Which is a better band My Morning Jacket or Wilco?

[Dalton]

Ok, fight.

 

[impy13]

Wilco.

MMJ is good too though. They just don't really touch Wilco. Not many do.

 

[joyfulgirl]

I like MMJ but they are not even in the same league as Wilco. I mean, not even close, frankly.

 

[Bonochick]

Wilco by a mile.

 

[Jack In The Box]

why one have to be better?

 

[kakvox]

WILCO!!!

 

[indra]

C'mon people, this is supposed to be a fight!

How the hell am I going to use the new popcorn smilie if there's no fight?

 

[Dalton]

C'mon people, this is supposed to be a fight!

How the hell am I going to use the new popcorn smilie if there's no fight?

AMEN!!!!


I said FIGHT!!!

 

[Elvis Presley]

There is no fight, Wilco is the better overall band at this stage. MMJ is alot like them though and should they mature in similar fashion, could be even better. Im a big fan of both.....

 

[Dorian Gray]

I'll bite.


MMJ have more heart and soul.

and, thus, they're 'better' than Wilco.

 

[Dorian Gray]

Actually, I think I'll add fuel to the potential fire.

Wilco, though a great live band, are too cold, too detached on record. They can't connect with the listener the way Jim James and co. can, because their overall sound wallows in self-indulgent art-noise.
Moreover, Tweedy's lyrics are overwrought and overly depressing.

subjectivity rocks

 

[HelloAngel]

I'll choose Wilco, but I do agree that Tweedy's lyrics can seem cold and detached on record.

MMJ still needs time to develop, but I know they are on a very impressive path so far.

 

[BVS]

Both great live bands, but Wilco definately wins this category.

In Studio MMJ takes the cake, especially vocally.

But overall Wilco wins for better lyrics.

 

[lazarus]

Tweedy has kind of disappeared up his own asshole at this point. The lyrics to me are trying to be Dylanesque but are laughable at times. He's not much of a singer compared to Jim James either. That being said, Wilco have been truly adventurous in the studio the last couple years, and it's hard to deny the achievement, even if I prefer Being There out of all the records.

My Morning Jacket was a little discovery of mine until It Still Moves came out and they started to pick up steam. I still haven't seen them live, but I did see them on Conan playing One Big Holiday, and they rocked so hard Conan was blown away. I think he even comment that it was one of the best performances he'd seen on the show. Their most recent album was a step in a different direction, but they haven't put out a masterpiece yet.

Still hard to compare the bands because they're at two different places in their respective careers.
My verdict: Wilco makes better albums, but MMJ's a better band, with James being a slightly better songwriter than Tweedy.

 

[Elvis Presley]

Tweedy is the best american songwriter of our time. Whether you feel his lyrics are depressing or detached they are heartfelt. As for who is the better singer, well, its close. To me they both sing with a wide range of emotion. James obviously leans towards heavy reverb for his vocals in almost every case. While Tweedy is more raw and real in my opinion.

Ive seen Wilco live 3 times and MMJ twice and Wilco just has a better stage presence, better musicians (especially now) and a better repoire with thier audience. Thats not to say that MMJ and James cannot gain that over time as I believe they can, and are an exceptional live act for where they are in thier career.

To me, its like comparing a seasoned well decorated veteran to a hotshot rookie. As it was stated, at this point, MMJ are not in the same league, but they could be, and fast.

 

[LarryMullen's POPAngel]

I'm really liking MMJ lately. Wilco has taken a backseat when it comes to which band I like to listen to more.

If I had to pick one though, I'll go with Wilco, but not by a huge margin.

 

[joyfulgirl]

Tweedy is the best american songwriter of our time. Whether you feel his lyrics are depressing or detached they are heartfelt. As for who is the better singer, well, its close. To me they both sing with a wide range of emotion. James obviously leans towards heavy reverb for his vocals in almost every case. While Tweedy is more raw and real in my opinion.
...
To me, its like comparing a seasoned well decorated veteran to a hotshot rookie. As it was stated, at this point, MMJ are not in the same league, but they could be, and fast.

ElvisPresley

As Tweedy said at a show once, "We write sad songs but we aim to make you happy." I never feel depressed listening to Wilco, nor do I find his lyrics "detached" and certainly not laughable. I work with writers and poets in my work and we read a lot of poetry outloud and when I read Tweedy outloud I get chills. His lyrics generally evoke clear imagery for me so I can't relate to finding them laughable or strange. Of course there are exceptions. When I listen to MMJ I like them but in the end tend to think, 'so what?' instead of feeling moved or inspired or wowed.

To each his own, of course, but I agree with EP that Tweedy is currently our best American songwriter.

 

[Carek1230]

Wilco

 

[bollox]

my morning jacket.

though i would rather hear the wailing of tortured donkeys than wilco.

not to take away from mmj. z is an excellent album.

 

[lazarus]

To each his own, of course, but I agree with EP that Tweedy is currently our best American songwriter.

In an America where Bob Dylan last released Love & Theft and is "currently" working on a new album, I beg to differ.

I would also put Stephen Malkmus and the watered-down Paul Westerberg higher as well.

Many people would also put Bright Eyes higher than Tweedy. Although I can't stand the guy's whiny delivery, there's no denying his talent.

When I think of songwriting I'm thinking about lyrics and vocal melody, structure. Wilco's talents lie more in the things they are willing to try in the studio. I'm not saying Tweedy is subpar, but best in the U.S.? A bit much.

 

[joyfulgirl]

In an America where Bob Dylan last released Love & Theft and is "currently" working on a new album, I beg to differ.

I would also put Stephen Malkmus and the watered-down Paul Westerberg higher as well.

Many people would also put Bright Eyes higher than Tweedy. Although I can't stand the guy's whiny delivery, there's no denying his talent.

When I think of songwriting I'm thinking about lyrics and vocal melody, structure. Wilco's talents lie more in the things they are willing to try in the studio. I'm not saying Tweedy is subpar, but best in the U.S.? A bit much.

You're welcome to differ. None of the songwriters you mention excite me the way Jeff Tweedy and Wilco do and I stand by my opinion.

 

[Dalton]

Many people would also put Bright Eyes higher than Tweedy. Although I can't stand the guy's whiny delivery, there's no denying his talent.

While I don't like Bright Eyes nearly as much as I like Wilco, but I can't think of anything Tweedy has written (with the exception of the first 2 lines of Via Chicago) that touches this ...


If you walk away I walk away
first tell me which road you will take
I don't want to risk our paths crossing somday
so you walk that way I'll walk this way

and the future hangs over our heads
and it moves with each current event
until it falls all around like a cold steady rain
just stay in when it's lookin' this way

and the moon's laying low in the sky
forcing everything metal to shine
and the sidewalk holds diamonds like a jewelry store case
they argue "walk this way," "no walk this way"

and laura's asleep in my bed
as I'm leaving she wakes up and says
I dreamed you were carried away on the crest of a wave
baby don't go away, come here

and there's kids playing guns in the street
and one's pointing his tree branch at me
So I put my hands up I say "enough is enough"
if you walk away I walk away
and he shot me dead

I found a liquid cure
for my landlocked blues
it will pass away
like a slow parade
it's leaving but I don't know how soon

and the world's got me dizzy again
you'd think after 22 years I'd be used to the spin
and it only feels worse when I stay in one place
so I'm always pacing around or walking away
I keep drinking the ink from my pen
and I'm balancing history books up on my head
but it all boils down to one quoteable phrase
"If you love something give it away"
A good woman will pick you apart
a box full of suggestions for your possible heart
But you may be offended, and you may be afraid
but don't walk away, don't walk away

We made love on the living room floor
with the noise in the background from a televised war
And in the deafening pleasure I thought I heard someone say
"If we walk away,they’ll walk away"
But greed is a bottomless pit
And our freedom's a joke we're just taking a piss
And the whole world must watch the sad comic display
If you're still free start runnin' away
'cause we're comin' for ya

I've grown tired of holding this pose
I feel more like a stranger each time I come home
So I'm making a deal with the devils of fame
Sayin' let me walk away, please
You'll be free child once you have died
from the shackles of language and measurable time
And then we can trade places, play musical graves
till then walk away walk away walk away walk away
So I'm up at dawn, putting on my shoes
I just want to make a clean escape
I'm leaving but I don't know where to
I know I'm leaving but I don't know where to

 

[AngelofHarlem01]

Never been a fan of Wilco but I love My Morning Jacket

 

[Zoomerang96]

who cares if tweedy's lyrics are cold??? some of us LIKE cold.

 

[impy13]

Well this thread inspired me to go back and give MMJ a proper listen again and I don't know what it is, but this time I'm absolutely hooked.

Still not as good as Wilco, but sweet sassy molassey they're fantastic.

 

[If you shout...]

I don't have much to add, but I definitely will say that I prefer Wilco by leagues.

I loathe My Morning Jacket like little else. I just can't stand Wayne Coyne's voice and trying lyrics...if I'm not using that last word too liberally. "Garbage" might be better tailored (though, as in all cases, there are of course plenty of exceptions, especially when taking an entire back catalogue into account). Ugh.

At least "Off the Record" was listenable. A welcome change of pace, if nothing else. Summerteeth (the whole album, mind you), on the other hand, should be the Pet Sounds of my generation. Feel it.

 

[impy13]

Wayne Coyne's voice

 

[Dalton]

They both have beards, but I think James wins this battle....

 

[impy13]

They both have beards, but I think James wins this battle....

My Flaming Jacket

My Morning Lips

I don't know what the band is called anymore

 

[If you shout...]

Obviously a joke, my comment was.

Same way that Alex from Clap Your Hands Say Yeah rips off David Byrne's vocal inflections, you know? Except that Coyne Jr. actually IMITATES Coyne Sr., thereby turning my stomach.