Wilco

I was back in Millennium Park a mere twelve hours later to take in local alt-country-rock-call-em-what-you-will heroes, Wilco.

It was certainly a different crowd, and the contrasts were particularly interesting since I took the show in from almost the exact same spot on the lawn.

I can't claim intimate knowledge of Wilco's music, but my peripheral listening has endeared me to their sound even if it hasn't made me a huge fan. I'd always heard rave reviews of their live shows though, and with the recent addition of Nels Cline to their lineup and the chance to see them at the idyllic Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park I snagged some lawn tickets and hit up the show.

I've been to many rock shows in the past but I hadn't attended a big one in years. It was interesting to note how much I love the sound of a cranked electric guitar and the ease with which I slipped into my bent knee, headbobbing, rock show stance.

One immediate contrast that stood out to me in seeing Wilco was the way they pace their set. They started out on a decidedly mellow note and built up the energy over the course of the whole show. If seeing Wilco live was cooking a meal, it would be like making a big pot of stew or sauce; starting off with a few ingredients, simmering, sauteing, adding spices, and eventually bringing the whole thing up to a boil, the sum of its parts creating a greater whole.

I'm more accustomed to rock shows that are more akin to cooking lobster: you start off with a pot of boiling water, throw in live creatures that squirm and submit, leading to a decadent feast of meat dipped in butter. A meal that requires a bib.

Even if Wilco doesn't require a bib, and probably goes better with a bottle of wine than with a shot of whiskey, they put on a great show.

Taking the cooking analogy one step too far, my biggest beef with the show was that Nels wasn't given enough room to stretch out. Just when he was giving me something meaty to sink my teeth into, we were swept back into the song without a proper rock and roll peak or enough space for Nels to really say something more developed musically.

As an aside: what's up with people and their cell phone cameras these days? It seems like people are more concerned with proving that they were at a show than actually enjoying the music. In addition, people who spend an entire musical event talking test the limits of my sanity and understanding.

They played a long set and then came out for two extended encores, the second one longer than the first. I apologize for any Wilco fans reading this (I wonder how much overlap there is in my usual reading audience) that I'm not more familiar with song titles, but I know they played a wide variety of music from their catalog, and that Jeff Tweedy said the songs were all requested by fans through their website. I'll try and dredge up a setlist from the depths of the internet later.

The show was a benefit for the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless. Kudos to Wilco for putting on a great show for a great cause.

EDIT: Setlist found!

Wilco
9/12/2007
Millennium Park
You Are My Face
I Am Trying To Break Your Heart
Pot Kettle Black
War on War
Handshake Drugs
Side With The Seeds
A Shot in the Arm
Impossible Germany
Via Chicago
Jesus, etc.
Too Far Apart
Walken
I'm The Man Who Loves You
Hummingbird
On and On and On
Encore 1:
Misunderstood
Cars Can't Escape>
Spiders (Kidsmoke)
Encore 2:
Hate It Here
Box Full of Letters
California Stars
Heavy Metal Drummer
Red-Eyed and Blue>
I Got You (At The End of the Century)
Casino Queen
Outtasite (Outtamind)