It is not very often that Gammage is filled with a crowd of all ages, dancing and singing along to some solid alternative rock music.
Wilco had not visited Arizona during a tour for nearly 10 years, but finally, to the joyous relief of alternative-rock fans, the band came to ASU Saturday, Jan. 21 to play a lengthy set.
Before the main act came on stage, White Denim, a four-man group from Austin, Texas, performed a short set of bluesy, psychedelic songs with long instrumental breaks and coercive harmonies.
Wilco then started off its 25-song show with the 12-minute song “One Sunday Morning” from their new album, “The Whole Love.” The next two songs of the set were also from the band’s eighth full-length album, which was released Sept. 27 last year.
Adorned with strings of loose cloth, the auditorium was a great venue for White Denim and Wilco’s span of musical styles and the incredible light show that accompanied them.
Wilco’s lead singer Jeff Tweedy rocked a cowboy-esque fedora while belting out his lyrics. He even performed a beautiful falsetto on a brief selection of tracks to the delight of the audience.
Wilco performed tracks from all eight albums, and pleasantly surprised the audience with four songs from 2002’s critically favored “Yankee Hotel Foxtrot.”
“Impossible Germany,” from the 2007 album “Sky Blue Sky,” was in the middle of the set, and guitarist Nels Cline’s solo was absorbing and breathtaking. His hands blurred on the strings as they moved with precision and speed.
Toward the end of the set, Cline strapped on a double-neck guitar for the new track, “Dawned on Me.”
The show ended on fan-favorites “Hummingbird” and “A Shot in the Arm,” but the gang came back to the stage for a six-song encore, which included “California Stars,” originally performed and recorded with Billy Bragg.
Cline, Tweedy and bassist John Stirratt switched guitars between every song in the encore, unwilling to let the concert be over just yet. “I’m the Man Who Loves You” ended the show.
After Wilco’s magnificent and crowd-pleasing performance, they continued on the road to California to perform on “Conan.”
Wilco fans can hope that the band returns to the Valley before another decade passes.
Reach the reporter at kmstark1@asu.edu
Click here to subscribe to the daily State Press newsletter.
