Thursday, May 21, 2009

Wilco - Wilco (The Album)

I will admit right off at the start: I absolutely love Wilco. Every album they have ever released has been pure gold(even A.M.), and I would even say that Yankee Hotel Foxtrot is one of my top five favorite albums of all time. That said, it was almost pre-determined that I would absolutely love Wilco (The Album), and adore every aspect of it. Luckily, this love is well-earned, as the album is altogether brilliant, fun, emotional, and musically creative.


Kicking off with one of the funnest songs the band has ever written, 'Wilco (The Song)', it sets the tone for a lighter, more accessible release. The song is an ode to fans, as they sing such lines as 'Do you dabble in depression? ...Wilco will love you baby'. It is undoubtedly an enjoyable tune, and could easily end up on a summer mix.

The album continues on with a few more great flowing tunes, 'One Wing' especially being a standout with its great melodies and changes. The song is an especially enjoyable one, and brings us into one of the more interesting cuts, 'Bull Black Nova'. The song was written from the perspective of a man who just killed his girlfriend, and at 5:39, it clocks in as the longest song on the album; that said, it's a captivating song and enough happens to keep you captivated the whole way through. Continuing on, the album goes into 'You and I', a duet with Canadian music sensation Feist. The song is absolutely wonderful as it details the story of two lovers trying to keep their relationship together; it's a personal favorite.

'You Never Know' continues the album, and could quite easily become a hit single for the band. The song almost sounds like a George Harrison tune in how the guitars and piano play off each other, and even in how the melody itself was constructed. Easily the crispest, most accessible cut on the album, it's a whole lot of fun. Continuing on, the album flows into the fantastic 'Country Disappeared', and slows down a bit more for the wonderful 'Solitaire'.

After these tracks comes another solid rock song with 'I'll Fight', where Tweedy opens with 'I'll go, I'll go, I'll go, I'll go for you/I'll fight, I'll fight, I'll fight, I'll fight for you/I'll kill, I'll kill, I'll kill, I'll kill for you/I will, I will, I will'. The song is a good straight forward rock tune, and really balances out the album after the quieter tones of 'Country' and 'Solitaire'.

Following this, the album fades a little bit, going into the somewhat ordinary 'Sonny Feeling' and 'Everlasting Everything'. The songs are far from bad, but following the repetoire the rest of the album contains they almost feel a little bit disappointing. That said, they do bring a decent close to a spectacular album, and as such still need to be given a fair chance. Overall, Wilco (The Album) is probably the best album we have recieved this year so far, and should undoubtedly be picked up on its release date of June 30th, or pre-ordered off the website (https://preorderwilcothealbum.kungfustore.com/). Anyway, be sure you give this fantastic offering by one of today's best bands a listen.

DOWNLOAD:
Wilco (The Song)
You and I
You Never Know
Solitaire

9/10

1 comment:

  1. Great review, brother. It sounds like a wholly enjoyable album. I'd love to give it a listen sometime, you make it sound very good.
    Hahah, selfish mooks self titling everything.

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