Ghost of Electricity Posted August 4, 2012 Share Posted August 4, 2012 Battle of the middleweights: ten rounds, no hitting below the belt. Ding! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Tweedling Posted August 4, 2012 Share Posted August 4, 2012 If I were a betting man I'd say SBS in the 5th. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
uncool2pillow Posted August 4, 2012 Share Posted August 4, 2012 Like comparing Michael Phelps and me in the pool. SBS. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Andrew McKean Posted August 4, 2012 Share Posted August 4, 2012 I don't really see Wilco albums as the boxing type... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Albert Tatlock Posted August 4, 2012 Share Posted August 4, 2012 Wow - it's no contest to my mind. I always quite liked SBS more than lots of longer term fans here often expressed (except for Walken that is :-) ) but, really, TWL is outstanding. So much more variety and ideas, and some simply tremendous pop melodies, and there's nothing wrong with a smidgeon of good pop. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
uncool2pillow Posted August 4, 2012 Share Posted August 4, 2012 For me, it's almost the opposite. SBS is every bit as much of a statement as YHF. W(TA) seems like it was an attempt to capture all of Wilco's phases in one LP, but not many of the songs are as great as the originals from those phases -- e.g., BBN is a watered down Spiders to my ears. I'm not a big W(TA) hater, but I do actively dislike Everlasting Everything and feel there's only 3 or 4 really solid songs on it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lost highway Posted August 4, 2012 Share Posted August 4, 2012 I'm not sure everyone is used to reading TWL as The Whole Love, and they're seeing it as WTA. I'd say the Whole Love is a more consistent effort in songwriting, a more engaging listen in arrangement and production, and all around a better album. There are a few highs on SBS that could challenge many songs on TWL (You Are My Face, Impossible Germany), but all around TWL takes the cake for me because: I'd rather hear Standing O than WalkenRising Red Lung over Leave Me Like You Found MeBorn Alone over Shake It OffOne Sunday Morning over On and On and OnBlack Moon over Please Be Patient With Me But that's just how I hear it. Too each their own etc. etc. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
uncool2pillow Posted August 4, 2012 Share Posted August 4, 2012 Oops, lazy reading on my part. Didn't get a lot of sleep last night. TWL by a mile. It's in the canon. SBS is good, though Quote Link to post Share on other sites
worldrecordplayer Posted August 5, 2012 Share Posted August 5, 2012 No disrespect to SBS, but I have to go with TWL. From start to finish, TWL is one of the all time greats. It has songs, and they flow as an organic whole. A masterpiece. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
The Inside of Outside Posted August 5, 2012 Share Posted August 5, 2012 I really like SBS, but I love TWL. Impossible Germany and You Are My Face might be my favorite two songs off the two LPs, but start to finish, I'll take TWL. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Vacant Horizon Posted August 5, 2012 Share Posted August 5, 2012 SBS towers over Whole Love. the worst songs on SBS blow TWL away. I think TWL is a mess of an album and the good songs are ruined by Nels wankery. i know i'm gonna get nailed on this one, but i just had to get it off my chest Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Oil Can Boyd Posted August 5, 2012 Share Posted August 5, 2012 For me it's TWL by a long shot. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
xTonyWonder Posted August 5, 2012 Share Posted August 5, 2012 I love SBS, but TWL is a more interesting album from top to bottom. SBS lags a little on the back half. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
worldrecordplayer Posted August 5, 2012 Share Posted August 5, 2012 SBS towers over Whole Love. the worst songs on SBS blow TWL away. I think TWL is a mess of an album and the good songs are ruined by Nels wankery. i know i'm gonna get nailed on this one, but i just had to get it off my chest I have no hammer and nails on my keyboard, but really? "a mess of an album"? Hard for me to fathom, but it is what it is. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Vacant Horizon Posted August 5, 2012 Share Posted August 5, 2012 with SBS the songs just seem more coherent to me. each one is like a little art rock suite with a hook and instrumental part. i'm thinking specifically of everything except the song SBS and please be patient with me. the songs on TWL just don't seem to go any where and just peter out. i'll probably get grilled for this too, but art of almost and one sunday morning are way too long and nel's dissonant solos just don't fit the songs like Dawned on me and i might. capital city, standing o and rising red lung are just toss offs to me that could have some really cool instrumental sections or something. also, on a whole, the songs just aren't there. nothing i found myself singing except the song Whole Love. so, that's where i'm coming from. i really wish i enjoyed it more. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
choo-choo-charlie Posted August 5, 2012 Share Posted August 5, 2012 I love both records. My emotional attachment to SBS is stronger, mainly because it was the first "new" Wilco release after I became a fan, and my wife and I were becoming fans together. The bass playing is spectacular on both records -- something that seems to be lacking in the mix on WTA -- even on a song as sub-par as Leave Me Like You Found Me. I love the 1970s classic rock vibe of SBS, and for me it's a nice palate cleanser after digging into "heavier" Wilco records. That being said, I think TWL is a far stronger record than SBS and with the exception of live recordings, is the finest example of what this lineup can do together. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ih8music Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 I was late to the Wilco game and SBS was the first "new" Wilco album for me. Loved it. That said, it's TWL by a mile and a half. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bleedorange Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 We're merely comparing lesser works of a formerly great artist. I'll go with The Whole Love. Sky Blue Sky's second half is just too abysmal. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Vacant Horizon Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 We're merely comparing lesser works of a formerly great artist. I'll go with The Whole Love. Sky Blue Sky's second half is just too abysmal. i'm just curious, when were they great? AGiB is their masterpiece as far as i'm concerned. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Magnetized Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 Oh please. "Formerly great band"? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bleedorange Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 i'm just curious, when were they great? AGiB is their masterpiece as far as i'm concerned. I think the period starting with Being There all the way through A Ghost is Born. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
worldrecordplayer Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 I'm not buying the "formerly great" reference. Not to my ears. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bleedorange Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 It happens to 99% of bands. They hit their peak over a span of a few years and then slowly decline. That's just the way it is. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
rareair Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 TWL is miles ahead although i do love several songs from SBS. I do not need Wilco as much as i did from 2001 - 2005 but that does not make the band "formerly great" (imho). Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Vacant Horizon Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 I think the period starting with Being There all the way through A Ghost is Born. i really like AM, so i'd add that in. i'm with you on this though. bands do peak and decline and near the end may have another small peak. it's harder to discern this over the last 20 years as the sound of records has remained similar. where as, 70s bands shitty albums are the 80s sounding albums. when i first hear Whole Love my first thought was, this is the decline. each album before had at least some memorable songs and a favorite (SBS-WTA). but TWL is utterly unforgettable and in some ways quite self-referential, cover and all. it will be interesting to see these songs fall from the setlist over the next year. also, nels and pat need to go...sorry. if they want a guy to hook a guitar up to a bunch of distortion pedals and play the guitar with a steel rod, then i'll do it for half the salary. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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