Wilco at the Grand Opera House, Wilmington DE, 8/10/08

Wilco at the Grand Opera House in Wilmington Delaware was concert going nirvana for me. Let’s run down the list of ingredients: 1) One of my favorite bands, who could easily sell out bigger venues playing 2) a small intimate venue that seats about 1,000 people. 3) Tickets were only available via the box office or via phone lines manned by two people so if you wanted to go, you either had to line up or hit redial for 4 hours, or you had to pay through the nose for tickets from scalpers. This means that nearly everyone there was a big Wilco fan. No scenesters going to a concert to be cool (ahem.. Bon Iver) which means 4) nobody having entire conversations during songs. (Wilco is one of the greatest bands in the world but have never really been cool.) Put all these things together, along with a very enthusiastic and knowledgeable crowd, and you have one of the best concerts to ever hit the fine state of Delaware.

(Hotel Arizona)

More videos, photos, and setlist after the jump.

There were a couple of false starts. One was “Hotel Arizona” (see above) which was the most requested song of the night via Wilco’s website and second was “Radio Cure” when someone tried to clap along to a song that you don’t clap along to. I guess the guy was presaging Jeff Tweedy’s encouragement of the crowd to clap along during “Spiders (Kidsmoke)” (”Are you aware, Delaware, that it’s your turn… to keep the beat?”)

While no one will ever mistake Jeff Tweedy for the ultimate rock and roll frontman, his stage banter and self-deprecating repartee with the crowd make Wilco concerts engaging. He walks the perfect midway between catatonic performers (Ray Lamontagne) and chatty Cathys who are only funny to their idolizers (Ryan Adams) and in doing so creates an intimate and memorable concert experience for everyone in the house. No concert is ever complete without a crowd singalong and the performance last night included a couple of great ones with Tweedy as the ringleader.

Musically, Wilco certainly gave fans what they came for and more. They played songs spanning their entire catalog (except for poor poor Summerteeth) and Nels Cline absolutely kills it on his guitar solos, especially on “Impossible Germany”. That my friends, is worth the price of admission. As noted above, there were a couple of false starts but they were brushed off in the spirit of having a good time. With Radiohead looming on the horizon, I was afraid that I would not have enough enthusiasm for Wilco but those fears quickly quelled as soon as the first notes of “Sunken Treasure” filled the hall. If you’re wondering whether to pay those exorbitant prices on ebay and stubhub for Wilco tickets, the answer is yes. I don’t think a single person left the venue disappointed last night.

Finally, a note on the Grand Opera House in Wilmington. It has quickly become one of my favorite venues. There isn’t a bad seat in the house, especially in the balcony, and the place is fantastic, both aesthetically and acoustically. The place is also run by these awesome volunteers who all seem to be senior citizens hopped up on red bull and smiley pills. If you have a choice between a place in Philly to see an artist or making the drive south to Wilmington, go fill up the tank. I’ll see you there for Jenny Lewis.

Setlist:
1. Sunken Treasure
2. Wishful Thinking
3. I Am Trying To Break Your Heart
4. Blood of the Lamb
5. You Are My Face
6. Company In My Back
7. Hotel Arizona
8. Handshake Drugs
9. Pot Kettle Black
10. Side With The Seeds
11. Radio Cure

12. Impossible Germany
13. Jesus, etc.
14. Theologians
15. Poor Places
16. Spiders (Kidsmoke)
– encore 1 –
17. Hummingbird
18. Hate It Here
19. Walken
20. I’m The Man Who Loves You
– encore 2 –
21. Heavy Metal Drummer
22. The Late Greats
23. Casino Queen
24. Outtasite (Outta Mind)

Related Links:
[Delaware Online]: Wilco and Wilmington, beautiful together
[Studio m live]: some great photos of the show

[Show as slideshow]