Band Face Off - Round 44

[trackaghost]

The pouty over-the-top glam of Marc Bolan couldn't beat the suave Mr Ferry, as Roxy Music beat T-Rex in the last round.

Round 44: the kings of alt-country

The results so far...
Round 1: Petty defeats Springsteen - 36 to 19
Round 2: Led Zeppelin defeat The Who - 22 to 19
Round 3: Madonna defeats Sheryl Crow/Kate Bush - 24 to 13/10
Round 4: The Beatles defeat Rolling Stones/U2 - 23 to 16/14
Round 5: Guns N Roses defeat Bon Jovi/Metallica - 17 to 13/12
Round 6: Heart defeat Blondie/The Pretenders - 23 to 16/6
Round 7: The Beach Boys defeat The Kinks/The Byrds - 24 to 10/10
Round 8: Johnny Cash defeats Elvis Presley/Roy Orbison - 20 to 19/7
Round 9: Abba defeats The Carpenters - 25 to 15
Round 10: Prince defeats Jimi Hendrix/Lenny Kravitz - 24 to 15/3
Round 11: No Doubt defeat Garbage/Hole - 27 to 11/9
Round 12: Bob Dylan defeats Neil Young - 26 to 25
Round 13: Dolly Parton defeats Emmylou Harris/Linda Ronstadt - 20 to 17/9
Round 14: Marvin Gaye defeats Aretha Franklin/Stevie Wonder/Diana Ross - 14 to 11/10/2
Round 15: David Bowie defeats Lou Reed/Iggy Pop - 38 to 5/2
Round 16: Talking Heads defeat The Clash - 21 to 19
Round 17: Billie Holiday defeats Ella Fitzgerald - 25 to 7
Round 18: The Eagles defeat Lynyrd Skynyrd - 30 to 17
Round 19: The Doors defeat Jefferson Airplane - 22 to 17
Round 20: Elvis Costello defeats Sting - 19 to 13
Round 21: Eurythmics defeat Depeche Mode/New Order - 27 to 7/6
Round 22: Duran Duran defeat Tears For Fears - 21 to 15
Round 23: Tori Amos defeats Alanis Morissette/Jewel - 21 to 11/8
Round 24: REM defeat Coldplay - 34 to 9
Round 25: The White Stripes defeat Beck - 19 to 18
Round 26: Pink Floyd defeat Radiohead - 30 to 9
Round 27: The Killers defeat Franz Ferdinand/Maroon 5 - 15 to 14/5
Round 28: Nirvana defeat Pearl Jam/Soundgarden - 15 to 13/4
Round 29: Elton John defeats Billy Joel - 31 to 11
Round 30: Creedence Clearwater Revival defeat The Band/The Grateful Dead - 25 to 7/7
Round 31: Aerosmith defeat AC/DC/Van Halen - 20 to 11/7
Round 32: Whitney Houston defeats Celine Dion/Christina Aguilera/Mariah Carey - 10 to 9/9/8
Round 33: Joni Mitchell defeats Carole King/Jackson Browne/James Taylor - 15 to 14/4/4
Round 34: Patti Smith defeats PJ Harvey - 24 to 7
Round 35: OutKast defeat Eminem/Kanye West - 18 to 9/4
Round 36: Bonnie Raitt defeats Eric Clapton - 22 to 13
Round 37: Nick Cave defeats Leonard Cohen/Tom Waits - 10 to 9/9
Round 38: Loretta Lynn defeats Patsy Cline/Tammy Wynette - 15 to 13/7
Round 39: The Cars defeat B-52's/The Go Gos/Devo - 15 to 14/6/2
Round 40: Queen defeat Black Sabbath/Deep Purple - 20 to 13/4
Round 41: Tina Turner defeats Bette Midler/Cher - 20 to 8/6
Round 42: Bob Marley defeats Sly & The Family Stone - 19 to 15
Round 43: Roxy Music defeats T-Rex - 14 to 11

[shackin'up]

Holy frick sharon, what are you doing to me?

There. I voted Wilco.

[Jyqm]

Originally Posted by trackaghost

Round 36: the kings of alt-country

Hooray! Though they're both so much more than just alt-country these days!

I've always had mixed feelings toward Mr. Adams, though when he's good, he's very very good.

But this is an easy choice for me. Wilco is just one of those bands that's so consistently good and so consistently different, it almost seems like they're from another era, when great bands refused to pigeonhole themselves into a single sound, when experimentation and testing your musical limits were almost the norm. They're truly a classic rock band. Jeff and the boys know exactly where they come from, they know exactly what their musical roots are, but they're out there every day turning those influences inside-out and redefining rock and roll, creating incredible and beautiful music that is undeniably new, yet seems like it's been around for decades.

I'm promising myself I won't get upset when this thread turns into, "Who-co? Never heard of that..."

To prevent that, here's a couple of tune-skis:

Jesus, etc. (Is it just me, or does this song get more poignant and beautiful every single time you listen to it?): http://s39.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=3...X3GAQ1BVTIBY9J

I'm The Man Who Loves You (from their new live album Kicking Television, because hot damn, does Wilco rock live; plus, who doesn't like horns?): http://s48.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=1...W0Z1TUDMI0JNNO

[Mari]

hehe! It was Ryan Adams for me. Though I've a feeling I might have voted for Wilco if I knew their albums a bit better. Haven't got there yet, too many other things to listen to ..

[The Tower]

Both of these pretentious self-important blow hard "artists" belong in the dustbin.

[Mari]

Originally Posted by The Tower

Both of these pretentious self-important blow hard "artists" belong in the dustbin.

mumbles stevie and lindsey-joke

[Jyqm]

Originally Posted by The Tower

Both of these pretentious self-important blow hard "artists" belong in the dustbin.

I saw Wilco on Halloween last year, and they came out dressed as ghosts in white sheets and later played "Don't Fear the Reaper."

Self-important bastards...

[Jyqm]

Originally Posted by trackaghost

I have to admit I don't get the accusation either. I guess Adams can be a brat sometimes but then so could Lindsey. Like I said it seems a harsh reaction, but whatever. Different strokes and all that.

Ryan Adams can indeed be a "brat" sometimes, to put it mildly. If I were him, I'd just teach myself to play a really snarky cover of "Summer of '69" and have some fun with it. Still, I don't know what's really pretentious about him. The fact that he's recorded in a lot of different styles? Who knows? Jacksonville City Nights is such a beautiful low-key country album, though, I really can't find anything pretentious about it.

Wilco I suppose I can understand the "pretentious" label a bit more, as Jeff has ventured into some very different waters in the past few years, and Wilco today sounds nothing at all like the band that recorded Being There, so I can see how some people might find that shift from alt-country towards more experimental pop/folk music pretentious, though Jeff has always seemed to just follow his muse, and he and the band pull off all of their new tricks wonderfully. (But let's all admit, "Less Than You Think" should be a four-minute song, if that. I don't need to be given an intense migraine for fifteen minutes just to empathize with the guy.)

As for "self-important," as you said, all rock stars are self-important. How can you not be self-important to be able to get up on a stage and say, "Hey, I'm gonna perform a bunch of songs that I wrote, and I'm going to make you f***ing love them"?

[Jyqm]

Originally Posted by trackaghost

I always thought it was a brave move myself although I do realise a lot of early fans were put off by the Jim O'Rourke stuff. I don't get it myself, since the music is still interesting and beautiful. I never saw it as pretentious but a natural progression and heartfelt.

Oh, I agree! I'm not sure Jeff is capable of releasing music that isn't heartfelt.

CarneVaca, who used to post here but got banned, said that they got too experimental for him and he hated lyrics like "I assassin down the avenue"

Man, I was just thinking today how much I love those lyrics. I mean, how f***ing evocative is that! "Assassin" as a verb has never been and probably never will be an entry in the dictionary, it has no definition, but I know exactly what he means, and I have a perfect picture in my head of someone assassining down the avenue...

To me, that entire song is a very conscious effort to write lyrics Blonde on Blonde-style, and Jeff really pulls it off.

There should be more traditional country tunes from Tweedy on the new Golden Smog album - I can't wait! Although this time I suspect he hasn't contributed as much. Still I love to hear him and Gary Louris on record together.

Yes, I'm really excited about all the upcoming side projects too! Though I really hope we get a new Wilco album sooner rather than later.

[SteveMacD]

Wilco. I have all of their albums, plus a few UT and Bennett/Birch albums.

[Jyqm]

All right, Sharon, let's get a move on. You've had all day to think about it... It's neck and neck... And you're always encouraging others to jump in and break ties...

[shackin'up]

Originally Posted by Jyqm

All right, Sharon, let's get a move on. You've had all day to think about it... It's neck and neck... And you're always encouraging others to jump in and break ties...

come on sharon, hit the button. let jeff take this one home. new golden smog album coming up? friggin' fantastic. 1+2 are among my alltime faves.

[Jyqm]

Originally Posted by trackaghost

I went with Wilco because the Tweedy solo show I went to the other night was so awesome, I'm still thinking about it. But look it's still a tie!

The show is up on Dime if you want to grab a copy of it!

I've been listening to Wilco most of the day and remembering those good ol' Tuesday times...

(P.S. Where were you for the concert? Were you on the floor or up in the balcony? Were you the incredibly polite woman who shouted, "Jeff, would you mind playing 'Passenger Side,' please?")

(P.P.S. Did you enjoy the Minus 5 guys who opened? I think I would have appreciated their set a lot more if I hadn't been thinking, "Goddammit, you f***ers are going to make me miss the end of Jeff, don't you realize I've got a f***ing train to catch?" the whole time.)

[DavidMn]

I don't know too much about either of these performers, but I have heard a little Ryan Adams, so I picked him.