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closeWednesday, Jul. 01, 2009
Always interesting Wilco is in fine form on new CD
Preston Jones
The slyly titled Wilco (The Album) melds the sunny alt-country melodies of early staples like 1999’s Summerteeth and, most notably, 1996’s opus Being There with the psych-noise of 2004’s A Ghost Is Born and, to a lesser degree, the shadowy brilliance of 2002’s Yankee Hotel Foxtrot.
Produced by Jim Scott and the band — vocalist Jeff Tweedy, guitarist Nels Cline, drummer Glenn Kotche, pianist Mikael Jorgensen, bassist John Stirratt and multi-instrumentalist Pat Sansone — Wilco (The Album) is primarily a document of Wilco, the band, coming to terms with its highly malleable style; it’s an idea more revolutionary than it would seem on the surface.
Having sampled many different moods over the years, Wilco now feels free to cherry-pick that which best suits a song, a tactic that lends the record a relaxed, cohesive feel. The inherent danger of such an approach — that Wilco (The Album) would simply feel like a place-holder, the sound of a band just marking time until its newest inspiration comes along — is avoided here, largely because Tweedy and company are incapable of making uninteresting music (grating, soporific or facile, occasionally, but never uninteresting).
After kicking things off with the bitingly funny Wilco (The Song), a self-referential number, Wilco (The Album) pleasantly meanders through a subtle range of emotions, moving from horror show what-if (Bull Black Nova) to slowly splintering love (You and I). Tweedy is in fine voice throughout, and the band, ever nimble, buoys the fleeting abrasive moments while allowing the shimmering gorgeousness of the faintly melancholy Deeper Down to glow.
Where does Wilco turn from here? It’s anyone’s guess, but it’s comforting to know that, regardless of what direction this endlessly fascinating band chooses, it will more than likely offer considerable artistic sustenance — or just another perfect summertime record.
Wilco (The Album)
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