You might be upset: I focus on the positive

Yeah, this is a tough one—not like Beatles / Pixies tough, but tough nonetheless. I actually haven’t entirely made up my mind yet, but I’m hoping that by the end of this review, I’ll have figured it out.

First of all, Summerteeth. This is an album made by a great band at the height of their powers. I’m sorry folks, I love Being There and I love Summerteeth, but I just haven’t liked anything since. I’m willing to admit I’m wrong about this, but I’m also willing to bet that most Wilco fans agree that they haven’t achieved these kinds of dizzying heights since either.

Here’s what I think makes this album so impressive:

First of all, I like their small tributes to times past. When Bruce reviewed the Avett Brothers, he counted the obvious influence of other artists (including Wilco) on them as a negative, but I love it when bands wear their influences on their sleeves and are still able to sound like themselves.

I think the Avett Brothers accomplish this.

I do not think Oasis do.

On this album, Wilco do it very nicely. There are a lot of obvious 60’s sounds, stylings, and tricks, but by combining these things with their own quirks, they manage to transcend both—this is more than just a nod to the 60’s, but this is also more than just a Wilco album.

Another thing I love about this record is all the little unexpected parts to the songs. Oh, huh, there’s a bit of feedback I wasn’t ready for. Hey, where did this bridge with the horns come from? Whoa, bells... And each time, instead of sounding forced or added on, they sound just right. In fact, each of these parts make the songs sound like they couldn’t do without them.

Lyrically, there’s a lot of stuff that doesn’t add up, but that doesn’t bother me too much. With the exception of the Hold Steady, all I need are a few good lines here and there, and Summerteeth’s got em: something in my veins / bloodier than blood; the ashtray says / you’ve been up all night; no love’s random as God’s love / I can’t stand it / I can’t stand it. That last one might be a little theologically suspect, but it’s still a great line, especially the way he repeats the “I can’t stand it” part. On the other hand, there’s that weird she begs me not to hit her line, which I’ll let Sarah somehow justify (will that make her sexialist?). The ways Tweedy delivers many of these lines add to my fondness for this album too. He manages to sound so convicted on the first track and so disaffected on the second, yet both styles are perfect for the songs.

Ultimately, this is a great album by a band that was trying to make a great album. I give them credit for thinking big and for pulling it off.

Lie Down In the Light, on the other hand, is a great album by a guy who probably didn’t think too much about it. It’s been interesting to follow Oldham’s career. I agree with Kevin that there’s something impressive about making music that is both good and commercially viable, but there’s also something impressive about just hammering out your own thing, building up a small but devoted following. Oldham’s carved out his own little niche in the world of music, and this has allowed him to simply go about his business—putting out amazingly consistent records at a pretty astounding rate. I knew I wanted at least one Bonnie/Palace album on my list, but how does a faux-hickster choose? For me, that decision seemed as difficult as picking a Dylan album. I think the obvious choice is probably I See a Darkness, but that album doesn’t excite me as much as it used to. Some of his records that sounded so great to me at first have faded after a while, whereas the ones that took longer to grow on me still sound fresh (a phenomenon I think all of you are familiar with). Each of his past few releases fits this description, including Lie Down in the Light. Along with my own pick, Ease Down the Road, this album also has a lighter feel that I think is both harder to pull off and ultimately more satisfying than his darker stuff.

So what makes this album great? Like a great writer once said, “greatness is typically less quantifiable than mediocreness.” This is especially true when the album you’re talking about isn’t pulling out all the stops like Summerteeth.

Other examples:

Ladies and Gentleman: easy to write about.

Harvest: harder to write about

Illinoise: easier

Seven Swans: harder

etc. etc.

Here are a few things, though. First of all, his voice. I love this guy’s voice. I can’t exactly explain it, but he’s got great little idiosyncrasies, and he just sounds like he just really enjoys singing. Also, the writing on this album is fantastic. I know that’s a vague thing to say, so I’ll try and be more precise. It again has to do with the unexpected, how in “For Every Field There’s a Mole” this weird jazzy clarinet comes in only to be quickly supplanted by this catchy bridge?/chours? that ends the song and that I personally have a hard time getting out of my head. Similarly, the end of “Missing One” ends with two bars of a brilliant phrase that could be its own tune altogether. And in the Shannon Stephens’ song (yes, that Shannon Stephens) that closes the album, it’s just so wonderful how first the organ kicks in right after he sings Lord wherever you go / you’ll always have me around and then later those gorgeous voices chime in right after he sings Lord, I’m too weak to travel / I’ll be glad you’re strong / and I’ll lean on your arm.

I’m not sure how Bonnie and Wilco compare in orthodoxy, but he sings about faith with the kind of candor I admire. And the same is true for sex. The man’s got some dirty lyrics (see under: chorus of “O Boy”), but somehow his openness makes them feel, well, less seedy. In fact, I like the way that he can move from faith, to sex, to family, to relationships without breaking a sweat. I also like the fact that he when he sings about relationships, he sings as much about friendship (a topic so rarely covered in music) as he does about romance.

Alright, it seems like this is a tie, and I need a tie-breaker. So here goes, I’m going to choose based less on the merits of these individual albums, and more on them as representatives of two different careers. I’m also going to hold the following against one of them: when heading up north to camp, I had to listen to one of these about 17 times straight (hint: Jana was driving).

Winner = Lie Down In the Light