For the financially conscious concertgoer: here is how to reconcile paying $45 for a Wilco concert. The first hour (12 songs) in their set, in which the band received general and individual introductions via the “Fitter, Happier” computer voice and used a lot of fancy lighting, that’s one $15 show. The second hour (another 12 songs) in which they pulled out lamps, moved closer to each other and hinted that the audience could actually use the seats behind them, that’s a more intimate $15 show. Then the final hour (12 more songs) where they played fan favorite after fan favorite and band favorite after band favorite for a set that had the audience jumping and singing along even more than they already had been: that’s the final $15 show.

With seven albums and nearly two decades at their back, Wilco tenuously straddle the gap between credible indie success and stadium ready moneymaker who can headline either the 9:30 Club or Merriweather Post Pavilion. They can pull some of the tricks usually reserved for hotshot stadium mainstays: aforementioned fancy lighting, a 12-string guitar solo (wielded by the inimitable Nels Cline) and an audience-led sing-a-long (during “Jesus, Etc.” during which singer Jeff Tweedy barely opened his mouth.)

Yet, there’s still something very personal and unassuming about Wilco, even within a venue as classy as Strathmore. Seemingly cheesy moves such as giving out restaurant gift certificates mid-set were delivered with a side of Tweedy’s acid-soaked commentary, and no audience member was safe from a quick retort. People could yell out song requests at the band, but risk being called tea-partiers. They could sing along upon Tweedy’s request, but be told afterward that their singing was subpar. The poor soul caught texting in the front row got congratulated for using a carrier pigeon and a handwritten note.