Opening with the blistering, seven-minute shredder that is Art of Almost, Wilco’s eighth studio LP announces itself as the band’s best work in a decade. Not since multi-instrumentalist Jay Bennett left the band in 2001 has a disc felt this big, raw or real. Guitarist Nels Cline’s playing, while reserved on past records, is finally captured as how he plays live – frenetically. The sounds are big (Standing O), beefy (I Might) and raw (Dawned On Me), while still including beautiful pop songs (Rising Red Lung). The regular album closes with the 12-minute One Sunday Morning, a perfect showcase for Jeff Tweedy’s vulnerable vocals and lyrics. The Deluxe Edition continues with a pop-as-fuck Nick Lowe cover (I Love My Label) and a few mellow yet dizzying B-sides (Speak Into The Rose is Spiders/Kidsmoke Jr). The band’s best since Summerteeth. Download the Deluxe Edition on iTunes.

Published in Volume 66, Number 6 of The Uniter (October 5, 2011)