I think these records sound excellent, I agree. My complaint is more that I think the albums would have been better with a more polished, "big" studio production a la The Whole Love. I think the demo-style approach is beneath a band of Wilco's stature.
I like "Quarters" quite a bit. Here the stripped-down approach works and it would be hard to imagine the song with a fuller sort of sound. The drums are interesting (is that Glenn?) and I also like the instrumental coda, which sounds like a trip through the cobwebs of memory. One of my favorites so far on the album.
This sums up my feelings on "Quarters" too. I like it — the song matches the approach and it is executed appropriately. I couldn't envision this one any other way. It's not a centerpiece song, but there are some interesting nuances (I like Glenn's percussive drum lick).
Thanks to Quarters I now know what rhymes with “floozy”. Interesting little song fragment that then just kind of...
Locator I've got to run out the door, so I'll be quick today. A highlight of the album and an obvious choice for a promo song. Tasty bass, memorable chorus, cool harmonies and just a fine rock song. I'll try to chime back in later!
Locator This is a cool song. I can hear they are trying to unplay their hand somewhat on this album, and I am not sure that is the best way to go. We get a bit of a return to the early days in the second half with the wall of noise hiding just below the surface. This song works... but I sort of want the guys to move forward, and not allow themselves to get stuck in a rut of their own making.
When this was released as the first single, I didn’t get it right away, because of its short length and mostly acoustic arrangement, but in the context of the album, it gives a well needed boost after the two opening ballads of Side 2. And what a great track this is! Another slice of Lennon angst, excellent lyrics (is it about smartphones and geolocation?), the “I I I hide hide hide” moments are absolutely gorgeous, with fantastic chord changes, lots of crazy instrumental and percussive bits everywhere, like the singer is surrounded by signals, trapped in a sonic web that closes in on him, and the clock is ticking. When things stop mid-song, you catch your breath quickly, then the Can’t Stand It riff comes in at the 1’00’’ mark and the paranoia starts building up again, turning into a panic attack. But this time @robcar is right, Locator is too damn short. It's like the band refuses to give it the proper space and develop it into the crazy epic that it begs to become. Why would they do this weird fade out ? I wanted more!!
I like Locator with its two builds; it's interesting both musically and lyrically. Is he talking about his phone? But as Fortuleo has already said, the song is too short. It totally feels like an overdubbed demo, rather than a song that the band was allowed to develop. And with further development, it could have been a monster. Of course, this album isn't about monster songs so then it might not have fit.
Locator: one of the ‘shrug’ songs for me. Undeveloped snippet with a hook that sounds like a preview. But it’s the entire song.
This was a single, first single, no less? Really? Please see earlier refer ... aw man, enough of that! You already know I think there's no one telling Jeff "no" when he needs to hear it. But I do like this song, a good feel to it. But in no way single material. Let's get in a time machine and make "I Remember Jeep" the lead single from All Things Must Pass!
I'm curious: what song would you pick as the single? Because I always thought 'Locator' seemed like the obvious choice. Not that Wilco, at this point (or maybe any point) had a chance of getting an actual hit...but their singles are good promo for the album among fans.
I’m not being asked ...but (!) I’d use either ‘Child’ or ‘Safety Girl.’ ‘Locator’ could be part of a promo clip, though, like The Band did for Stage Fright.
"If Ever I Was a Child" or "Someone to Lose." Child because it's more indicative of overall feel of the album (although not blockbuster single material, more like a second single) and "Someone" because it sounds like a single. Let's go back to "Sweet Jane." No one in the band knew that was a monster riff that would resonate over the course of decades. At the time, it probably just sounded like an upbeat pop song that would draw people in to listen. And it did, although not on a massive level, but what other song on Loaded had that quality? "Rock and Roll" possibly. I don't hear any of that quality in "Locator." No big memorable riff. Bizarre, off-kilter song structure. The concept of putting "Locator" out as a single reminds me of U2 putting out "Numb" as a single. I love the song, but it tanked as a single, at least in America. Even as weird as "Numb" was, it was still more "commercial" than "Locator." Sometimes it works when you come out of left field with a single that's buried in an album - Fleetwood Mac with "Tusk"! Next to last song on a double album and hardly an obvious choice for a leadoff single. But I think a lot of that was momentum and expectations from Rumours. (It was a long wait from Rumours to Tusk!)
Quarters and Locator have been long flying under my radar. They’re so unobtrusive. They’re over after they just have started. They’re lacking a memorable melody. Still I like them being there on the album, in the background. I love locator everywhere I go I tell locator everything it wants to know Funny lyrics. I guess it's tongue in cheek, but I'm not so sure.
When you're a band of Wilco's size, in a day and age when nothing remotely like Wilco gets played on the radio, and 7" 45s aren't being sold in stores, "single" just means "the song we release first online to whet fans' appetites." There's no need for anything to sound commercial, because there's no market to sell to, and no means of distributing to it. You just put the thing on YouTube and let fans who preorder the record have an early download. In that context, it doesn't really matter what the thing sounds like, though I suppose you'd want something that sounds representative of the rest of the record. Does "Locator" work on that score? Not really, in my opinion. I remember being pretty disappointed with it. But then they put up "If I Ever Was a Child," which I liked immediately. It had a nice country shuffle and sounded more like a completed song than "Locator." But, as I've said before, I think "Locator" works nicely in its album placement. This one has had a nice shelf live in the live show, but I missed it. They played it the night before and the night after the show I saw in 2017.
"Locator" is an interesting one. One the album, I agree it feels like a demo with an overdub or two, and is too short to accomplish anything. I also felt it was not a good choice as an advance single. It's just not a strong enough song. ("If I Ever Was a Child" was a perfect single.) If anyone remembers the artwork that accompanied the "Locator" single, it was hideous. It looked like a shadow person hanging himself from a ceiling fan: It is a song that has take some interesting turns live though. First, I remember they started playing it before Schmilco came out, and it sounded significantly underdeveloped. Very short, no harmony vocals. I saw it summer 2016 and was not impressed. Then the album came out, and, again, the version there felt unfinished. But funny thing, as time went on, the song became better. Harmony vocals were added. The outro jam was extended, and later extended even more with a synthy hook. In 2017, Wilco played a multi-night residency in Chicago, and they played "Locator" at each of the shows I went to. By the end, I was actually enjoying and looking forward to the song. One other interesting turn this song has take live: I remember at one point John and Pat both played bass guitars at the same time on the song, something I can't recall Wilco every doing before or since. At some point, I think Pat switched back to a six string guitar, but it may be a baritone guitar to still get the bass-y feel. In the end, I think this is a song that works live nowadays but was a missed opportunity on the album. It's another one with terrific lyrics and significant meaning. I actually think, if they had properly developed the studio version of this song, it would have been a great title track. Locator would be a cool name for the album (different artwork of course), with an epic track "Locator" in its midst. Oh well. One more thing, just take a look at this solo performance of the song from Jeff. First of all, he sings it so well. Oh I miss those vocals on the album. But when he hits that "Can't Stand It" riff in the middle, it's hard to not instinctively start singing "The way things go..."
And the more developed jammy version from 2017: Edit: "Locator" starts at 2:04 in the the video here.
I'm very surprised by the very positive opinions about Locator. It would certainly not be my single's choice. But what's the meaning of a single nowadays ? I don't connect with the phenomenon at all since a long time. Songs like If I Ever Was A Child and We Aren't The World could have been monster hits back in the day. Sadly, they are long overdue. Yes, I'm feeling old when I wake up.
I don't think anyone whose financial livelihood depends on the recording industry sees the world this way at all! Regardless of the kind of band in question. Singles matter, maybe now more than ever, even if the context we used to understand it in no longer exists. There are so many choices people have in terms of media. Within the music world, so many ways of consuming it, apparently with streaming becoming most people's go-to choice. I'm not talking about sounding commercial so much as capturing a band's and album's essence in a song. There's a reason bands are putting out, 3-4 songs in the few months leading up to an album's release. Sometimes the entire albums are released piece meal, track by track, leading up to an official album release date. Why? They recognize the need to generate and maintain interest in the band and album in an environment where you're up against the entirety of music history, not just your own legacy or similar bands with new releases. If what you say is true, the promotion budget is $0.00, which I guarantee it isn't! Of course, once upon a time Wilco was jumping out of airplanes to promote an album, and now they're doing claymation videos. But I would suspect a simple claymation video probably gets into the low six figures after the smoke clears. They're not making those things and spending that kind of money for fun! Just a few weeks ago, we saw some dude taking a selfie while riding a skateboard on social media, chilling out to "Dreams" and swigging some cranberry juice from a bottle. I guarantee you, everyone in the Fleetwood Mac camp was doing cartwheels to receive that kind of free, massive publicity - a top-level public relations firm with a million-dollar budget couldn't have done it better. I can only guess how many new fans, way outside their fan base, that video generated. I know what you're saying in general and agree to a point. But that way of seeing the business is also reductionist. Just our fans matter - forget the rest of the world. That's not how artists see their work, at least the ones I've known (or myself!). They want as many people as possible to know their work (hopefully while maintaining their artistic credibility). I recall John Mellencamp taking huge hits over his song "This Is Our Country" being featured in pick-up truck commercials. His response? "Radio won't play me, I have to get my music out to the masses somehow." While it may be Jeff's M.O. (and the band's by extension) to act hang loose and blasé about such matters, I'm willing to bet he's much more attuned than he lets on, especially with the understanding of what the last eight months have done to touring and the profits it generates.
