Wilco Brings It All Back Home

  

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Written by Parcbench closeAuthor: Parcbench Name: Parcbench
Email: rob@parcbench.com
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About: See Authors Posts (73) on July 2, 2009

If you are reading this you are now thinking A) Awesome!!! An album review of Wilco’s new self titled disc released this week!  Or B) Who the hell is Wilco?

Allow me to gush.

It has been nearly a decade since Wilco went from the ringleader of the “alt-country” genre to an universally loved critical darling. “Alt-country” refers to a brand of roots rock that uses elements of Americana, classic and radio friendly country, folk, and in some cases punk rock and hard rock to create a sound popular among anyone from an indie rock connoisseur to a minivan-driving soccer mom.  While the genre hasn’t caught on significantly, the namesakes have.  Ryan Adams, Bright Eyes, Drive By Truckers, and of course, Wilco have had critical along with commercial success over the past ten years. Perhaps no group, with the exception of Radiohead, has had more love among music critics than Wilco as of late.

While early records A.M. Radio and Summerteeth brought a lot of newcomers and an enormous amount of critical reception, it wasn’t until the modern classic Yankee Hotel Foxtrot that Wilco found not just an audience, but parts of every audience.  I Am Trying To Break Your Heart, a documentary film made during the recording of the album, shows the tumultuous experience YHF was.  In one scene, we even see Lead Singer/ Guitarist Jeff Tweady in one of many arguments, remove himself from in front of the camera to go vomit.

YHF also gave us one of the greatest “record companies are dumbasses” stories of all time.  While the album was originally rejected by Reprise records, a Time Warner company, it was eventually shopped to Nonesuch records, also a subsidiary of Time Warner at a later date.  This led to the band being paid twice as much by AOL Time Warner than originally expected.

Yankee Hotel Foxtrot became the critical darling of the year 2001.  Receiving the Pop and Jazz critics poll for album of the year and a coveted 10 out of 10 rating by Pitchfork.com, YHF went on to become Wilco’s best selling record and showed everyone that Radiohead and Pearl Jam weren’t the only bands that could go all weird on us.

The follow up A Ghost is Born, continued with the multi instrumental experimentation and earned the band more critical reception.  More importantly it won them their first two Grammy Awards, one of which was Best Alternative Album.  The most recent release, Sky Blue Sky, was considered to be a bit self indulgent by some, but in my opinion, holds up to some of their best work when given enough listens to hear its small nuances.

Wilco, released this week on Nonesuch records, finds the band in a position that we haven’t seen them in awhile.  Having fun.  Through its twelve tracks the band takes us places we’ve certainly been many a time before, but still seem fun and fresh.  Opening track Wilco (the song) is a rocker reminiscent of their early work with the tongue in cheek attitude Tweedy has conveyed so many times before.  “Do you dabble in depression/ Is someone twisting a knife in your back/ Wilco will love you baby,” the song proclaims.  While tracks Deeper Down and One Wing stand up to any of Wilco’s folk catalogue, Tweedy’s fantasy of committing a murder and running from the police soaked in blood has never been as fun as in Bull Black Nova, perhaps the albums finest track.  You Never Know and I’ll Fight are two of the greatest hits of summer that will never be.

Throughout the record Wilco reminds us not of the type of country music we find on the radio.  Instead, they remind us of the music we fantasize is played in the deep south, perhaps in a bar or on a back porch shared between friends after too much to drink.  Maybe even in a church.  Real country music.  Wilco may be one of the best places to start for a Wilco beginner.  This is the band not trying too hard.  It is a band that have proven they can melt your face off with a noise rock guitar solo and in the next song make even the most mainstream music listener perk up and ask who are these guys?

Wilco doesn’t lack in effort or experimentation, but it also seems as if the band may be doing what it does best…doing something no one expected, making a mainstream accessible rock country record.

So, why do our friends look at us funny when we ask them if they’ve heard the new Wilco record?  Why aren’t they one of America’s most loved rock bands?  It is obvious groups like Rascal Flats don’t deserve to carry their equipment and anyone who has seen a Wilco show has seen hippies bobbing heads next to metal heads who are pry standing next your best friends accountant father.  Perhaps they aren’t as pretty as the Kings of Leon or the Killers.  Perhaps it is because Wilco records aren’t always easy to “get.”

We will probably never know.  One thing is for certain.  Wilco is a fun record and reminds us of why we loved the band in the first place.  Even better, it makes us wonder what hand they may show us next.

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