Artist of the Week - Uncle Tupelo

[cortez the killer]

"Alt-country doesn’t mean much anymore because country doesn’t mean much anymore; genre feels like a relic of the record store era, back when hand-labeled plastic dividers still parsed sound into neat categories."

Pitchfork's ignorant arrogance summed up in one extended sentence.

[Shakespeare]

whats ignorant about that?

its certainly a tad pretentious (using a review of a specific album to spiral off into a thesis on music as a whole is a pitchfork trademark) but the idea behind it seems pretty accurate to me.

[cortez the killer]

It's a tired, lazy, uninformed opinion. I suppose it depends who your audience is, but I think country music still means something. While we may not see another Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, George Jones, or Merle Haggard again, country still matters. There are still artists out there making excellent country music that is fresh & relevant to my ears. I think you could apply the same lazy, uninformed argument to rock music, too. There may never be another Beatles, Stones, Zeppelin, Who, or Sabbath again. Does that mean rock no longer matters? There was a similar debate in the "Bad Rock With a Fiddle thread last summer.

[Shakespeare]

well i agree with that, i just read it (especially the second half of that line, about plastic dividers) as more an argument that genres in general dont mean as much to the music scene now because everyone listens to everything. they werent saying country (or any genre) is dead, just that you rarely see it as the only influence in _____'s music, so a scene like alt-country (in many ways a specific reaction to a specific set of influences) doesnt mean as much to a modern listener.

i dont think its a lazy argument, but i dont think you quite took it the way it was intended

[cortez the killer]

You are right. If you put an 'a' in front of genre, my argument holds more water. Take the 'a' away and it can be read as if genres in general no longer exist. That said, Pitchfork in general seems to give off an anti-country vibe. I'm not saying all the contributors do, but it's definitely there. That, along with the over-the-top pretentiousness, tends to negatively color my reaction to them.

[cortez the killer]

No Depression: The Most Influential Record of the 90s?
Warning: Watershed moments in rock history mentioned

[Clams]

I think the article is accurate vis a vis the alt-country/americana/whatever genre (though I might give the nod to Ragged Glory and Car Wheels has to be in the discussion too). But if you're talking about the most influential in terms of mainstream rock or the rock and roll genre in general, I think Nevermind has to win out.

[dime in the gutter]

ut influential cred > rem influential cred

[Smitty]

I love UT, but no.

[dime in the gutter]

i'm too lazy to figure out my whole argument at once. so let's make this a point/counter point deal. i'll list some facts of influence about ut and you counter with facts of influence about rem. cage match.

bottle rockets
blue mountain
son volt
wilco

sprung directly from ut loins.

[Smitty]

While not "sprung directly from their loins", here's some bands that were admittedly (by members of the actual band) inspired/influenced by REM:

Nirvana
Pearl Jam
Uncle Tupelo
Wilco
Drive-By Truckers
Pavement
Radiohead
etc. etc.

[dime in the gutter]

ut made country music cool again. (for the unwashed masses....not the omniscient sonic soothsayers here at 3dd)

[Kudzu Guillotine]

I'd have a hard time believing the unwashed masses even had any idea who Uncle Tupelo was.

[Smitty]

ut made country music cool again. (for the unwashed masses....not the omniscient sonic soothsayers here at 3dd)

As someone who was 5 years old when UT's debut was released, I'm wondering if I seriously underestimate how popular they were in their heyday? I think more than making it "cool", they helped (along with many others) inspire a scene that opened the door for similar artists, some who had been doing their alternative version of country for longer than UT. I believe if it hadn't been for Son Volt/Wilco, they would largely be as forgotten as a dozen other early 90's alt. country bands. Maybe coining 'No Depression' magazine would've granted them a little more longevity...
I've also yet to understand what the line was dividing them from the Paisley Underground/punk country bands of the 80's was.

[Kudzu Guillotine]

I've also yet to understand what the line was dividing them from the Paisley Underground/punk country bands of the 80's was.

While I hear a certain similarity between Uncle Tupelo and the Long Ryders, I'm thinking that punk/alternative bands like the Minutemen and the Replacements probably had more of an influence on Uncle Tupelo than some of the bands that came before. Plus, a lot of the Paisley groups were west coast based while Uncle Tupelo had more of a Midwest thing going on. Same for bands like the Gear Daddies, who hailed from Minnesota and released their debut in 1990 after much of the initial cowpunk thing had died down. Just a guess.

[dime in the gutter]

ut made country music cool again. (for the unwashed masses....not the omniscient sonic soothsayers here at 3dd)

As someone who was 5 years old when UT's debut was released, I'm wondering if I seriously underestimate how popular they were in their heyday? I think more than making it "cool", they helped (along with many others) inspire a scene that opened the door for similar artists, some who had been doing their alternative version of country for longer than UT. I believe if it hadn't been for Son Volt/Wilco, they would largely be as forgotten as a dozen other early 90's alt. country bands. Maybe coining 'No Depression' magazine would've granted them a little more longevity...
I've also yet to understand what the line was dividing them from the Paisley Underground/punk country bands of the 80's was.

it's not a question of who knew ut. it is a question who knows ut.

completely obscure when no depression came out. they were a pretty big deal (relatively speaking) by the time anodyne came out. big news when they imploded. son volt was very huge (relatively speaking) for a good 3 or 4 years. wilco has been very very huge (not relatively speaking) since being there.





ut and doug sahm: bff

[jr29]

Nice interview with Mike Heidorn.

http://kdhx.org/music/news/the-ballad-o ... ke-heidorn

[cortez the killer]

My Lord!

[cortez the killer]

ut influential cred > rem influential cred

Here? No question. In the larger music universe? No way. Personally, I could give a flying fuck about the larger musical universe. If that makes me an old, out-of-touch asshole, so be it. At the end of the day (sorry to chap/frost the asses of all you fuckin' clever kids), I'd rather be that kind of an asshole than the raging shit bag that is Ted Nugent. And, yeah, where you stand on Ted Nugent is a major line in the sand in 2014. To deny this is to either have your head either buried deep in the proverbial sand or, literally, buried deep up your ass.

[Smitty]

ut influential cred > rem influential cred

Here? No question. In the larger music universe? No way. Personally, I could give a flying fuck about the larger musical universe. If that makes me an old, out-of-touch asshole, so be it.

I guess I am too, cuz I feel the same way. Linkous's discussion about contemporary classics made me realize that.
I consider records like Joey Kneiser's All Night Bedroom Revival, Todd Snider's East Nashville Skyline, the Weight's Ten Mile Grace and James McMurtry's Where'd You Hide to Body? on the same level as Highway 61 Revisited or Hunky Dory, atleast to me. Fuck whatever "they" say (whomever "they" are).

[Tequila Cowboy]

"They" being the famous Van Patton family of course.*

In what I listen to today there is no question that Uncle Tupelo's influence outshines R.E.M.'s, but the latter's is still felt around these parts. DBT's penchant for jangly chords is a prime example.



















*reverential Letterman nod in honor of his impending retirement

[tinnitus photography]

I'd rather be that kind of an asshole than the raging shit bag that is Ted Nugent. And, yeah, where you stand on Ted Nugent is a major line in the sand in 2014. To deny this is to either have your head either buried deep in the proverbial sand or, literally, buried deep up your ass.

[Clams]

Some cool stuff about UT's early days from the Adios Lounge...


http://www.adioslounge.com/there-was-a- ... le-tupelo/

[cortez the killer]

Some cool stuff about UT's early days from the Adios Lounge...


http://www.adioslounge.com/there-was-a- ... le-tupelo/

Yup.

[jr29]

My Lord!

Anniversary bump for Uncle Tupelo's last show.

[StormandStatic]

"They" being the famous Van Patton family of course.*

In what I listen to today there is no question that Uncle Tupelo's influence outshines R.E.M.'s, but the latter's is still felt around these parts. DBT's penchant for jangly chords is a prime example.



















*reverential Letterman nod in honor of his impending retirement

And quite arguably REM can be heard in UT.

[3milelake]

Audio only, great quality full concert

Published on May 13, 2014
01. Atomic Power (00:00)
02. Grindstone (2:27)
03. Satan, Your Kingdom Must Come Down (5:38)
04. True to Life (7:44)
05. Chicamagua (10:29)
06. Watch Me Fall (14:14)
07. Anodyne (17:30)
08. The Long Cut (22:44)
09. Slate (26:27)
10. New Madrid
11. Sandusky
12. Acuff Rose
13. Steal the Crumbs
14. Looking for a way out
15. outro

[bovine knievel]

Audio only, great quality full concert

Published on May 13, 2014
01. Atomic Power (00:00)
02. Grindstone (2:27)
03. Satan, Your Kingdom Must Come Down (5:38)
04. True to Life (7:44)
05. Chicamagua (10:29)
06. Watch Me Fall (14:14)
07. Anodyne (17:30)
08. The Long Cut (22:44)
09. Slate (26:27)
10. New Madrid
11. Sandusky
12. Acuff Rose
13. Steal the Crumbs
14. Looking for a way out
15. outro

Thanks! Love their cover of Atomic Power.

[tinnitus photography]

it was cool to hear Wilco do up two UT songs at Solid Sound this past weekend.

we got "New Madrid" and "We've Been Had" which are top tunes. TOP!

[TW_2.0]

No Depression > March '92 > Still Feel Gone > Anodyne