The new Wilco album doesn't really feel like a Wilco album. In that sense, Cousin is likely to earn the band new listeners -- if that's possible after becoming so popular -- from new quarters. The record, produced by Cate Le Bon, is immersive and peppy too. And that's no mean feat.
Swirling opener "Infinite Suprrise" pulls you in, but the funereal "Ten Dead" makes its points about sporadic violence in the United States in a fashion not unlike the best material from John Cale in earlier eras. The twang-y "Evicted" is more familiar in its Wilco-y vibe, while the gently roiling "A Bowl and a Pudding" is semi-symphonic in its approach. This one feels like Le Bon's stuff, but the technique suits Wilco here, with Tweedy delivering one of his best recent vocal performances. But what sells this is the insistent melodic line which edges forward like waves against a shore. It's a quietly breathtaking hook that anchors this one and makes it one of the real highlights of Cousin.
By producing Wilco, a band that I consider fairly accessible, the more iconoclastic Cate Le Bon has challenged herself as much as Jeff Tweedy and crew here. Cousin has snatches of the usual Wilco sound, but the production -- layered, nuanced, and rich -- adds a gravitas to the best numbers here. I think folks like me who've probably heard more Cate Le Bon material than Wilco will also really find a lot of pleasure within the grooves of this.
Cousin by Wilco is out now. Details via Wilcoworld.net.
[Photo: Peter Crosby]