I first saw Wilco 23 years ago, and first taped them live 22 years ago. Wilco was one of the first bands to be featured on NYCTaper in 2007 and have been consistently featured on this site over the years. By my count, we’ve featured Wilco 26 times on this site, from many local venues but also as far away at Virginia, Massachusetts, Cooperstown, and Connecticut. The simple reason for this consistent and voluminous documentation is that Wilco is perhaps the greatest American band of the last 25 years and their live performances are unfailingly superb. We’ve never had a bad time at a Wilco show, and very clearly have had some of our best live experiences thanks to them.

The release of any new Wilco album is a cause for excitement, but by all accounts (including ours) the latest release Ode To Joy is their strongest and most accomplished album in more than a decade. In times when the world is reeling out of control on a nearly daily basis, Wilco’s newest album is a thoughtful and measured approach to contemporary life. Given that Jeff Tweedy recently completed his autobiography and released two solo albums, this kind of contemplative Wilco release seems to have been the next step in this artist’s evolution.

After a newly two-year hiatus from touring, the entire Wilco band seems very much to have absorbed the energy at the center of the recent artistic output of its leader. The Wilco we saw on Sunday night, and by all accounts on every night of this tour, is a relaxed and confident band comfortable with themselves and each other. The result is that these shows have been not only celebrations of the return of the band to touring, but also kinetic performances of the new material mixed in with virtuoso versions of the classics. Of note at Brooklyn Steel was the absolutely stunning guitar solo by Nels Cline in “Impossible Germany”. Just check out the audience response at the close of the song and the extended ovation. What a moment. We were also quite pleased to see another spacey “Laminated Cat” and first album stand-out “Box Full of Letters”. But on this night, the showcase was on Ode To Joy and the setlist wisely spaced the songs throughout the set where we heard nine of the album’s eleven songs nearly in order of the album.

The Wilco tour continues with dates throughout the country for most of the rest of the year (dates here), culminating in the Wilco Sky Blue Sky Festival in Mexico in January.

I recorded this set with the Neumann hyper cards raised high directly centered behind the soundboard. The Stan Doty mix in this already-excellent sounding room was simply perfect and as a result we’re offering what I currently believe to be the best sounding Wilco recording I’ve ever captured. Enjoy!

Download The Complete Show [MP3] / [FLAC]

Stream the Complete Show:

Wilco
2019-10-13
Brooklyn Steel
Brooklyn NY

Digital Master Audience Recording
Recorded at Soundboard Booth

Neumann KM-150 Hypercardioids > Sound Devices 744t > 24bit 48kHz wav file > Soundforge (post-production) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > TLH > flac (320 MP3 and tagging via Foobar)

Recorded and Produced by nyctaper

Setlist:
[Total Time 2:14:58]
01 Bright Leaves
02 Before Us
03 Company in My Back
04 War on War
05 One and a Half Stars
06 Handshake Drugs
07 You and I
08 Hummingbird
09 [banter – Radio City]
10 Someone to Lose
11 White Wooden Cross
12 Via Chicago
13 Laminated Cat
14 Random Name Generator
15 On and On and On
16 We Were Lucky
17 Love Is Everywhere (Beware)
18 [banter – Schmilco]
19 Impossible Germany
20 Box Full of Letters
21 [banter – Paul]
22 Everyone Hides
23 I’m Always in Love
24 Heavy Metal Drummer
25 I’m the Man Who Loves You
26 [non-encore break]
27 Hold Me Anyway
28 Misunderstood
29 [encore break]
30 An Empty Corner
31 Red-Eyed and Blue
32 I Got You
33 Outtasite
34 I’m a Wheel

PLEASE SUPPORT Wilco, visit their website, and purchase their Ode To Joy and their other releases from their website [HERE]