The Whole Love
Expect The Unexpected On Wilco's Latest.
Roisin Dwyer, 04 Oct 2011
Wilco’s eighth album, the first on their own dBpm label, is bookended by two mammoth aural exercises that could be misunderstood as attempts to confound the listener – or perhaps, rather, to remind us not to presume when it comes to a long-player from Tweedy et al.
The opening gambit is the lengthy, experimental, multigenre ‘Art Of Almost’, to which the 12-minute meditation ‘One Sunday Morning’ is a sombre rejoinder. These tracks stretch not only conventional timings but also structures and tonalities. But they do it in such a compelling way that they could only be executed successfully by a group of musicians with abundant aptitude and flair.
Sandwiched in between are sundry gems of a typical Wilco ilk including new single ‘I Might’ whose impeccable pop sensibilities and stand-out keyboard riff plant themselves firmly in the grey matter.
Elsewhere the quiet country shimmer of ‘Black Moon’, delicate melodic canter of ‘Born Alone’ and rousing post-punk-tinged bluster of ‘Standing O’ are evidence of a fertile creativity at work. Thematically, the long-player spans an assortment of subjects, including falling in love again, on the effervescent and joyous ‘Dawned On Me’ and the pitfalls of urban dwelling on the playful ‘Capitol City’ – over which the figure of Randy Newman looms large.
With a mind-boggling array of talent on display to isolate players might seem unfair, but undoubtedly guitarist Nels Cline (who also has responsibility for overall sonic textures) and multi-instrumentalist Pat Sansone are two stand-out talents amongst a group of heavyweights.
Whether or not their independent status has conferred a newfound freedom, The Whole Love has a sense of adventure absent on previous outings. Get ready to take a trip...
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