choo-choo-charlie Posted September 22, 2011 Share Posted September 22, 2011 "Idiot Wind." Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Scott Gyrrr Posted September 22, 2011 Share Posted September 22, 2011 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bleedorange Posted September 22, 2011 Share Posted September 22, 2011 One thing that's interesting to me is that, a full decade later, we're still getting the rundown of YHF's history. Is it because this is the first album on their own label? Am I just so immersed in the history of Wilco that it feels more repetitive to me than most other people reading the review? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Shakespeare In The Alley Posted September 22, 2011 Share Posted September 22, 2011 Am I just so immersed in the history of Wilco that it feels more repetitive to me than most other people reading the review?There you go. The YHF story is great drama. The average music/Wilco fan hasn't read it a billion times, so it can still capture attention. No music publication is (or should be) writing reviews for the band's hardcore fans, so the story's an easy attention grabber for them. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Albert Tatlock Posted September 22, 2011 Author Share Posted September 22, 2011 great drama ... so the story's an easy attention grabber for them. Indeed. As a big Emmylou fan it's a similar thing with the Gram/Emmylou story getting mentioned perennially 40 years on. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sweet Papa Crimbo Posted September 22, 2011 Share Posted September 22, 2011 Over the band's 17-year career, Tweedy's Wilco has gradually moved from a roots-rock band to something a bit more nebulous, as though the bandleader were with each album further distancing himself from his whiskey bottle and Levis past. Wow.I mean.Wow.What a tortured sentence. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Kilgore Trout Posted September 22, 2011 Share Posted September 22, 2011 NZ Under the Radar 9 / 10Unfortunately, there is one small blemish to one song on the album. I would be remiss to ignore “Dawned On Me”s undeniable homage/soundalike to Supergrass’s “Alright”. The song is catchy, a great danceable track, with an incredibly memorable hook - it’s just unfortunate that same hook teeters on the line between homage and carbon-paper territory.This was an interesting thing that I haven't seen pointed out before. After listening, I would vote homage, but there are some similarities. What do y'all think?http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h9nY9axjaWo Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ghost of Electricity Posted September 22, 2011 Share Posted September 22, 2011 wait what did that just say? ok, whiskey bottle over jesus if not forever just for now and all, but what? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Autumnteeth Posted September 23, 2011 Share Posted September 23, 2011 I wasnt happy with Greg Kot's review in the trib. I tink he gave 3 out of 4 not to look like a homer. Calling the middle of the album out as being Wilco like made me angry. I think Born Alone is great, Open Mind is a wonderfulsong.. Anyway, people who focus on the endcaps are missing the soul of this album. Art of Almost is great, given, One Sunday morning is beautiful, but in between is great music that shouldn;t be dismissed. Just a thought. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bleedorange Posted September 23, 2011 Share Posted September 23, 2011 I wasnt happy with Greg Kot's review in the trib. I tink he gave 3 out of 4 not to look like a homer. Calling the middle of the album out as being Wilco like made me angry. I think Born Alone is great, Open Mind is a wonderfulsong.. Anyway, people who focus on the endcaps are missing the soul of this album. Art of Almost is great, given, One Sunday morning is beautiful, but in between is great music that shouldn;t be dismissed. Just a thought. So, in other words, any review that has anything critical to say about the album is a poor review? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sweet Papa Crimbo Posted September 23, 2011 Share Posted September 23, 2011 This was an interesting thing that I haven't seen pointed out before. After listening, I would vote homage, but there are some similarities. What do y'all think? Once again even Supergrass recgonizes the greatness of THE RUTLES http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UVerdKle8Q Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jlb1705 Posted September 23, 2011 Share Posted September 23, 2011 I think my main problem is the fact that it sounds like it belongs on Sky Blue Sky instead of this album. Lyrically and musically. To me, Open Mind sounds exactly like what they said they set out to do on W(TA), but this time they actually execute it. It's direct and sincere, but it is distinctly lacking in cheesiness. So, in other words, any review that has anything critical to say about the album is a poor review? In the case of this particular album, yes. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Shakespeare In The Alley Posted September 23, 2011 Share Posted September 23, 2011 I wasnt happy with Greg Kot's review in the trib. I tink he gave 3 out of 4 not to look like a homer. Calling the middle of the album out as being Wilco like made me angry. I think Born Alone is great, Open Mind is a wonderfulsong.. Anyway, people who focus on the endcaps are missing the soul of this album. Art of Almost is great, given, One Sunday morning is beautiful, but in between is great music that shouldn;t be dismissed. Just a thought.Chill out bro. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mpolak21 Posted September 23, 2011 Share Posted September 23, 2011 I hear the similarity in Alright and Dawned on Me, but I am not ready to claim Tweedy has gone to the Noel Gallagher school of songwriting. It's different enough for my ears at least. --Mike Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lost highway Posted September 23, 2011 Share Posted September 23, 2011 but there are some similarities. What do y'all think? Definitely some similarities. Definitely not even an homage. If I had a ton of time to waste I could post five pop rock songs that have similar chord progressions or melodies. If you know how to chop these chords out on a guitar or piano you will realize how much they are like so many songs. Meanwhile, 'Dawned on Me' is good. So is Supergrass. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Albert Tatlock Posted September 23, 2011 Author Share Posted September 23, 2011 The British are coming! Short but sweet. The Guardian 4 / 5 http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2011/sep/22/wilco-the-whole-love-review Wilco: The Whole Love - review Dave Simpsonguardian.co.uk, Thursday 22 September 2011 23.50 BST Jeff Tweedy's Chicago band have made a mockery of their initial pigeonholing as alt.country. On their eighth album, the typically unpredictable primary influences seem to be Nick Lowe's spiky new wave and the multitracked Beatles of Abbey Road. Then again, the single could be Tom Petty guesting with Spoon. Produced so inventively that it still often feels avant garde, The Whole Love unifies Wilco's leftfield and pop sensibilities. The album rollercoasts from speaker-melting guitar solos (Art of Almost) to contemplative comedowns (Sunloathe, Black Moon) to recorded bells and a town crier (Capitol City). They have ideas to burn, but the best moment here is the simplest: the sublime One Sunday Morning, based around a folk guitar motif of such beauty it never outstays its welcome during 12 epic minutes. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
DAngerer09 Posted September 23, 2011 Share Posted September 23, 2011 Pretty good article by the LATimes from a reporter who spent time in the Loft while they were rehearsing for the tour. http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/music/la-ca-wilco-20110925,0,7815044,full.story Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bleedorange Posted September 23, 2011 Share Posted September 23, 2011 I thought this was a pretty good review from the Mercury News. Wilco "The Whole Love," dBpm/Anti- Complete freedom agrees with Wilco. After all, Wilco -- sans its paint-by-the-numbers 1995 debut, "A.M.," frontman Jeff Tweedy's rebound record after the bitter breakup of alt-country rock pioneer Uncle Tupelo -- has never been much for following rules. In fact, the Chicago band's knack for not falling into line might be the only reason you've heard of Wilco. It's 2002 release, "Yankee Hotel Foxtrot," launched a media frenzy due to the fact that Wilco was fired and rehired by the same company over the album. Reprise, a subsidiary of Warner Bros., didn't think "Foxtrot" was commercial enough, and the band was released from its contract when it refused to make changes. Nonesuch Records, also owned by Warner, eventually picked "Foxtrot" up for distribution. "The Whole Love," Wilco's eighth release, is the band's first on its own label, dBpm. The sextet relaxed into a year-long recording process last summer at its practice loft. Tweedy wrote the arrangements and the other five band members added their own ideas as they knocked the music into a polish. Besides there being no outside pressure on the band, "Love" marks the first time Wilco has recorded three albums with the same lineup. It's evident here that the players are now comfortable enough around each other to take their shoes off. There is a playfulness that was sorely lacking on theband's two previous releases, "Sky Blue Sky" and "Wilco." Those albums earned Wilco the moniker "dad rock" from disgruntled fans. Tweedy at times even sounds like a man who's shrugged off a few of his demons. The fierce rocker "I Might" finds Tweedy mostly uttering, "It's all right," and, though it's a song mired in self-doubt, "Sunloathe" finds Tweedy with lust for life fully intact in the lines, "I don't want to lose this fight / I don't want to end this fight." Even the lovelorn "Dawned on Me," which early on contains the lines, "I forget / that I know / I regret letting you go / sometimes, I can't believe how dark it can be," ends on a cheery -- perhaps even stalkerly -- note as Tweedy lilts, "I can't help it if / I fall in love with you again / I'm calling just to let you know / it dawned on me." Any new Wilco release is inevitably going to be compared to "Foxtrot," the band at its most daring -- or, as alt-country purists would say, its "Judas" moment for all the self-indulgent ballyhoo. Purists will likely be scratching their heads over "Love," because the album finds Wilco incorporating elements from all of its previous efforts. This is an album of many sounds, and many moods. There's downtempo folk on "Sunloathe" and "Rising Red Lung"; sprightly jazz on "Capitol City"; country on "Open Mind"; noise and psychedelia on "Art of Almost" and "Standing." "Love" comes out of the gate at a brisk pace. The dizzying opener, "Art of Almost," quickly sets the band's new tone. The song begins with a crackle of static, as drummer Glenn Kotche stirs up an oddly paced jazzy beat on his kit that turns to fury later in the 7-minute track. A single, muffled note from the keyboard, what sounds like a car alarm, more static, a skronk from guitar wizard Nels Cline that sounds like a baby screaming, and a symphonic swell from the keyboards. And Tweedy's voice croaking, "I can't be so far away from my wasteland," as if he's doubled up on the floor in the fetal position. The final 2½ minutes consist of one long, gnarly jam as ferocious as anything by Grinderman, Nick Cave's midlife-crisis project. Wilco doesn't create music ready-made for processing. It takes a while for all the elements at play to settle down. When it finally clicks, "Love" grows more rewarding with each listen. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
worldrecordplayer Posted September 23, 2011 Share Posted September 23, 2011 Pretty good article by the LATimes from a reporter who spent time in the Loft while they were rehearsing for the tour. http://www.latimes.c...5044,full.storyI agree, that's a very well put together piece, and having had access to the rehearsal sessions in the Loft certainly didn't hurt. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
worldrecordplayer Posted September 23, 2011 Share Posted September 23, 2011 So the worst thing about Wilco is Jeff Tweedy? Interesting.Amazing. Simply amazing. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
theologian Posted September 23, 2011 Share Posted September 23, 2011 Once again even Supergrass recgonizes the greatness of THE RUTLES http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UVerdKle8Q All I am still hearing in "dawned on me" is "Like a Virgin" Quote Link to post Share on other sites
SeattleC Posted September 23, 2011 Share Posted September 23, 2011 Once again even Supergrass recgonizes the greatness of THE RUTLES http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UVerdKle8Q Pure genius, this band was! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
SeattleC Posted September 23, 2011 Share Posted September 23, 2011 No Depression blog reviews: http://www.nodepression.com/profiles/blogs/wilco-gets-serious http://www.nodepression.com/profiles/blogs/review-wilco-the-whole-love Quote Link to post Share on other sites
-seven Posted September 23, 2011 Share Posted September 23, 2011 From the LA Times review:"Wilco made "The Whole Love" available for streaming on its website a month before its release, and Tweedy spent the weekend watching fan comments arrive." Maybe he was following our thread? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ih8music Posted September 23, 2011 Share Posted September 23, 2011 No Depression blog reviews: http://www.nodepress...co-gets-serious http://www.nodepress...-the-whole-love The bottom one is pretty much what I'd expect from a No Depression blogger (i.e. "I can't believe this is the same band that made A.M." -- psst, it isn't!) The top guy gets it. He probably should blog elsewhere. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.