Wilco, Summerteeth (1999)

Monday morning you sure look fine... apart from the fact that I don't really want to get out of bed, and even if I did want to, I can barely walk (I blame an afternoon of overzealous kickboxing.) But in these circumstances, what better remedy than liberal doses of banjo, harmonica and loose saloon-style piano...?

I love Wilco. I feel like I should have dedicated more (slash any) space on these pages to Wilco. But in looking for a pick-me-up, Summerteeth was kind of an odd choice. It's one of Wilco's more sombre albums, but also in my humble opinion one of their better ones. I couldn't help but think, this morning, that right up till about track 9, I could have been listening to part of a Greatest Hits compilation - 'Can't Stand It', She's a Jar', 'Shot in the Arm', 'Via Chicago', 'ELT', 'Nothing'severgonnastandinmyway(again)' etc etc - it's an album packed with excellent singles.

Excellent, but dark. I recall Jeff Tweedy making some coolly ironic remark when someone in the audience requested 'She's a Jar' during their set in Wellington last year - to the effect of "it's a song about domestic violence, who requests that?!" - but, although it wasn't me, I'm with the requester - I think it's one of Wilco's best songs - it's morose but delicately treated and beautifully written. I've seen 'Via Chicago' described as a "muder ballad" ("I dreamed about killing you again last night/ And that's all right with me") which seems kind of apt but again, it's a very good song. It's a little bit disturbing how attractive I find some of these very dark lyrics, but I think Wilco's made it easy for me to be so twisted, because they delightfully and ironically overlay some very grim sentiments with some rather upbeat psychedelic alt rock. And contrast the downbeat songs with somre more hopeful, redemptive tracks like ELT and Nothing'sever..etc.

I'm a treacherous whench for saying it, but this morning both 'Shot in the Arm' and 'Via Chicago' fell just a tiny bit flat for me. This shouldn't detract from my deep and abiding love for Wilco - rather, it's testament to it. They are one of the rare bands I've seen who are so good live that sometimes their recorded work pales in comparison. I think this is the sign of a truly outstanding band - their live set improvises and jams; treats the audience to a unique experience rather than formulaicly adhering to their recorded sound. Treachery aside, there's no denying that this album is full of depth and texture, experiemental in moving just a little away from their more traditional Americana country-rock style, but still layered with a symphony of bells and whistles and banjoes and wild steel guitars and organs. It's delicious.