Following Wilco’s 2016’s angsty release Schmilco, frontman Jeff Tweedy put the band on a short hiatus to work on solo projects: Warm; its companion piece, Warmer; and his autobiography “Let’s Go (So We Can Get Back): A Memoir of Recording and Discording with Wilco, Etc.” Wilco follows Schmilco with their eleventh studio album, Ode to Joy, which is more musically reminiscent to the laidback pop sensibilities of 1999’s Summerteeth than other recent releases. Ode to Joy is also more inwardly reflective than its predecessor, ruminating on struggles between debilitating fear and anxiety and a need to believe that something better is possible. Album highlights include: the mellow meditation and opening track “Bright Leaves”; the staggering song and reflection of “Before Us”; the warm uplifting single “Love Is Everywhere (Beware)”; the moody and dreamlike “Everyone Hides”; the fuzzed-out glam track “Hold Me Anyway”; the majestic sounding “Quiet Amplifier”; the simple beauty of “One and a Half Stars”; the touching memorial “White Wooden Cross”; and the bittersweet closer “An Empty Corner.” Wilco’s Ode to Joy is a very gratifying listen and captures a 25-year-old band continuing to grow and evolve. – Written by JFelton
SIMILAR | Golden Smog, Loose Fur, Tweedy, Jeff Tweedy, Uncle Tupelo