Wilco — 11 September 2021, Bloomington, IL (Washington Street in front of the Castle Theater) [Black Dirt Music Festival]

[theashtraysays]

Being the big name in a small, local festival means that you can just stretch things out a little more than being in one of the larger multi-stage summer festivals, and it just felt like Wilco was able to stretch out a little more and play a terrific 23-song set out in the street in the northern Illinois town of Bloomington.  The one-day, one-stage, four-band affair was short on big corporate sponsors, and long on local folks who just wanted to enjoy music in a camp chair out on a gorgeous Saturday night at what was only the second iteration of this little hometown festival.  Being in honor of the Castle Theater's 10th anniversary of its time as a small (900 cap?) music venue this year, this fest was the grown-up version of its 2019 debut in the parking lot of the theater, and took over the street for the entire block in front of the little venue.  Local heroes Backyard Tire Fire, who played just before Wilco, were the band that everybody who didn't travel more than 50 miles knew (and knew well), and they apparently birthed the idea a few years back.  They put together an American Idol star, another local fave band, themselves, and were able to get Wilco to sign on in the middle of this 3-night / 3-festival run that they did this weekend to make a pretty darn satisfying 4-band show that ought to put this festival on the map from here on out.  A great evening in what seemed to me a very appreciative place.  And other than a couple of unwelcome wasted rail crashers (c'mon @Jcamp, you know better than that), it was a really great midwestern crowd.

Althea Grace, from American Idol fame, opened up with just a shrunk down acoustic guitar and played a 30 minute solo set that let us know she has some serious songwriting chops and also did a downright righteous cover of Bennie and the Jets.  Next up was Chicago Farmer and The Field Notes, sounding like a 6-piece disguised as a 4-piece who played some rather quirky tunes including lamenting "$13 beers" at a big arena show, cheering for the underdogs in "Dirtiest Uniforms", and spinning a tale about grandparental wisdom in "The $20 Bill".  Watching the drummer in his pigtails play mandolin or keys WHILE drumming, and keeping an eye on the gypsy-Mick-Fleetwood guitar/steel guitar player made for an interesting time indeed.  They began their set promising that "we're gonna do something that's never been done in the history of live music - we're starting early" (a good 20 minutes early!), and then enjoyed themselves immensely throughout their set.  Backyard Tire Fire, newly reunited after a few years pursuing various stuff, came on with a song about Alejandro Escovedo, played some pretty tight roots/rock/little-bit-o-blues tunes, throwing in a John Prine cover (Great Rain) and a ZZ Top tune (Nationwide) just for fun.  Brothers Ed (Edward David Anderson) and Matt Anderson made up half the band, and their dad was right there on the rail next to us beaming with pride and telling us how great these guys were.  We happened to run into Ed as we were leaving, and he was over-the-moon excited at how well their little fest came off tonight.  We had also heard from former local resident and all around good guy Ken that about 30% of the total tickets were sold THAT DAY, which I'm told is pretty unusual and I'm sure was a huge relief for the organizers, especially Ed.  Terrific fella, and a few of us had a great time talking with him. 

Wilco came on at 8:30 to a street full of regulars & big fans up front with quite a few locals mixed in, and a sea of camp chairs with local music lovers in the back behind the "no chairs past here" line at about the soundboard.  The setlist was largely the same as the recent shows, with a significantly noticeable change (by me anyway - more later), but it just seemed that the guys were a little more relaxed time-wise than the ultra-strict curfews they were under lately.  They played 23 songs, closing down at around 10:20, but it didn't seem hurried at all.  They left the stage for an actual encore break, and then played 3 songs for the encore before heading off again.  Jeff added back in the Doors-like spoken word version of HMD, going pretty far into the lyrics before saying "that's enough lizard king for an outdoor show" and cuing Glenn for his kickoff fill and diving into the song.  He once again was in a great mood, providing some serious rockstar moves in shredding through ALTWYS and in full jog-dance for Hummingbird.  Pat's Box Full of Letters solo was on fire, and he made the most of his moment in the spotlight.  John's hops looked to me like they had a little more air than the night before, and Glenn's stick twirling was right on cue as always. 

Banter corner had a couple of highlights, with a main theme being that (to Jeff's disbelief) this was the first time that Wilco had played Bloomington IL.  Ken did tell us that Wilco played neighboring Normal back in 97, but not actually Bloomington.  Jeff eluded to having played there in another band at one point (presumably Uncle Tupelo but not mentioned), and apologized that it took them so long.  Just before Box, he mentioned that this was from their first album, and if Wilco HAD played Bloomington back in the day, this surely would have been one of the songs played.  He later said that the folks at the Castle theater had treated them all really well, and that they had spent the day in that theater where they had "none of their greatest memories".  He assured the crowd that they wouldn't take so long to play there again next time.

The other memorable comment involved a delightful 11YO kid named Oscar.  Oscar and his mom made their way up to the rail during the fest, ultimately filling in the spot next to me where the Tire Fire dad had vacated after his boys closed out.  Oscar was celebrating his upcoming 12th birthday later this month with his first concert.  He was decked out in a spiffy new Wilco hat, which was just barely over the rail if he stood straight and tall.  He waved his hat enthusiastically at Jeff as they were leaving for the encore.  Upon returning, Jeff pointed out the young man, praising him for being there and his enthusiasm, and giving him (and his mom) the advice that "you need to start a band!".  The kid was THRILLED to get the shoutout, and was one big grin-machine the whole rest of the night.  In typical this-is-why-we-love-Wilco style, the tour manager Eric made his way down during the encore to give him a setlist and a pick to get him started on his newly christened career in music.  Good stuff.

Speaking of good stuff... this show marked the first appearance of the highly sought-after Bull Black Nova since the pandemic shutdown.  I didn't really even get the chance to deploy my new "FULL SET! NOVA NIGHT?" sign, but after Via Chicago (!) they brought out Jeff's well-worn Fender which to me means we might be in Nova land.  Sure enough, the little twingly intro started up and the Nova was out of its year-and-a-half garage cold storage.  And yes, it was fabulous.  And yes, I did pretty much lose my shit.  But in a good way.  And as Jeff was leaving the stage for the night, he looked right at me and my face-wide exhausted smile, gave me a good finger-wag and we could see him say sternly "You owe me one!".  And I sure do. 

Let's hope the guys can play more of these smaller festivals down the road and stretch out a little more on these nice summer nights.  It was a winner in my book.

Here's the complete setlist as played.  Candyfloss was the third song on the written setlist and was replaced by California Stars.  No other changes.

 

1. A Shot in the Arm

2. Random Name Generator

3. At Least That’s What You Said

4. One and a Half Stars

5. I Am Trying to Break Your Heart

6. Art of Almost

7. If I Ever Was a Child

8. Via Chicago

9. Bull Black Nova

10. Love is Everywhere (Beware)

11. Impossible Germany

12. Hummingbird

13. Everyone Hides

14. Box Full of Letters

15. Dawned on Me

16. Jesus, etc.

17. Theologians

18. I’m the Man Who Loves You

19. Heavy Metal Drummer

20. I’m Always in Love

Encore

21. The Late Greats

22. Outtasite (Outta Mind)

23. California Stars

 

Cheers all! See you at the show. 

Vince

 

[BazilT]

Perfect recap of a perfect night! 

[TCP]

Wow! Great recap Vince. I feel like I was there!

[Sandy in SFCA]

Great recap, Vince! You really captured the energy of the band and the setting. Seeing your reaction to Bull Black Nova was one of the highlights of the night for me. 

[Albert Tatlock]

Ta

[bböp]

7 hours ago, theashtraysays said:

Speaking of good stuff... this show marked the first appearance of the highly sought-after Bull Black Nova since the pandemic shutdown.  I didn't really even get the chance to deploy my new "FULL SET! NOVA NIGHT?" sign, but after Via Chicago (!) they brought out Jeff's well-worn Fender which to me means we might be in Nova land.  Sure enough, the little twingly intro started up and the Nova was out of its year-and-a-half garage cold storage.  And yes, it was fabulous.  And yes, I did pretty much lose my shit.  But in a good way.  And as Jeff was leaving the stage for the night, he looked right at me and my face-wide exhausted smile, gave me a good finger-wag and we could see him say sternly "You owe me one!".  And I sure do. 

Let's hope the guys can play more of these smaller festivals down the road and stretch out a little more on these nice summer nights.  It was a winner in my book.

Here's the complete setlist as played.  Candyfloss was the third song on the written setlist and was replaced by California Stars.  No other changes.

 

Haha, “you owe me one!” Perfect. Oh, that Jeffria! 
 

Glad you got your song, dusty as it may have been after all this time in cold storage. How did you even contain yourself for the remainder of the show?

 

Too bad no Candyfloss! That would’ve put things right over the top (and made me super jealous not to be there in person). Still, sounds like it was a lovely evening — apart from the aforementioned transgressions — and thanks for the excellent summation and details! 

[HeavyMetalDrummist]

I walked into the venue right before Chicago Farmer started to play. I really enjoyed them and was especially impressed with the drummer's ability to play the drums while also playing the keys or mandolin. I've been playing drums for 40 years and I can't fathom the coordination that requires. 

 

Backyard Tire Fire were good, but I enjoyed Chicago Farmer more, probably because I'm a little more on the country side of alt-country. 

 

Wilco can't really be pegged in that particular genre and probably hasn't been easy to peg into any genre since Summerteeth. The best, yet still far-off comparison I've heard of Wilco is to The Beatles. The ingenuity and uniqueness of their discography is comparable, but that's where the comparisons should end. Tweedy's ability to come up with something new for every album and even each song within each album is nearly unmatched.

 

Anyway, I decided to stay where I was when Chicago Farmer neared the end of their set, which was pretty close to the stage. As various people left to get beers or wherever else they went, I inched my way up to a spot right behind the first row of people. I've never been so close to the stage at a Wilco show, and this was a treat. It was totally worth the sore legs and feet that accompanied the four hours of standing in one spot that it took. Tweedy was in good spirits, had good banter and was pretty animated throughout the show. I think the 18 month break has made many appreciate the blessing of live music, and that extends to performers as well as the crowds that pack places to see them. This was my 9th Wilco show and by far my favorite, probably because I was so close to the stage. Nels' solo in Impossible Germany was the best I've seen. It was a more lively show than the one they put on at Millennium Park. That show seemed brief, although the venue's view of the surrounding city sort of made up for the brevity. 

 

Can't wait to see them again. Vive Le Wilco!

[Chez]

Love The Castle Theater - seen several show there.  We couldn't make it Saturday due to other commitments, but sounds like we missed a great show.  Thanks for the excellent recap, Vince.

[DGJS78]

Thanks for the write up. 
 

It was my 14th show and my first being so close - didn’t get the rail, but one row back in the center. I thought all the other bands were good; I really enjoyed Chicago Farmer. I’m a happy man anytime I get to see ALTWYS live!

[theashtraysays]

Oh I forgot one other fun little tidbit. 
The gap between the rail and the stage was pretty small and nearly filled with big subs. Wilco comes on, and a couple photographers emerge and start snappin, somewhat climbing around the speakers and doing the best they could to get the shots they wanted. Third song starts, and they keep snappin. Eric (rather intimidating tour manager, aka strictangel) appears a couple minutes in and talks to both of them, rather sternly, holding up two fingers. Apparently the deal was just two songs, not the usual three. Eric leaves, as does one photog. Photog #2 swaps lenses and keeps on snappin. Eric reappears and continues / enhances stern discussion, and proceeds to usher #2 out of the gap area, then concludes the now very stern discussion off to the side of the stage. Photog #2 was not seen again for the duration of the evening. Sure hope he’s ok. 

[bböp]

On 9/12/2021 at 6:20 PM, theashtraysays said:

Candyfloss was the third song on the written setlist and was replaced by California Stars.  No other changes.

 

It occurred to me that Candyfloss being on the printed setlist could theoretically have been a mistake since it literally is the next song in alphabetical order after California Stars. Is it possible that someone just made a little boo-boo on the drop-down menu of songs while printing out the setlist? It just seems a little out of nowhere for it to be on there to me, that's all...