Wilco - Wilco (The Album)

I must admit...Wilco, up to this point, had been a band I simply wasn't able to get into. Yes, I'd heard Being There and Summerteeth. Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, too, and bits and bobs from their other albums. Some element of this music just wouldn't sink in, much in the way that prog and post-rock have proven confounding. Luckily, I decided to give this band another chance to resonate with me: that's where Wilco (The Album), to be released 6/30, comes in.

The opener is a band theme of sorts, "Wilco the Song", described by drummer Glenn Kotche as "a great, upbeat song professing our love for our fans" (Rock Daily, Rolling Stone)- early reviewer and fan impressions have noted a strong similarity to Warren Zevon's "Werewolves of London". Immediately more accessible than previous releases, the material here has a bright, airy feel, making the cover seem oddly appropriate and evocative of the tunes.

"Deeper Down" and particularly "One Wing" are tunes delivered with melancholy twang and a sentimentality. "Bull Black Nova", my favourite pick of the lot, is incredibly groovy and begs to be repeated, even tossing in some noise-rock-like guitar madness. "You and I" is a breezy folk duet with Feist, who met Wilco at the Grammies last year (they found they mutually appreciated each other's music).

"You Never Know" sounds single-ready, with piano and guitar charging along and lines like: "Come on children / You're acting like children / Every generation / Thinks it's the end of the world", while "Country Disappeared" follows along similar topics, maintaining a positive vibe despite the themes. "Solitaire", is softly delivered (with overlapping vocals from Jeff Tweedy) and effective in its minimalism, with the following track "I'll Fight" being the more fully orchestrated version. "Sunny Feeling" sounds as summery as you would expect, and revisits jam-band musical points stated earlier on. "Everlasting Everything" is the typical, climactic album closer, though that doesn't take away from the honest loveliness expressed therein.

Overall, Wilco (The Album) manages to take the best pieces of their previous works and turn it into something new and grand, and is certainly going to prompt me to delve again into their back catalog. As much as a dedication to their fans and a reworking of the sound they've been after, this seems a fine entry point for newcomers as well.

Stream Wilco (The Album) in full at Wilco's Official Site!

Wilco - Official Site | on MySpace Music| Tour Dates