if you have followed wilco for as long as i have, you may have begun to think that as a band they were about to go by the wayside. in the last five years, frontman jeff tweedy has released four solo albums, but only one with wilco. and then they go out and release their longest studio album ever. ‘cruel country’ clocks in at 77 minutes with 21 songs, and it may be their finest work in years. although tweedy’s previous band – uncle tupelo – is often lumped in with the generation of bands that began to be referred to as ‘alt – country’, tweedy himself has often bristled at the notion that wilco had much of anything to do with the country genre.

but in an essay he penned in conjunction with the release of the new album, he tried to explain why
they decided to return to the genre, and at the same time tie it in with lyrics that often reference the
other definition of country. the title track is an observation on his feelings about his home country, both
proud and disappointed. there are a few other tracks that have some political content, but written in a
reflective and timeless way.

there has been a lot written about this album in regards to the band returning to their earlier country
roots, and that this is a ‘country’ album, but I am not sure I totally buy into that. yes, there are a handful of songs that would fit well on a flying burrito brothers album, but there are a lot more that sound like they would fit well on wilco’s ‘sky blue sky’ record. It seems to me more of a folk/rock/pop tangent, with an occasional nod to country elements.

more importantly, it all flows together really well. much of it was recorded live in their chicago studio,
and on many songs there is a sense of spontaneity in their playing. i have been listening to it non stop
over the last few days and it just seems to get better. consider it for a great addition to your summer evening playlist.