It was the summer of 2004. I was in the record store looking for something new to buy, when I saw Sonic Youth had a new one out. I got into Sonic Youth a few years earlier when I was listening to a Pearl Jam bootleg, and they played a little of Bull In the Heather at the end of Daughter. I had downloaded a few random songs at school and burned a cd. It was enough to get me into them, but I never really bought any of their stuff. I eventually got Daydream Nation, but that took years before I realized how amazing that album was. So back at the record store, I bought Sonic Nurse.

I liked most of the songs right away. I really dug the three guitars all playing around each other, with the noise in the background. So not too much later I see that Sonic Youth is playing at the Orange Peel in Asheville, NC. At the time I wasn’t sure if I was going or not. Well the day of the show I found out I had just got a job working in the computer lab at school. It was a small tech school so I was basically being paid $8/hour to surf the internet. At the time I was working at Staples and sick of it. I was suppose to work that Friday night, buy I switched with a friend and worked that morning. So I decided to go to the show. Now I could go on for quite a while about the rest of the day but I won’t. Let’s just say I met some really cool people at the show, and came back a huge Sonic Youth fan.

So two weeks later I had my first work free weekend in a while. A couple of friends called me and we decided to ride out and get a late breakfast. We’re sitting there trying to decide what to do, when we decide to take a trip to Asheville. We had fun in Asheville on Saturday night. Then they had some art show on Sunday. It was a great weekend, and a great way to end a crappy summer.

So why did I tell you all of this? For some reason when I hear Unmade Bed that week is all I ever think about. Its always been my favorite song from Sonic Nurse, and somehow the mood manages to capture that whole trip. I love the laid back vibe the song has, as well as all the noise blending in at the end of the solo. A lot of things have changed since that week, mostly for the worst. But listening to Sonic Nurse, and Unmade Bed in particular, always take me back.

Well, this week was sucking pretty bad, but this just might be the pick me up I need. Four songs in and I’m loving it. Expect a full review by the end of the week.

So this review is a little late. But I just stared this blog and this has been one of my favorite releases this year. Expect to see many more reviews of albums already released this year.

This is one of my most anticipated releases of the year. I got into Wilco in late 2004. I saw A Ghost Is Born sitting on the counter of my local music store. I read an interview with Jeff in Rolling Stone. I also heard some people talking about how much they liked them at a Sonic Youth show.

So one afternoon I’m sitting in class, thinking of what album I should go buy. So I started reading some reviews of A Ghost Is Born on Amazon. The review that sealed it for me was a bad one. The reviewer didn’t see anything special about them, and mentioned that one track had 11 of noise. That sealed it. I left class, drove to the record store, and picked it up. I knew I had stumbled upon something great once the guitars kicked in on At Least Thats What You Said.

So I worked my way backwards through their catalog. I will admit it has taken me a while to get into everything pre-YHF. With that being said I was a little worried that I would be disappointed with Sky Blue Sky.

I can divide the songs on Sky Blue Sky into three categories. You have the incredible, nearly perfect tunes that remind you why you love this band. Then you have the solid tunes that are by no means filler, but they don’t quite give you the same feeling as the others. Then you have the ones that have never really clicked with you. Maybe one day they will.

At precisely 1:28 into You Are My Face we hit one of my favorite spots of the record. Nels starts in with some thick grooves. This is easily one of the best songs on the record. Side With The Seeds is when were really see what these six guys are capable of. The verses are really nice. Jeff has a very soulful feel going on. This one goes great with Shake It Off, which may be the best song on the album. Hate It Here sounds like it should have been on the Beatles Anthology 3. And that’s a good thing. Walken took a while for me to come around too. It seems like a song that is more fun if you are playing it, rather than just listening to it. But they seem to be having such a good time, and in such a great spot, that eventually you can’t help but love it.

Leave Me (Like You Found Me) and On and On and On have never done anything for me. They are really the only two songs that I skip on this record. Who knows, one day I may hear them in a different light and change my mind.

Everything else is good, but seem to be missing just a little something. I know its been said many times, but Either Way sounds a little too much like elevator music. I think Impossible Germany could have been so much better if only Nels had really went wild. Its still a great song though. Patient With Me works much better in a live acoustic setting.

At the end of the day Sky Blue Sky is a great album. Currently I would rank it just above YHF and just below AGIB. Yes you read that right. I like it just a little more than YHF, although it really depends on my mood. Also, Is That The Thanks I Get should have made the cut. I think it fits in with all the songs really well, and could have replaced Leave Me. I also have to wonder what this album would have been like had Jim O’Rourke been around. Maybe for the next record. Speaking of that, I am very excited to see where this band goes over the next full years. Hopefully they can keep the current lineup in tact.

Jeff Tweedy
Bijou Theater – Knoxville, Tn

The Bijou holds around 700 people. Its in downtown Knoxville and is gorgeous. This was my second time at the Bijou, the first being Broken Social Scene. I was a little nervous that the crowd was going to be rowdy, but everyone was nice and quiet during the show.

Jeff came out and opened with Patient With Me, from Sky Blue Sky. Then he went into Remember the Mountain Bed and Spiders. At that point he could have said goodnight and walked off stage and I would have been satisfied. He continued through the set pulling out some surprises like Chinese Apple and Pieholden Suite. He was in a great mood, joking with the audience in between songs. He closed the show with Someone Else’s Song and Acuff-Rose without the PA.

As it turns out I could have met Jeff if I had hung outside by his bus for about 10 minutes after the show, but I didn’t. Now I just need to get to one of those living room shows…

My Morning Jacket
The Orange Peel – Asheville, NC

I missed the Jacket last year at the Tennessee Theater, so I was thrilled when I saw they were playing Asheville. I got there fairly early and met some really nice people. Jim played on the last song with the opening band, Follow The Train, wearing a Frankenstein mask.

About 45 minutes later they take the stage and open with One Big Holiday. They blew the roof off the Orange Peel. Check out this video for proof. I had a great time rocking out with the Jacket. This is probably the best show I’ve seen all year.

The Flaming Lips
The Classic Theater – Athens, Ga

I’ll admit I’m not the biggest Lips fan it the world, but I wasn’t about to pass up the opportunity to see them. The Classic Theater holds around 2000 people. I wasn’t too impressed with it. Spiderman and Space Ghost were handing out laser pointers before the show. The Lips take the stage and open with Race For The Prize. Wayne is shooting confetti everywhere and a ton of balloons fall from the ceiling. It is really a unique experience.

They continued mostly playing songs from the last three albums. During Vein of Stars we all shot Wayne with our lasers. It was a great experience and I hope to do it again. The only disappointment was I was hoping for War Pigs. Oh well, you can’t have everything.

Arcade Fire / The National
Thomas Wolfe Auditorium – Asheville, NC

Finally, I get to go to a show were I am looking forward to the opening bands set. I had just started listening to the National about a month before the show so it was a treat to see them.

The only downer was after the National finished their set, we started gathering in front of the stage, and the woman in charge of security was yelling at people to get back to their seats. Then I heard a guy from Arcade Fire’s crew talking to her, saying that Win was going to tell everyone to come up front. She started bitching about that, wanting to be notified before he did it. Anyway, Win told us that we were more than welcome to come closer after the first song.

Another side note, I had an extra ticket but was having trouble getting rid of it before the show. It was about 15 til 8 and I didn’t want to miss the National, so I gave my extra ticket to a guy I had been talking to out front and told him he could stay and sale it if he wanted to. I was going to let him have it, but he insisted on taking my number so he could call me if he sold it. Sure enough he did, and even then I had to force him to keep some of the money. Anyway, just a side note that their are still some good, stand-up people out there.

Once again I found out that if I had just stayed outside the venue for around 45 minutes I could have met the band and hung out with them at a bar. Live and learn…

Dinosaur Jr
The Fillmore at Irving Plaza – New York

Great show. Loud as hell, but not as loud as I was expecting. They played a nice mix of older tunes as well as most of the highlights from Beyond. Just Like Heaven making an appearance early in the set was nice. I would write more but I just talking about this show in my previous post.

So thats it for this year. The only other show I plan on seeing this year is Andrew Bird in Asheville. Hopefully I can find some more shows to go to in the southeast area.

Anyway, Lou really impressed me. He seemed to be giving 110%. So I decided to check out some Sebadoh once I got home. So far I’ve got III and Bakesale. While III has some good moments, its all over the place. Although I haven’t spent that much time with it. I found Bakesale much more consistent. The first 8 or 9 tracks are phenomenal. I will admit they all are a little repetitive though.

Hopefully Lou will make his way down south sometime soon.