Album review: Wilco's The Whole Love
By You Can't Hear it on the Radio
September 28, 2011
BoxOfficeProphets.com
Noah: Hey Steve, did you know that Wilco's eighth studio album -- The Whole Love -- is out September 27?
Steve: September 27th you say?
Noah: Hey, that's today!
Steve: Happy New Wilco Day, Noah!
Noah: You too! So I've listened through it about a dozen times now. And I'm really pleased with it. I can't lie, I was a little disheartened by the run of Sky Blue Sky and Wilco (The Album). I don't dislike either of them, but aside from a couple of bright spots ("Impossible Germany" and "Bull Black Nova"), something was missing.
Steve: Well, I agree that those albums are more straightforward, and Wilco is often at its best when they take a more experimental approach, although I've been pleasantly surprised at how Sky Blue Sky grew on me over time. Listening to The Whole Love the first few times through was like putting on a favorite jacket now that September has started to cool down. It's great to hear a band have the confidence to tweak their sound and not be afraid to do new things without losing their core identity. That's The Whole Love to me, kind of a merger between Sky Blue Sky and YHF.
Noah: That's not a bad description. I don't dislike either Sky Blue Sky or Wilco (The Album), I just missed the more out there Wilco. During the band's interview with the NPR All Songs Considered crew last week, Jeff Tweedy mentioned the idea that part of the "problem" people had with Wilco (The Album) is sequencing -- if "Bull Black Nova" had been first, that might have changed people's perceptions of the album. I think there's something to that, but that might just be because The Whole Love's first track -- "Art of Almost" -- is an absolute monster. It's so great.
Steve: It's sooo great. They've made a lot of noise at times, but this might be the first time they've really shredded a song - I mean, the last 150 seconds of the song is just wow.
Noah: If you've ever seen them in concert, it's clear that they know how to make noise, so I've been a little disappointed we haven't heard more of that on their albums. Unleash the Nels Cline, fellas.
Steve: There are plenty of seemingly straightforward songs on this album - "Standing O" is a good example - that have a lot going on under the surface. The Whole Love will be a good headphones album.
Noah: Agreed -- if they don't go whole hog after the noise on The Whole Love, there is one very welcome change -- John Stirratt's bass is very present and VERY awesome. Even the quiet songs benefit greatly from Stirratt's work -- there's a little more urgency to them, something that I think was lacking a little on the last couple of Wilco albums.
Steve: The thing I like most about Wilco is how complex they can be under the guise of keeping it simple. Too many bands only know how to do one thing, or are afraid or incapable of getting down in the weeds and thinking about every aspect of the song production. Wilco seems to me to be one of those bands that can do everything well, and makes it work for them in the best possible way. Nothing seems tacked on or an afterthought. They make really thoughtful music and just when you're lulled into thinking a song is a certain thing they throw a twist at you. The title track - "The Whole Love" - is a simple folky tune at heart but there's a ton going on there.
Noah: That's a great point. They've gotten to a point where it would be easy to churn out inoffensive, moderately interesting albums that people would buy -- for all my small complaints about their last couple of albums, I'd still rather listen to them than almost anything else. But they're not going to do that, and if The Whole Love is the start of a new chapter of experimentation and boundary pushing, I welcome it.
I can't remember where I read the interview, but recently Tweedy mentioned that this was the first album that this "new" lineup of the band (on their third album together, longer than any other lineup in the band's history) had finally gotten comfortable together. What he was essentially saying is that the "new" guys were concerned about overstepping or screwing up the band and they'd finally gotten over that. I think the results are pretty clear.
Steve: If people knock SBS and Wilco (The Album) for being too tame, it could be what you have is the band getting used to each other, in some ways paving the way for The Whole Love. I reject that argument by the way. It's Pitchfork elitism at its worst to take something as nuanced as "Leave Me (Like You Found Me)" from Sky Blue Sky and dismissively label it Dad-rock. The last song on The Whole Love - "One Sunday Morning" - would fit right in on SBS. In fact, "One Sunday Morning" and "Art of Almost" make for fascinating bookends to The Whole Love. The same band is responsible for both...that's kind of mind blowing.
Noah: Absolutely, and that speaks to your earlier point about how they can do everything well and it's clearly thought out. There's no lack of texture or depth to this album.
Steve: Give me your thoughts on Tweedy's evolution as a singer. Probably my biggest problem with Being There - I like it, I don't love it - is his singing. In my view he's come a long way.
Noah: Explain.
Steve: It could be the way they mix his vocal or it could be that his voice has gotten healthier as he's gotten healthier. Or maybe he's gone from shouting to singing. I'm not sure, that's why I asked you.
Noah: We'll get to this more later this week, but for me Being There is one of their three absolute classics. I may actually prefer the rougher edge to Tweedy's voice. I think you're right -- it has changed, but for me what's different isn't necessarily his voice as his singing style. There seems to be a little more focus on the nuance you've so accurately described. With that may come a little less urgency and harshness.
Steve: What's your favorite song not named "Art of Almost" on The Whole Love?
Noah: Probably "Born Alone". I love that guitar lick. It's nicely underscored by the organ / keyboard a little later in the song. And I really like the line "Sadness is my luxury".
Steve: You mentioned Stirratt's bass earlier. I think the bass and the keyboard work are the MVPs on The Whole Love. When I wrote up "I Might" as a song of the day a while back I couldn't get over the organ/keyboards, something not really featured as prominently in the archive of what we know Wilco to sound like.
Noah: They really are impressive. Glenn Kotche's percussion work is always great, as is both Tweedy and Cline's guitar work, but it's nice to see the increased prominence of Stirratt's base (in particular), which has always been a hidden hero of their albums. In concert, Stirratt is this prominent and it's nice to have it on album.
Speaking of live, I have tickets to see Wilco in early December (ninth row!) and can't wait to see how these songs translate to their live show. Give me a song you love not named Art of Almost.
Steve: Well, I was just re-listening to "Born Alone" after you mentioned it - Jesus, that song kicks ass. I've been really digging "Capitol City". It's got this nice vaudevillian feel to it on the surface, with all these Wilco-esque flourishes going on behind the scenes. It also features some of Tweedy's more amusing, carefree lyrics. "I can’t call with a subway token // anyway, the phones are all broken”. I like it when Tweedy let's his sense of humor come through.
Noah: Tweedy's a funny guy -- anybody who's seen his solo acoustic shows will tell you he's great at crowd work. I think there's some clear differences in our love of Wilco, but again that proves your "do everything well" point. I like Capitol City just fine but it's not one of my favorite songs on the album.
So where do you put The Whole Love on our patented (note: not actually patented) Great - Really Good - Good – So So - Poor scale?
Steve: It's Great.
Noah: Agreed. The Whole Love is Great.
I savor Wilco albums like a fine wine, so I really look forward to spending time with it, hopefully on headphones, and then seeing them in concert in a few months.
Steve: Yeah, the only other thing I want to say is thank you to Wilco for making such consistently fine music, on their own terms, as often as possible.
Noah: I second that, it's really rewarding to have a band that you love that clearly loves their work, considers it a challenge, and rewards their fans with such great music.
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