Ira Kaplan writes Yo La Tengo’s setlists as if everybody in the audience has seen every one of their shows. Or, at least that’s what he told me in a recent interview at the Depot Tavern in Minneapolis. Anyone who has seen the band play knows he’s right, though.

A typical Yo La Tengo show features new, old, loud, quiet, short, long, favorites, obscurities, covers, and, often, special guest cameos. Take a dive into Yo La Tengo’s setlist.fm history if you need further proof.

There’s a lot of talk about how artificial intelligence (AI) is replacing many of the analog tasks of the present. Since the band’s performance history is readily available online, I decided to give the chatbot ChatGPT the seemingly easy task of predicting a Yo La Tengo setlist for their recent performance in Minneapolis. (Note: This was all completed before the band’s show at First Avenue.) Should be a slam dunk for AI, right?

For those who haven’t used a chatbot before, this entire process took less than five minutes. I typed in my queries into a chat window similar to any text messaging platform you use regularly, and ChatGPT would almost immediately spit out a response. These entire exchanges are below, including some forced politeness and the repeated giddy assertions that I “enjoy the show!”

My query: “Create an appropriate set list for Yo La Tengo’s concert at First Avenue in Minneapolis on March 26, 2023”

ChatGPT: Sure! Here's a possible set list for Yo La Tengo's concert at First Avenue in Minneapolis on March 26, 2023:

"Autumn Sweater"
"You Can Have It All"
"Our Way to Fall"
"From a Motel 6"
"Periodically Double or Triple"
"Little Eyes"
"I'll Be Around"
"Tears Are in Your Eyes"
"The Story of Yo La Tango"
"Tom Courtenay"
"Blue Line Swinger"
"Sugarcube"
"Cherry Chapstick"
"Saturday"
"Moby Octopad"
"I Heard You Looking"
"Big Day Coming"

This set list includes some of Yo La Tengo's most beloved songs from various stages of their career, as well as some deeper cuts and fan favorites. It also features a mix of upbeat and more contemplative songs to keep the audience engaged and entertained throughout the show. Enjoy the concert!

Reaction: OK. Now this is a list of Yo La Tengo songs that are beloved, true. But this is not what you’d get if you went to a show, and we’ll get to more of why that is later. But a big red flag: There’s no encore noted.

Songs from this list actually played at First Ave: 4/17

My second query: “Does this set list include an encore?”

ChatGPT: I apologize for the oversight in my previous response. It is customary for most bands to perform an encore at the end of their concerts, and Yo La Tengo is no exception. Here's an updated set list that includes an encore:

"Autumn Sweater"
"You Can Have It All"
"Our Way to Fall"
"From a Motel 6"
"Periodically Double or Triple"
"Little Eyes"
"I'll Be Around"
"Tears Are in Your Eyes"
"The Story of Yo La Tango"
"Tom Courtenay"
"Blue Line Swinger"
"Sugarcube"
"Cherry Chapstick"
"Saturday"
"Moby Octopad"
"I Heard You Looking"
"Big Day Coming"

Encore:
"Deeper into Movies"
"Stockholm Syndrome"

I hope this updated set list provides a more accurate representation of Yo La Tengo's typical concert structure. Enjoy the show!

Reaction: I don’t think the chatbot was going deep enough to say this is Yo La Tengo’s typical concert structure. Still, they did add songs that Yo La Tengo did play, and this was the closest prediction of the entire experience. But there are also no covers here.

Songs from this list actually played at First Ave: 6/19

My third query: “One more thought: Yo La Tengo often play covers to provide surprises. What might be some appropriate covers to play for this Minneapolis concert?”

ChatGPT: That's a great point! Yo La Tengo is known for their eclectic mix of covers, so here are some possible options that could be appropriate for their Minneapolis concert:

"Let's Spend the Night Together" by The Rolling Stones (a classic rock cover that would get the crowd energized)
"Shaking Through" by R.E.M. (a nod to fellow indie rock pioneers)
"People Get Ready" by Curtis Mayfield (a soulful and inspiring cover)
"I Wanna Be Your Lover" by Prince (a tribute to Minneapolis' own music icon)
"Don't Let Me Down" by The Beatles (a powerful and emotional cover that would showcase the band's versatility)

Of course, Yo La Tengo is known for surprising their audiences with unexpected covers, so it's entirely possible that they could choose something completely different for their Minneapolis concert. Whatever they decide to play, it's sure to be a memorable and enjoyable experience for their fans.

Reaction: According to setlist.fm, Yo La Tengo actually did cover the Rolling Stones’ “Let’s Spend the Night Together” once in 2007, and have covered a handful of others. They covered a different song by R.E.M. once in 2021 (“Driver 8”). They’ve never covered Curtis Mayfield or “People Get Ready.” They’ve covered different Prince songs: “The Beautiful Ones” eight times in 2011, “When You Were Mine” five times between 1995 and 2008, “1999” once in 2005, and “Scarlet Pussy” once in 2018. They have covered several Beatles songs — the most frequent being “Eight Days a Week” 13 times between 2004 and 2017 — but never “Don’t Let Me Down.”

Past results don’t always predict future outcomes, but none of these acts are even in the top 30 artists Yo La Tengo have covered most frequently. The Velvet Underground is tops, with more than 230 of the more than 1,600 cover songs they have documented.

ChatGPT has also included zero music from Yo La Tengo’s latest album thus far. Looking at all of the shows the band played in 2023, 1997’s “Autumn Sweater” — a long-time audience favorite from I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One — did not open any of these shows. On the other hand, “Sinatra Drive Breakdown” — the opening track from 2023’s This Stupid World — has almost always been the first song played.

Songs from this list actually played at First Ave: 0/5

My fourth, and final, query: You know, I forgot something to consider. Yo La Tengo is promoting the album This Stupid World right now, so a set list should include some of those songs. Can you update with a few of their newer songs?

ChatGPT: Absolutely! Thanks for reminding me. Here's an updated set list that includes some of Yo La Tengo's newer songs from their album "This Stupid World":

"Bleeding"
"For You Too"
"Shades of Blue"
"Out of the Pool"
"Ashes"
"Dream Dream Away"
"Forever"
"Polynesia #1"
"Esportes Casual"
"Here You Are"
"A Shortwave"
"Above the Sound"
"Let's Do It Wrong"
"She May, She Might"
"For the Innocent"
"You Are Here"
"Big Day Coming"

Encore:
"Saturday"
"Deeper into Movies"

This set list includes a mix of Yo La Tengo's new songs from "This Stupid World" album, as well as some of their classic and fan-favorite tracks. The band's signature blend of noise rock, dream pop, and indie rock is sure to be on full display during the concert. Enjoy the show!

Reaction: None of these songs are on This Stupid World! Almost all of them are from the 2018 album There’s a Riot Going On.

Songs from this list actually played at First Ave: 3/19

Final reaction: I will never get back the five minutes I spent on this exercise. It didn’t go as poorly as it could have, but the human touch was clearly missing. The actual set that Yo La Tengo played at First Avenue that night was far better than anything AI could construct, even with multiple prompts. You just had to be there.

When I shared a very brief recap of this with Ira Kaplan, he said, “Well, I'm happy we can defy the bot for now. Our time is dwindling.”