subject: Wilco Tickets - Wilco's New Album Among Associated Press' Best Of '09 [print this page] Wilco's latest album, simply titled Wilco (The Album), has been hailed one of the best releases of 2009 by the Associated Press. The album, which includes a track called "Wilco, the Song," is the band's seventh studio set and arrived this past July.
In describing why Wilco's latest landed at No. 3 on the AP's list (behind Animal Collective's Merriweather Post Pavilion and Franco's Francophonic, Vol. 2), the Associated Press' Jake Coyle said, "Having apparently rid himself of his demons, Jeff Tweedy upends the rock 'n' roll convention of the drugged-out, troubled poet: He's better with those days behind him. Darkness (as on spooky 'Bull Black Nova') still lingers, but good spirit and Tweedy's top notch songwriting feel utterly unencumbered."
Wilco (The Album) leaked online earlier than the Chicago-based band intended, so Wilco took matters into its own hands, streaming the album on its website before its official June 30 due date. Wilco posted a statement to fans on its mailing list, telling them to make a charitable donation in lieu of paying for the record. "If you have downloaded the record, we suggest you make a donation to one of the band's favorite charities, the Inspiration Corporation - an organization we've supported in the past & who are doing great work in the city of Chicago," read the statement. Wilco is no stranger to this modern-day music foible, as the band's latest three albums have all surfaced online before their release dates!
Former Uncle Tulepo singer/songwriter Jeff Tweedy formed Wilco when his earlier roots-rock outfit crumbled in the mid-1990s. While Uncle Tulepo's Jay Farrar went on to form Son Volt, the rest of the band (drummer Ken Coomer, bassist John Stirratt and multi-instrumentalist Max Johnson) along with newcomer Jay Bennett (guitar) joined Tweedy as part of the newly-minted Wilco. Wilco released its debut album, A.M., in 1995, showcasing its country-tinged rock sound. The double-disc Being There followed in 1996 and was lauded as one of the year's best albums due to its eclectic sound, which drew upon soul, R&B, pop, psychedelia and other influences.
After swapping out Johnson for Bob Egan (formerly of Freakwater), Wilco released Summerteeth in 1999 and Mermaid Ave., Vol. 2 (which saw the band collaborating with Billy Bragg on Woody Guthrie's unfinished works) followed in 2000. Glenn Kotche then replaced Coomer for the recording of Wilco's proper fourth album, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. The band's label, Warner Bros. wanted a more commercial effort than Wilco intended and thus the band bought the studio tapes from the major label and Yankee Hotel Foxtrot finally arrived-to critical acclaim-via Nonesuch Records in 2002.
Wilco created the indie documentary film A Ghost Is Born (released in 2002) to chronicle the drama surrounding the recording of its fourth album, but the controversy continued (with more lineup changes) for 2007's Sky Blue Sky, Wilco's sixth studio album. Despite enduring growing pains in recent years, several Wilco albums landed on many of the Best of 2009 and Best of the 2000s lists released as the decade comes to a close, with Yankee Hotel Foxtrot and Sky Blue Sky appearing at No. 3 and No. 97 on Rolling Stone's Best Albums of the Decade list, respectively.
Although Jeff Tweedy performed a solo show in Phoenix on Dec. 27, the entire band will hit the road on Feb. 7, starting with a show in Missoula, Mont. Wilco will make stops in Portland, Ore.; Seattle, Wash.; Victoria, BC; Duluth, Minn.; Madison, Wis.; East Lansing, Mich. and other cities scattered across Canada and the U.S. in 2010, so check online for Wilco tickets.
