (guitar) with the only Nocturnal missing was Catherine Popper (bass) who was with Ryan Adams and The Cardinals. The "sad sack" was a brother of a member who in fact had a great time at his first Wilco show but his appointment today at Dartmouth-Hitchcock may have been weighing heavy on his mind last night

[wilcomassmoca]

Here is Grace from Twitter @gracepotter

 

Incredible show last nite. Wilco, you never cease to amaze me.

[laurie]

Just got back from work (long day!) and was telling Ricky I thought it was a little bit of an odd vibe too. I wondered if it was a little to do with the no drinks allowed inside though the woman Paul described sure looked tanked enough. It was VERY warm in there too. Our friend asked for Cars for the Boston show and we were very excited to hear that. My daughter was with me and she had a great time and was so grateful to see such a show. We felt bad for the guy Jeff pointed to and said something to the effect hat 'you cant clap anymore' and 'I found him' though he tried to be polite saying"i'm sure your a great guy, but..." He went on saying how the band had "soldiered through," but it wasn't easy etc etc It was hilarious, along with the gig on how to talk like a New Englander. assume they will drive through "Wis-tah' on he way to "Haht-fud"

[tinnitus photography]

We felt bad for the guy Jeff pointed to and said something to the effect hat 'you cant clap anymore' and 'I found him' though he tried to be polite saying"i'm sure your a great guy, but..."

 

 

that was probably the funniest bit from Tweedy last night...comparing the out of synch clapping to trying to count money while someone randomly spits out numbers.

[laurie]

that was probably the funniest bit from Tweedy last night...comparing the out of synch clapping to trying to count money while someone randomly spits out numbers.

 

yes it was my favorite of his many comments. He was chatty.

 

 

 

[tinnitus photography]

the other one i remember was someone yelling 'TAKE IT OFF' (ostensibly referring to his jacket) and Jeff saying "what is with you, Concord?"

[u2roolz]

the other one i remember was someone yelling 'TAKE IT OFF' (ostensibly referring to his jacket) and Jeff saying "what is with you, Concord?"

 

That guy was to the right of me/us.

He was actually yelling Shake It Off and I think he's on this thread on page 1.

 

LOL. Even Jeff is shrugging off that request as a "Take Off Your Clothes" diversion tactic.

[zc427]

Re: Grace Potter

 

 

 

So I was the insane person yelling shake it off (sorry for being annoying, I'll just bring my sign to Hartford and E Factory) I'll try to settle down...

 

 

 

So me and my friend kept looking over at "Boots" as we affectionately named her.... and we commented on her back rubbing skills and general merryment lol.....and I almost fell over reading the past 2 pages with the pictures and the realization that it was Grace...

 

 

 

Pretty funny stuff guys..... looking forward to the weekend and the potential for this soundboard!!

[yankhotelfox]

"Cars Can't Escape?" Seriously, Wilco?? My favorite Wilco song and you couldn't have waited until Hartford tonight to play it??

[Jerrygarciaparra]

Huh, I must be a terrible Vermonter because I was in that same row J and and had no idea that was Grace Potter.

 

I think i might have bumped into her when she was trying to get back in. Does that count as a "brush with greatness"?

 

Sorry Grace!

[jaydawg]

The Concord show was my first and WOW what a first show. I was in row F center section. Wouldn't have asked for a better night!

 

On the Grace Potter note, I talked to Scott Tournet this afternoon and he said both him and Grace thought it was one of the best shows they've seen!

[double A-ron]

I know its a few days late but I wanted to give a brief review of my hometown experience in "Cahn-Cahd", as I was screaming so intently to Jeff that he could hear it. That was my funniest moments as he couldn't hear me the first time but then someone onstage clued him in and he got it right after a couple tries. "you guys can just change the name of a town whenever you want?", of course Jeff its New England where nothing sounds as it looks! But anyways, the sound, the sound, the sound...the abosulte goddam best sound quality show I have heard other than Shelburne for some reason. Not even Tanglewood comes close. The theatre looks as good as ever after being completely remodeled and the staff are all super nice as I know several. The opening set knocked my socks off as I was expecting this feeling after the acoustic set. Ashes>BBN with Nels wavering above the guitar like a Theremin was heaven-sent, he needs to bust out one of those if he hasn't done so yet. Because of this I am really looking forward to the guitar clinic with Nels at Solid Sound. Anyways, Summerteeth>Misunderstood, Radio Cure were other highlights, I absolutely loved the transition into and out of acoustic, its so cool to see that. Acoustic set was as expected, I love the Wilco expansion/experimentation sound (krautrock as others here call it, which i can't stand cause it ain't even close) of Spiders as we have seen this version before at Jeff solo shows, but Cars Can't Escape, Hesitating Beauty and Lammy Cat were all a surprise and took awhile to figure it out! I haven't seen A Wheel closer for a while so that was a sick way to end it.

 

Just a couple comments on the crowd which is what I expected at this venue. Alot of the patrons were older members who had no idea who Wilco is, seeing as how its Cahn-Cahd the artsy community had to check them out. So, what we had was a full house for 3-4 songs and then the purple hairs left, which opened things up nicely. I do feel the weather played a role as even I was tired after prepping well for the show. As much as I love Wilco, I do feel that 3+ hours of constant music is a bit much with no breaks at all. I'd rather see two 1.5 hour sets with a hour between. Anyways, I didn't stop rocking the whole show, I never do even as others around me look at me like a freak and I look back at them like a freak for not dancing. Let your FREAK FLAG FLY is my motto, within reason of course! If I am doing anything it takes just to see a band, I am sure as hell going to enjoy myself. But as always, it is New England so you really have to be too cool for school to go wild at a concert like a little girl, YOU are always better than the person next to you, right? Then there are the dad's draggin their kids to the show to show them how cool he is still, but can't go crazy in public so as to set a good example which is all fine with me. Bummed at the lack of weed during this show WTF? It is NH though where its a felony possibly.

 

All in all, Me and my buddy had a blast. Wished I went to Boston to hear I Must Be High as I requested it in Cahnk (as we affectional call it). FYI, according to Wilco base this was the 3rd time playing in NH, I swear they played UNH in the late 80's early 90's. My favorite shows; Shelburne, Tanglewood, Cahn-cahd, Newport, Missoula, Portland, Lowell,

[speakercode]

Bummed at the lack of weed during this show WTF? It is NH though where its a felony possibly

 

Don't think it's a felony but it depends on the town...some places book you, some places just confiscate. At the CCfA I think you'd be tossed out and possibly booked since it would have been incredibly obvious. I think it was more that it was an indoor concert hall venue rather than outside (like Shelburne, which WAS awesome) or someplace like the Orpheum. But if you were bummed, then we should have met up in my car around 745pm An intermission would have been perfect, but hey, I'm not complaining.

 

overall, GREAT show. Thanks to everyone for the explanation of the crowd, as the "members" certainly made it not 1200 Wilco fans but significantly less. Ah well, it was great and I hope it didn't detract them from coming back to our fair state. Meadowbrook would probably work, although I really wonder what the crowd would be like there...

 

see you all at MassMoCA!

[sdot]

When you get the chance to see a band this good play for 3 hours in a 1200 seat venue, you gotta do it...

 

Great great venue. Tiny... not a bad seat in the house. The crowd was great... Very respectful of the band and the music. I'd imagine this is the case with most Wilco shows... but being from Boston I've become used to shows where I end up getting distracted by people preoccupied with their phones. It's great to have gone to a show where I could see the stage without a bunch of phones / cameras blocking my view. Some people at the show clearly weren't familiar with the band, but that added to the charm in its own way. Ushers too. The 50-something usher to my left seemed terrified early on in the show (particularly during the white noise at the end of IATTBYH) but by Airline to Heaven she was clapping up a storm.

 

CARS CAN'T ESCAPE. Worth the price of admission by itself... one of their best songs, easily, which I completely wrote off from them ever playing. What a fantastic surprise.

 

Haven't seen them since 2005... incredible how much tighter they've become since then (and when I saw them then, I thought they put on one of the best shows I'd ever seen). Jeff has clearly found his happy place.

 

New England Wilco fans are pretty damn lucky these days, what with the great shows this past week, and the Solid Sound Fest coming up this summer. Woo

[tinnitus photography]

review/photos of the Concord NH show:

http://www.bigtakeover.com/reviews/wilco-at-the-capital-center-for-the-arts-concord-nh-wednesday-april-7-2010

[tmac]

A few random observations then...

 

Kind of a weird crowd, I thought. It seemed like, for whatever reason, the air went out of the proverbial sails somewhere around "Jesus, etc." The crowd singalong was pretty weak and Jeff went back on mike quicker than I've seen in a while (i.e. even before the "Voices whine..." verse).

 

The song also provided a couple of awkward moments when a drunk woman apparently mistook Jeff's encouragement to sing along as an indication that she should come right up to the stage -- she probably would have tried to get on the stage if Jeff hadn't sort of waved her off -- and then tripped and fell into a little kid in the front row as she tried to go back to her seat. Then at one point, someone in the balcony (I think) yelled really loudly, "I can't hear you, Jeff!" And Jeff was like, no shit...because I'm not singing into the mike. Shortly after, he did go back on mike and in effect cut the singalong short.

 

Not long after, Jeff jokingly (or not) asked if the band had worn the audience out. People shouted no, but it was clear that the vibe had changed a bit and that was apparently reflected by the omission of several songs on the printed list after "I'm The Man Who Loves You."

 

On the printed list to close out the main set after Man was:

Hummingbird

Red Eyed/I Got You

Thank You/In The Street

 

And now for tidbits that about three people will care about...

*Jeff was back to the white Kenneth Coles tonight.

 

*No rainbow SG tonight. Jeff actually used a guitar I hadn't seen before (or at least in a long time) on Hoodoo. It was a black one that looked almost like a dobro with a big silver circle in the middle. I'm not sure what it was.

 

*I haven't seen the videos myself, but midshow Jeff pointed out two little kids who were toward the front at stage left who he recognized from their performances of Wilco songs on YouTube. Near the end of the show, he pointed over to the younger of the boys who had been standing in the front row for a while but went back to his seat. The kid had a big smile on his face as he pointed right back at Jeff. It was cute.