1) Wilco – “Spiders” (live @ Ottos, DeKalb, IL, 5/20/04)

2) Radiohead – “Everything in its Right Place” (live in Berlin, 9/11/01)

3) LCD Soundsystem – “Yeah” (live at Electric Picnic, Stradbally, Ireland, 9/4/05)

4) !!! (aka Chk Chk Chk) – “Bend Over Beethoven” (from Myth Takes)

5) Yo La Tengo – “Pass the Hatchet, I Think I’m Goodkind” (from “I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass”)

If you dig the groovier disco-punk stuff, I defintely recommend the LCD Soundsystem self-titled album and !!!’s latest, Myth Takes.

Isaac, I actually am a huge sucker for the Edge and a lot of U2′s instrumentation. I really wish they would do more of the instrumental stuff and let Edge go nuts.

1) Wilco – “Spiders” (live @ Ottos, DeKalb, IL, 5/20/04)

2) Radiohead – “Everything in its Right Place” (live in Berlin, 9/11/01)

3) LCD Soundsystem – “Yeah” (live at Electric Picnic, Stradbally, Ireland, 9/4/05)

4) !!! (aka Chk Chk Chk) – “Bend Over Beethoven” (from Myth Takes)

5) Yo La Tengo – “Pass the Hatchet, I Think I’m Goodkind” (from “I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass”)

If you dig the groovier disco-punk stuff, I defintely recommend the LCD Soundsystem self-titled album and !!!’s latest, Myth Takes.

Isaac, I actually am a huge sucker for the Edge and a lot of U2′s instrumentation. I really wish they would do more of the instrumental stuff and let Edge go nuts.

First of all, I’ve got nothing against indie rock as a genre, but sometimes I think its culture of “cool” can limit the appreciation of music on a base level — i.e. Spin and Pitchfork say all “jambands” suck, therefore any band that’s ever held that label is fit to be ignored. Someone who’s heard a 40-minute Tweezer, I guess, can be more open-minded.

I have no idea what tastemaker decides these things, but somewhere along the line groups like Mogwai and Built to Spill got labeled as “arty” while Umphrey’s McGee and the Disco Biscuits will forever be dubbed “self-indulgent.” There’s not too much of a difference in their musical philosophies — although one makes you pensive and one makes you dance, which should not be discounted.

Perhaps if John Popper had invited Sonic Youth out on the first H.O.R.D.E. tour there wouldn’t be this line in the sand, but it’s there. The only surprising part of the development is that, with the decline of CD profitts, the jam tradition of touring and merch sales makes more money.

But while it’s risky for bands like BP, the Slip, and the Dup to court mainstream appeal while improvising on instrumental themes, it’s not unprecendented. Just look at Neil Young — somehow he got FM radio DJs to play “Down by the River.”

On an unrelated note, Wilco is far and away the greatest band in America and above any sort of reproach from me.

First of all, I’ve got nothing against indie rock as a genre, but sometimes I think its culture of “cool” can limit the appreciation of music on a base level — i.e. Spin and Pitchfork say all “jambands” suck, therefore any band that’s ever held that label is fit to be ignored. Someone who’s heard a 40-minute Tweezer, I guess, can be more open-minded.

I have no idea what tastemaker decides these things, but somewhere along the line groups like Mogwai and Built to Spill got labeled as “arty” while Umphrey’s McGee and the Disco Biscuits will forever be dubbed “self-indulgent.” There’s not too much of a difference in their musical philosophies — although one makes you pensive and one makes you dance, which should not be discounted.

Perhaps if John Popper had invited Sonic Youth out on the first H.O.R.D.E. tour there wouldn’t be this line in the sand, but it’s there. The only surprising part of the development is that, with the decline of CD profitts, the jam tradition of touring and merch sales makes more money.

But while it’s risky for bands like BP, the Slip, and the Dup to court mainstream appeal while improvising on instrumental themes, it’s not unprecendented. Just look at Neil Young — somehow he got FM radio DJs to play “Down by the River.”

On an unrelated note, Wilco is far and away the greatest band in America and above any sort of reproach from me.