Wilco with Steve Gunn
Iroquois Amphitheater Louisville, Kentucky
May 8, 2015
Written & Photos by Tony Vasquez
Photo gallery: Wilco
Photo gallery: Steve Gunn

Mikael Jorgensen at the Iroquois Amphitheater in Louisville, Kentucky shot by Vasquez Photography

Night two of our back-to-back coverage of Wilco’s spring 20^th Anniversary tour. Tonight the show takes place at the beautiful Iroquois Amphitheater in Louisville, Kentucky. We arrive early enough to catch the opening four-piece band Steve Gunn. Before they wrap up their set Steve mentions that the crowd is in for a treat tonight because they have been touring with Wilco for a few dates and “they have been crushing it.”

Two songs really stick out from their great opening set. First is the track “Mily’s Garden” which has a layered guitar melody that seems to be an exploration of sound, its texture building and its depth and space expanding. With a great line that resonates in my mind “Your faith is savaged, and your mind is damaged. You’re more than halfway there” this song becomes a memorable moment of the night.

Jeff Tweedy at the Iroquois Amphitheater in Louisville, Kentucky shot by Vasquez Photography

The other stand out song is “Tommy’s Congo” which appears as the last track, Way Out Weather, released on their album Paradise of Bachelors. It again has the complex, guitar-driven soundscape.

Wilco takes the stage opening their show with “Less Than You Think,” a song that hasn’t made many set lists over the past few years. This is a great sign of what is to come. With the band having such a deep catalog the crowd is in store for a great time with over 30 songs to be played.

One of my personal favorites “Camera” makes an early appearance in the night. Being a photographer, the lines, “I need a camera to my eye, to my eye, reminding which lies have I been hiding which echoes belong,” really hits home.

Glenn Kotche at the Iroquois Amphitheater in Louisville, Kentucky shot by Vasquez Photography

The stage lightning for the entire show, arranged by Jeremy Roth, is brilliant. This couldn’t be more evident than on the song “Art of Almost.” The lightning is spectacular and really enhances the crowd’s musical experience of Nels Kline’s amazing guitar shredding and Glenn Kotche’s awesome drumming.

A few songs later on the song “Sunken Treasure” the crowd erupts when Tweedy does a live edit of the line, “I’ve been blamed for rock and roll.” The crowd is truly enjoying the evening at this point.

The typically outspoken Tweedy is unusually quite, but he does manage a few moments to talk with the crowd. Before the band plays “Impossible Germany,” Tweedy gives a birthday shout out to Mike “the sexy librarian.” Tweedy seems confused by the dedication but he plays along with it.

Pat Sansone at the Iroquois Amphitheater in Louisville, Kentucky shot by Vasquez Photography

The band plays two encores with the first including “Kingin” from Being There and “I’m a Wheel” from A Ghost is Born. The band leaves the stage once again, giving the crew time to set the stage up for a special acoustic encore. The band replaces the electric instruments with Jeff and John’s acoustic guitars, Pat’s banjo, Nels’ dobro, and Mikael’s melodica. It was a special ending to a great evening with this amazing band. If you haven’t seen them live in a while be sure to catch them on this 20^th anniversary tour over the summer. The tour includes their own music festival, Solid Sound, at MASS MoCA in North Adams, MA next month. For details go check out their website: http://wilcoworld.net.

Set list
Less Than You Think
Handshake Drugs
Camera
I Am Trying to Break Your Heart
Art of Almost
Panthers
Hummingbird
Sunken Treasure
Secrets of the Sea
Heavy Metal Drummer
I’m the Man Who Loves You
Either Way
Hotel Arizona
Jesus, Etc.
Born Alone
Via Chicago
Airline to Heaven
Impossible Germany
Box Full of Letters
Red Eye and Blue
I Got You (At the End of the Century)
Dawned on Me

Encore:
Kingpin
I’m a Wheel

Encore
A Shot in the Arm
California Stars
Too far Apart
War on War
New Madrid (Uncle Tupelo)
Give Me Back the Key to My Heart (Doug Sahm cover)
Misunderstood