I think this is a good way of describing it. Wilco are a very successful band but a lot of people I know have never heard of them. I’ve been getting into the Grateful Dead a bit over the past few years and it’s quite difficult as an outsider to that fan base. I’d imagine it’s a bit the same with outsiders to the Wilco circle. How do you explain their music now? What album do you start with? Yet, they can sell out theatres whenever they want. One further point I’d make about Schmilco is that we’re now firmly into what I’d argue as Wilco making genreless music. It’s influenced by things, but it’s just their sound in the end. Same could be said for the Dead or Radiohead. However, where these bands that create their own community come from is usually a recognizable genre (Britpop/grunge, Americana, San Francisco psychedelia). Then they start drawing on other influences (Radiohead’s Kid A wasn’t that wild if you were already listening to Aphex Twin; same with mid-era Wilco if you liked Television or Sonic Youth), but over time they transcend those external influences and become their own thing. I think @John C Bradley Jr ’s argument holds when you extend it to U2 as an example of aiming for broader appeal rather than a self-built community. They definitely have their own sound, but they keep drawing on mainstream influences to try and maintain relevance (euro club music on Pop, Kendrick on SOE, etc). Most U2 fans (including me) wish they’d be more like Wilco or the Dead and just do their own U2 thing for their U2 fans, which is a pretty big circle! But then again, all of my neighbours could hum a U2 song and would likely be interested in a U2 concert. Not so much for Wilco, or even Radiohead.
Less outside influence on their sound is probably a great way to describe the last few Wilco records. And in some ways this evolution makes sense as artists get older, they are naturally taking in less new music (which might color their own work) and are more comfortable with expressing any idea they have in song on their own volition.
"Shrug and Destroy"- My least favorite song on the album. There isn't anything particular I majorly dislike about it, but it fails to leave much of an impression. There is a nice mood here with the haunting piano and all the minor chords. I also really like the bass. It's kind of buried in the mix, but still very effective in its quiet delivery. I guess I'm not a huge fan of Jeff's hushed vocal on this song. It tends to annoy me in certain parts. @Fortuleo mentioned "Wishful Thinking" which also has a soft vocal in a similar style, but that song is one of my all time favorites, and this is definitely not. Some of the other songs like "Happiness" and "Quarters" that I never paid much attention to have now become new highlights for me. Unfortunately, "Shrug and Destroy" remains stuck in last place. 2.5/5
I actually like "Shrug and Destroy". I find the melody haunting and beautiful. Jeff's singing is perhaps a bit too close to the mic, aiming for an intimate feel probably. The lyrics are enigmatic but I find them moving. This one's a keeper for me.
"Shrug and Destroy" does sound a lot like a Lennon demo. It doesn't make a strong initial impression, but after several passes of close listening, I actually like it, too. "Sometimes I wish to set free the things that still matter to me" is an appealing thought to me. And "I wonder who destroys/ When nothing is left, rejoice/ Nothing is left, rejoice" sounds like a nice Buddhist idea, as well. Much of the B-side gives you the feeling that the album goes into a slump, because there are four songs in a row that seem like undeveloped demos. I wish that someone had been able to tell Jeff, "Some of these need more work," but I think most of them will reveal their qualities if you really want to dig in. But they make you put in the work. Wilco will love you, baby, but sometimes they need you to prove how much you love them, too. On a related point, about the singles: "If Ever I Was a Child," one of the easiest songs to enjoy from the record, placed at #17 on the Adult Alternative Songs chart, about par for Wilco. "Locator," a real test of the listener's loyalty, hit #38 on the Mexico Ingles Airplay chart, oddly enough, but, predictably, otherwise failed to chart. I wonder if Jeff took some perverse pleasure in that.
Below, the Tweedy show's Shrug & Destroys. It's mostly instrumental, but when Jeff actually sings at the end, he brings a lot of charm, modulation and sensibility to the melody. On a side note… as France enters another 4 weeks lockdown tonight, let me tell you all that more than ever, I'm really grateful for this thread…
Not sure what to think of this. Always assumed the band versions at least added a bit to the song. Hearing this makes me think, this is a nice little acoustic ditty with interesting chords. By the time we get to the band version, all that gets lost and we’re kind of left with an interesting idea, but not much beyond that. I’ve typically been a defender of late era Tweedy/Wilco, and this thread has raised The Whole Love in my esteem, but I’m afraid closer scrutiny is revealing I’m not a big fan of Schmilco.
We Aren't the World (Safety Girl) This is the highlight of the second half of this album--by FAR--for me. Schmilco opens strong but then it really kind of wanders around and a number of the songs are inoffensive but simply not that memorable. 'We Aren't the World' is something else. It feels like something that could have been on Wilco (The Album) or even The Whole Love. It has a full band arrangement with warm, lovely keyboard sounds, those patented sighing backing vocals (@Fortuleo) and a darn fine melody on both the verse and the chorus. It's an actual great pop song, in my opinion, and extremely lovable. Yay!
Yay indeed! Superb track. Poppy but slightly off, easy on the ear but almost scary with those creepy fairground organ sounds, fun and playful but serious minded like all good satire should be, this is excellent and one of the few Schmilco tracks that have a proper pop structure (with a chorus!!) and not a fragmentary underdeveloped nature, even though the lo-fi demo approach is still there. The melody is super catchy, Jeff sings it good, the band gives it all and whenever it’s played live, Glenn is just killing it with his cool moves and diverse percussions. I see it as the closest Wilco ever came to early Eels, especially the wonderful Daisies of the Galaxy, an album overflowing with that same spirit of catchiness, playfulness and tongue in cheek clown-like attitude, still drenched in melancholia (as a matter of fact, there’s still quite a bit of that on their latest, Earth to Dora, just released today). Whatever one might think about the album overall, Schmilco's highs are not schmigh…
I don't find We Aren't The World (Safety Girl) particularly memorable. It is a solid full-band arrangement, but the melody isn't anything special, and it still sounds like so much of Schmilco. So far I'm the outlier on this song, but it's not a highlight for me.
We Aren’t the World (Safety Girl): I like it. Reminds me of...oops! (But it’s does). This is another playlister. Edit; maybe won’t make the playlist. I like the beginning a lot but then it devolves into ‘pleasant’ territory. Okay, but not that exciting.
Yep! I felt like I was wearing a mask with a different avatar and could never quickly find my posts. This picture of Joni has become my 'face' on the forums.
And just in time for the box set! I should like "We Aren't the World" more than I do. I think what ultimately put me off was I didn't understand the lyrical reference to "We Are the World." Usually when you have a song title reference like that, there's some type of sardonic aside or commentary on that song and its phenomenon? I was all geared up to hear a thinly-disguised takedown of celebrity culture glomming onto a cause ... but this appears to be a collection of images and one-liners? Am I missing something?
We Aren't the World (Safety Girl). Another favorite from the record for me. I can't add anything to what @Parachute Woman and @Fortuleo had to say. Dig the Eels mention!
We Aren’t the World (Safety Girl) - I'm putting this in the "pretty good" category on first listen. Kinda poppy, can't comment on the "memorable" part yet ...
We Aren’t the World... a breath of fresh air on this side of downbeat song fragments. This one moves briskly along with the swirling organ. And while this one does feel like a better developed song than the last few, there’s still not a lot here. A couple of quick verses and we’re done. I can’t help but think if we had this one on Whole Love or Summerteeth, it wouldn’t hold up. They’ve done much better retro-pop songs before. The lyric is interesting, though. I take the point that it’s a bunch of seemingly disconnected lines, but I can’t help read them as general ennui about the state of America, which has very much been on Jeff’s mind in recent years. The allusion to We Are the World suggests a contrast to the sunny 80s optimism. All these lines point to the hopelessness of modern America. I assume, too, that Safety Girl is his wife Suzie. Jeff’s latest album continues this ongoing lyrical theme of his love and family giving him hope in the midst of an anxiety-inducing world. This is an interesting shift in Jeff’s songwriting arc. In early years we heard about music as his saviour... then he had his deep decline into addiction and depression ... and as he’s come out of it his wife and then kids become integral to mental health. That said, We Aren’t the World is far from being a cheery song!
Something else I've noticed. When Jeff was having severe bouts with drugs and depression ... his music sounded a lot more optimistic. Not really the lyrics - he's always leaned towards depression - but a lot of the music on those first few albums was triumphant. He looked great, even if he didn't feel so great. Now? He's had a serious weight gain (maybe he stopped smoking? I don't know). He wears a cowboy hat almost as much as Daryl Dragon wore a captain's hat. And his music often has a somber, hushed quality that suggests depression, although his lyrics aren't leaning that way so much and often point to wife and family as saviors. It's a weird batch of mixed signals he's been sending over the course of his career!
I had an entire conversation about this song with another fan (friend of a friend) while driving to a Wilco show, and he clued me into the fact (or maybe just a theory) that this song is about a guy and a gal in high school detention, and he's trying to impress her with his views while she limits her reaction to, "Is that so?" I thought that was a cool take on this song. I really like this song, and album. I think Schmilco, Warm, Warmer and Ode To Joy are all of a piece, with Ode being the pinnacle of this brand of Jeff's songwriting.
"We Aren't the World"- "Is That So?" Yes! It's yet another highlight of the album. I like everything going on in this song. 4.5/5 @Fortuleo mentioned Daisies of the Galaxy and I can hear a similar playfulness in this song. I'm a big fan of that album, Electro-Shock Blues, and Blinking Lights. I usually like at least a few songs from most Eels albums. Cautionary Tales is an overlooked album I think is great. I will be listening to the rest of his new album today. Although, I am not feeling a couple of the early songs that were released. I think his lyrics are really bad this time around. I didn't like his last album either, so I hope this one comes up with a couple gems. Another new release from Elvis Costello today whom has been mentioned many times on this thread. Cheers to a day with lots of new music to dig into!
We Aren't The World is one of the early highlights, when I was getting to know the album. Despite it's simplicity I'm still not bored by it. It's a masterful, classic pop song and makes such a great mix on this album with the rudimentary tracks. Kudos to @Fortuleo for bringing back Eels to my attention.
Not to diagnose Tweedy, but weight gain is often a byproduct of anti-depression meds and other medications Jeff has possibly been on since kicking his addiction to painkillers.
"We Aren't The World (Safety Girl)" has a great title and the song itself stands up. This is very good. Lovely, lilting melody with a bit of the late-summer pop gloss of parts of Summerteeth, albeit sounding much warmer and huggable here. Excellent song.
