A Sort Of Review Of Wilco @ Lollapalooza

I'm in a forgiving mood tonight. Not that either of the people I was a little upset at even knew, or would even care if they knew I was holding a grudge against them. But nonetheless, I'm cleaning out my karmic closet with these two.



The first is Jim DeRogotis of the Chicago Sun-Times. He and Chicago Tribune rock critic Greg Kot host one of the best radio programs around, called Sound Opinions (NPR). It's billed as the world's only rock and roll talk show and features news, commentary, artist performance/interviews, and other segments as well. It's entertaining and great for music nerds like myself. I had the brilliant idea that I could intern on the program, so I went through the application process, pouring every ounce of love for music and their show into the lengthy application. But no internship for me. Not even an interview! Also, I was upset to learn that Kot and/or DeRogotis (can't remember which, or if it was both) failed to review the excellent Steve Goodman biography by Clay Eals entitled, "Steve Goodman: Facing the Music". So I guess I was holding a grudge against both, but I read the Sun-Times more frequently so DeRogotis got the brunt of my anger. But no more. I read his wrap up piece on Lollapalooza and really liked what he had to say, even though he did pan Dr. Dog. But I wasn't there. Maybe they didn't put on their best show (still check them out!). The guy knows what he's talking about and seems to truly have interesting things to say about music, so I trust his judgment. You are forgiven Jim DeRogotis.



The second forgivee is John Stirratt of Wilco. I had a chance to interview both John and Wilco bandmate, Pat Sansone while I was still in broadcast school. Besides Wilco, they are in a mellow, '70s California rock-styled band called The Autumn Defense. As a huge fan of Wilco, I was thrilled to get this opportunity. I had seen their show the night before and was primed for the interview. But only Pat Sansone showed, as apparently John Stirratt was too tired to do the interview. I took it as a bit of a slight. Who's really going to care if you don't show up to a podcast interview conducted by a couple of broadcast school students? That story didn't make Rolling Stone. Pat was extremely gracious and patient with us afterward as we snapped some "I'm with the rock star" photos. Still, I was a bit irked by the situation.



Here's where the "sort of review" comes in, as well as the forgiveness of Mr. Stirratt. I wasn't actually at Wilco's set at Lollapalooza, but through the magic of You Tube, I caught every song. Granted it was out of order, but I still got the idea. The conclusion I came to is that Wilco has to be up there as one of the most versitile, musically tight, entertaining rock and roll bands around. That's really no news flash to many. In fact, even the horribly written Lolla "official program" acknowledged that sometime within the past few years, Wilco has become the best rock and roll band around. And I have always liked them, but in the midst of watching this set, something clicked. At first when you hear them/watch them, you have a tendency to site the many influences. "Oh, there's the Uncle Tupelo country influence. There's the experimentalism. There's the '70s rock". But after awhile, you realize, it's just Wilco music. Even though each style is quite different from the other, there's a thread of good writing, great playing, and adventure running through the different elements. During last Saturday's set, there's a line Jeff Tweedy sings in the song "Misunderstood" that goes, "You still love rock and roll" and the crowed absolutely erupts. This is rock and roll resurrected. It is exciting, always interesting, and played with skill and passion. How can I remain mad at you, John Stirratt? Just keeping doing what you do and I'll forget all about our past troubles.

I do admit, though, I haven't been able to fully throw my support behind "Sky, Blue, Sky". I like it, don't get me wrong, but it's heavy on the mellow end of the spectrum. I like mellow, but I also like it when Wilco busts out a song like "I'm a Wheel". At the same time, this is Wilco for you. They don't let you get too comfortable with one style. Probably why they have been called by some as the American Radiohead. I wouldn't quite agree with that comparison, beyond the fact that they both are unafraid to experiment. But I get it. It is one of the things that makes Radiohead so interesting as well. It's the "what will they come up with next?" ethic. Which is why even though I'm undecided on "Sky, Blue, Sky", I'll keep coming back.

Did you see the Nudie suits too? The Nudie suit is generally thought of as a country/western deal, but they pull it off. It's fitting too that one of the other great adventurous spirits of music over the past 40 years, Gram Parsons, was also a fan of the bedazzled Nudie suit. Gram Parsons and Jeff Tweedy wear the Nudie suit a little bit differently, though. Gram's had a flaming cross and a marijuana leaf on it, while Tweedy's had one of those waving kitties you see at Chinese restaurants. Gram's may have been slightly more badass, but Tweedy still pulled it off. And anyone who looks comfortable in a red Nudie suit, is cool in my book. My old friend Pat Sansone looked slightly less comfortable, but the dude is an amazing musician, so he could wear backward Kriss Kross era clothes and still be cool in my book as well.

Novelty acts--what's their place?

From what I hear from first person accounts, Radiohead was pretty amazing at Lollapalooza. Maybe I can get someone who was there to write a review.





But I'm not going to talk about Radiohead right now. At least not directly. Plenty of coverage is given to this band and for good reason. What a truly outstanding band! Maybe the best around right now. But I read something once that is very simple, but true: Not every band can or should be Radiohead. One of the criticisms you hear sometimes of Radiohead is that they are too moody and serious. I personally find this criticism a bit ridiculous and probably made by people who don't really give it a good listen. But it's true, not everyone can or should be Radiohead.





So let's take a look at the opposite extreme of bands--novelty acts. I think of this because someone I was talking to the other night mentioned how his friend really wanted to see this band that has something like 18 lead singers and only sings songs with choruses and no verses. Something about Camero in the title. We all know our share of novelty acts. They are perfect bar entertainment. Some Chicago examples include, Wedding Banned, who are supposedly a wedding band that is so hardcore they got kicked off of the "wedding circuit", powder blue tuxes and all. Then there's Mucca Pazza--rock music played by a marching band. It's quite a sight to see these guys fit into a club. Let's just say you get to know the musicians pretty intimately. I could go on and on with examples.



I have a couple of thoughts concerning novelty acts. I usually end up being a little disappointed when someone hypes up a band who survives off of their schtick. I mean, ok, so you've got 18 lead singers and that's your thing, but are you any good. And if you are in one of these bands, aren't you worried that the novelty will wear out? I enjoyed Mucca Pazza when I saw them. It's a former band nerd's dream come true. Playing "Smells Like Teen Spirit" in a packed club with all of your other band nerd friends, oboes, tubas and all, and being respected and even liked. It's good entertaining fun, but would I go see it again? Probably not. And I wouldn't likely by a cd. Maybe they realize they are what they are--an entertaining novelty act.



Then there's unneccessary novelty. I saw a band at SXSW that was really great. It was like watching a band straight out of the heyday of '60s Rhythm and Blues. I'd never get to see Otis Redding live, but this was definitely in the same vein and really, really good. But I had one major problem with them. They were dressed in Star Trek uniforms. I don't know why. There would seem to be no point. None of the songs were geared toward Trekkies (or do they like to be called Trekkers now, I don't know). It was straight ahead soulful r&b. What were they doing with the uniforms? I found it distracting and really unneccessary. Just play the music! It's good, don't detract from it!



It's not that I don't like a good novelty act. I love Flight of the Conchords. There's also a great band from Austin called White Ghost Shivers, who I enjoy as well. Here's how I think they are different, though. Flight of the Conchords is extremely well written and has a context of a hilarious HBO program and previous to this, several comedy specials. These guys have developed solid characters (of themselves basically) and weaved those characters masterfully into ridiculously funny songs. If you're going to be a novelty act, be like these guys--write well and develop your schtick into something extremely solid.



White Ghost Shivers are an Austin-based Texas swing/vaudville act/hot jazz/bluegrass band. They do dress in period costumes, but it doesn't detract from their act. It's like if you took a '20s jazz band, pulled them into modern times and let them draw upon influences like punk and rock, and let the madness begin. It's high energy, at times very silly and raunchy and just a lot of fun. They work because they really seem to be a bunch of fun loving, silly, raunchy people, but also because they play really well.

And even though I am a fan of both of these bands, I wonder about their limitations. Will Flight of the Conchords follow up their initial success with another round of clever, funny songs? Can a band like White Ghost Shivers expand their fan base outside of the niche they've carved out in Texas?

But maybe I'm being overanalytical. Maybe novelty acts are just a pleasant diversion to be enjoyed on a basic level. Maybe they can occasionally give us those "wow" moments, but mostly serve just to make us laugh or dance or smile. Nothing wrong with that I suppose. If everyone was a Radiohead, Radiohead wouldn't be Radiohead, right? But just a couple of bits of unsolicited advice for bands concerning novlety--1.) If you're going to do it, do it right. Think it out, plan it out, be solid, and be good. Any fool can get up there with a ukelele and a funny hat, but it doesn't mean it's going to be anything special. And don't try to be like Flight of the Conchords. They do it good enough on their own. 2.) If you're starting a band and thinking about doing some sort of schtick, think it over. Do you want to be about the music or not? It's hard to do both, so if you want to be taken seriously as musicians, you might want to avoid gimmicks. I know it's hard to get recognized in this over saturated music world, but do it with your music.

In the meantime, I'm thinking about starting a band. So if you play kazoo, bassoon, or the spoons, let me know. I'll provide the pirate uniforms, and if you are a gymnist, that will definitely help. I'll explain later.

One more thing about Radiohead. I got my hands on a Lollapalooza program and the artist bio for them was horrible. I knew it was going to be bad when the first line goes, "I wish I was special" was all that Thom Yorke and the rest of Radiohead wanted (paraphrased slightly). Arrgghh!! How cheesy can we be? Plus, do we really need to reference a song that the band doesn't even care for? I guess they were trying to be clever and reference the band's early history, but really? If it were my choice, I might have referenced "Creep" at some point, but to start things out like that really minimizes what this band has become over the past decade. Maybe I'm being snobby, but to me, that's not the type of writing you want in the official program.