Wilco (The Album) is the seventh studio offering by the band. It features the same cast of characters as the previous two releases: A Ghost is Born(sans Nels Cline) and Sky Blue Sky.

1. Wilco 3/10

The song kicks off with a rather blatant “Werewolves of London” riff. It seems to be some sort of quirky, humorous piece, or maybe not. It’s all too familiar.

Oh Oh oh…Wilco Wilco Wilco will love you baby

2. Deeper Down 3/10

Deeper down he felt the insult of a kiss

Tweedy wrote this song before. It was called “Hummingbird”, and was far superior. Note the references to “his” and “he”. Some nice lead guitar work, but it ultimately fails to fit the song.

3. One Wing 2/10

A very familiar guitar lick opens the song, and Tweedy begins to plead to some current or lost love. The track is filled with cliche lyrics and predictable, easy listening chord changes. See:

we may as well be made of stone

or:

One wing can’t fly, either yours or mine
I feel we can only wave goodbye

The versus and choruses are stitched together haphazardly,, and the climax would make even a Kid Rock fan blush. This is about as middle of the road as it gets.

4. Bull Black Nova 5/10

Some sort of violent dream sequence about murder. An extension of the I dreamed about killing you last night meme, only with the apparent sound of session musicians adding extra coats of paint, smothering any vitality.

5. You and I 0/10

Speaking of Kid Rock, this is perhaps the most pretentious and forced duet since that song he did with Sheryl Crow. Actually, I take that back. That song is better than this Starbucks approved syrup. Truly one of the most pointless songs this year in music, let alone Wilco’s catalog. Feist is Feist but this is really an offensive piece of work on all levels. Nothing is wrong with “selling out”. Just try and make it interesting.

6. You Never Know 2/10

Hey, Tom Petty called, and he wants You’re Jamming Me, back. Wait a second, George Harrison is on the other line, one second… *click*……………………*click* Um…George wants his chorus back.

I don’t care anymore…ooooohhh ahhhh
I don’t care anymore, I don’t care anymore

7. Country Disappeared 2/10

Way too similar to Belle and Sebastian’s Mornington Crescent From The Life Pursuit. Listen for yourself:

8. Solitare 5/10

Some fantastic stutter/pause acoustic guitar opens the song with a couple organ squiggles. Tweedy chimes in with the line:

Once I thought the world was crazy

The melody for this line is incredibly familiar. That said, it’s an interesting song which is delicately played.

9. I’ll Fight 2/10

It’s not even really interesting enough to comment on.

10. Sunny Feeling 3/10

The Harrison input rears its head again, with some lite Billy Joel thrown in. This is just plain middle of the road watered down pop music.
The lyrics are as trite and uninteresting as the music.

11. Everlasting 4/10

Everything in life must die
every building built to the sky will fall

Even some slick production can’t save this corny number. There are some nice moments like the big piano and drum up swell which brings along the line everlasting, but it’s clearly not enough. The end of the song leaves us with these flitering guitar birds which feel tacked on and pointless. Kind of sums up the record perfectly.

The trouble with this new Wilco album is it’s just not very good. It’s full of very derivative moments, combined with what feels like a lack of enthusiasm from the band. The songs just aren’t here…at all. Tweedy has always written at least somewhat interesting lyrics and they don’t show up either. Wilco (The Album) is the continuation of the artistic plunge this band has taken since Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. You could kind of hear the air leaving the balloon about midway through a Ghost is Born, but that is still a really nice record. Sky Blue Sky was the obvious loss of all vitality. At this point they are repeating themselves, and intensely repeating the work of others which serves to create a very middle of the road geriatric soup.

Response Keywords after hearing this album:

phoned in, boring, insincere, generic, sleepy, lacking energy, uninspiring,

Album Total 2.8

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Wolf Parade – At Mount Zoomer
Reviewed By Nolan Grey

Wolf Parade’s second full-length studio album, At Mount Zoomer, does not disappoint. Songs are expertly woven together, featuring the talents of Dan Boeckner and Spencer Krug at the helm.

Soldier’s Grin: 9.4

The lead track starts the album off well, with a dueling melody and generally positive vibe. Like many Wolf Parade songs, the work is intricate enough to not only justify, but also deserve repeated listens to fully appreciate.

Call it a ritual: 8.5

With piano, echo effected voice, and intermittent raging guitar, Call it a ritual’s sound is excellent in a markedly different way than Soldier’s Grin. All this should be of little surprise with Krug at the helm, however Wolf Parade’s ability to produce such a variegated album is a strength that must be noted.

Language City: 9.2

Boeckner’s second track is another stand out. The guitar rocks, the drum pushes, and Boeckner’s vocals pepper the track with enthusiasm and emotion.

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