Word: wilco
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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Country. The stigma the genre brings is devastating. The world of cowboy hats, faithful hounds and rusting Ford pickups is either groan-inducing or somewhat familiar territory. Independently-minded artists like Neil Young, Palace Music and Wilco have tried for years to bridge the gap between rock and country...
...WILCO • Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (Nonesuch) If you’ve paid any attention to the music business for the past year, it’s a story you know: After turning over the master tapes of their new album, Wilco—arguably the best band working in America today—was dropped from Reprise. Their loss. Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, while not quite at the level of 1999’s masterpiece, Summerteeth, is nevertheless a beautiful record...
Adding insult to injury, sound levels were badly regulated—Hammond organ, an essential Wilco ingredient, was almost inaudible; the bass guitar was muddled and overpowering, and, more generally, instrumental separation was poor. Bennet’s replacement, Leroy Bach, seemed overly conservative in his supplemental instrumentation and Tweedy lacked his characteristic attack on the guitar. All of these things notwithstanding, renderings of “A Shot in the Arm” and “She’s a Jar” were surprisingly good (though, again, organ layers were uncharacteristically weak) and new drummer Glen...
...when guitarist/producer Jay O’Rourke joined Tweedy and the band for three or four encore tunes. O’Rourke, a veritable living hero among indie rockers, offered pleasantly surprised fans a few incisive, gritty guitar solos and seemed to awaken a dormant life force among the Wilco band members. O’Rourke’s unique interpretation was particularly propitious because it suggested that, with a few minor—but crucial—adjustments, Tweedy might define for himself an entirely new and marvelous musical telos...
There is, then, still a modicum of hope for Wilco, and at the very least it’s clear that Tweedy is still committed to the quality of his fans’ listening experience by offering good faith efforts to make an unfortunate situation more negotiable. Tweedy needs time to convalesce, collect his musical thoughts and regroup, and we should be willing to grant him at least that much before passing judgment. Until that time, though, a $25 ticket investment will likely return few dividends...