Yo La Tengo is truly one of the best bands that there has ever been…I’ve seen them live twice now, and the first show was the absolute best rock show that I’ve ever attended. It was loud, there was lots of distortion and feedback, and I fell in love with Georgia, the drummer. Yes, I know she’s taken, damn it. Anyway, this last show was an acoustic(ish) one and it was perfect for the serious YLT fan.
You don’t find many rock stars that seem all that nice these days. NONE of them seem to be all that funny either…the members of YLT are definitely an exception to this, however. They honestly seem like the kind of people that you’d want to come over for dinner. OK so I’ll stop gushing and say that I wish I had some good photos, but due to the lighting of the show, it was quite difficult to get anything of value with the flash off. I’m nothing if not respectful.
Recommended song to tell you how great they are: Sugarcube. It’s truly one of the best songs ever recorded.
An amazing songwriter by the name of Kurt Wagner (frontman of the Nashville alt-country band Lambchop) was the opening act. My idiot husband and his friend almost fell asleep but no one said that either of them has good taste. Luckily, Gene Gene the Dancing Machine loved it, as did I, and we’re already becoming big fans of this guy. He was like Randy Newman and Wilco and Warren Zevon and David Sylvian all rolled up in one person. If you have the chance to catch this show, DO it. You won’t regret it, as long as you stay awake.
Julie Joyce's Non-SEO'd Music Blog 
I could be mean here and make a comment about the lack of posts on this music blog, but that would be rude and that’s not my style. But I digress…
… It was an excellent show and I enjoyed every moment (other than the moron sitting on the other side of you who kept asking the obnoxious questions). The covers they played were cool as were the acoustic versions of songs like Mr. Tough and Moby Octopad (two of my favorites).
Lambchop was cool, but you really had to be paying attention to the lyrics (not snoozing).
Georgia is absolutely cute as a button — you can’t see it, but I’m doing a minor swoon over here. Be sure to include me when you invite them over for dinner. I wouldn’t miss it for the world.
Georgia is my new girl crush. Annabella who?
Seen ’em, love ’em. They’re an awesome band! I’ve been enjoying Ira’s WFMU radio show lately. Unfortunately, I don’t think Georgia has one, Julie 🙂
Yeah she should have one! Ira’s not bad though. Still, when three people can have a sound like YLT has live, you realize that there’s more going on than simple musical talent. I need to find Ira’s show! They do some amazing covers so I’m sure it is quite good.
Go to yolatengo.com’s contact page. There is a feature to let you enter your email to receive notification of Ira’s web-only radio show.
I saw YLT in Nashville on 1/17…I assume this is the show we are all referring to here. They blew me away! How they create such a complex, instantly recognizable sound from just drums, a bass, and acoustic guitar is fascinating. Ira’s guitar really talks in its own voice. My favorites included Stockholm Syndrome, Sugarcube, Black Flowers, and Big Day Coming. There weren’t any bad songs, really – only great ones. The last song they played, a cover of “Satisfied Mind” by Porter Wagoner, left me speechless. At $20 a ticket, I felt like they got shortchanged.
@Dan…glad you feel the same intensity that I do about them. Ira’s guitar playing is indescribably amazing. They also do the best covers of any band that I’ve ever seen. I’ve heard rumors that they’ve covered Vienna by Ultravox, which I would LOVE to hear. And you’re right about the shortchanging…I’d pay a fortune for them.