Live Review: Wilco at Sweetwood Amphitheatre in LaGrange, GA, 7/9/26

After Jay Farrar left alt-country upstarts Uncle Tupelo, Jeff Tweedy wasted no time forming Wilco in 1994, releasing their critically acclaimed debut A.M. the following year. Since then, he and various bandmates have forged a path creating an amalgam of indie, alternative, and experimental rock, becoming one of America’s most revered bands. Since then, Wilco has evolved its musical trajectory, adding guitarist extraordinaire Nels Cline in 2004 for work on A Ghost is Born. He never left. While Tweedy and bassist John Stirratt are the only Wilco originals, the band has grown and evolved into a near-perfect musical organism.

On their current “An Evening With Wilco” tour, the band plays two full sets, and on this evening in LaGrange, that was a full, 31-song event. A 90-mile drive from Atlanta, I was having doubts about making the trek, as heavy rain and thunderstorms were forecasted for showtime. I’d been burned once before, when driving to Birmingham in early May of last year. Waxahatchee was supporting, and I was excited to attend such a killer show. Immediately upon arrival, I learned the show had been canceled and would be rescheduled. Instead of checking into the hotel, I hightailed it back to Atlanta ahead of potential tornadoes. Sadly, I was unable to make the new date.

This prompted me to throw caution to the wind and hit the road. The two-hour drive (during ATL rush hour!) paid off as not a drop of rain fell during the show. As the clouds parted and the humidity dropped, Wilco put on an epic concert to a nearly sold-out crowd. The band cruised through their classics as well as the deeper cuts with the majority of tunes coming from Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, the quarter-century-old, arty breakthrough.

As per usual, Tweedy joked and spoke with audience members, at one point asking a teenager if he had been “locked in the cage” (a box seat). The boy said his parents were in the pit. Tweedy remarked, “You’re stuck in there with Steamboat Willie,” at which point a man with a large red hat waved in approval from the box. Tweedy then said to the man, “I like your style!”

All joking aside, this performance underscores the brilliance of Tweedy and the band, which also includes guitarist Pat Sansone, keyboardist Mikael Jorgensen, and powerhouse drummer Glenn Kotche. Together, this sextet has raised the bar for all other bands searching for that sweet spot in a musical landscape that’s become watered down and ultra-processed.

Another highlight was “California Stars” from Mermaid Avenue, the ’98 album collaboration with Billy Bragg. The new “Losing Traction” was played for just the fourth time on their tour, debuting at the band’s Solid Sound Festival in North Adams, Mass., just three weeks earlier. With Cline on the lap steel, it’s a heartfelt rocker. Tweedy sings, “The sky’s still blue, whatever they say / Lately the truth is losing traction / I don’t think we should ever get used to living this way,” possibly a nod to the current state of affairs in the good ol’ U.S. of A. He adds, “Bad luck saved me from worse luck / And I was only depressed when I still gave a fuck.” Words of wisdom.

After the double-set dream of a show, the band returned for a two-song encore playing “I Got You (At the End of the Century)” and “Outtasite (Outta Mind).” Diehard fans filled the seats (which were used sparingly as many stood the entire show), and the collection of Wilco shirts was overwhelming. This is a band to catch live, if at all possible. Buy the tickets . . . you won’t regret it.

For tour information, visit Wilco’s website.

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