Wilco - Sky Blue Sky
|
List Price: Our Price: $5.10 You Save: $6.88 (57%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $3.27 (click here) Category: Music CD See more new music releases 
|
|---|
Buy this Music CD at online store in your country
Canadian Music Store
Canadian Music Store
Free Music Notes for Sky Blue Sky
Free Music Review: Couldn't Disagree More with Most of These Reviewers
Hit: 5 Stars
Two gripes I have with reviews in general:
First, what exactly is alt-country? Music has been categorized to hell, it doesn't even make sense anymore. I think Jeff Tweedy had it right when he said that Wilco is, and always has been a rock & roll band. That is the only genre actually means anything in the context of Wilco.
Second, what does it mean when people say things like, "it's pink floyd meets Eagles" ? If Wilco was composed of Roger Waters and Don Henley, I'd understand. Stop comparing Wilco to everybody and realize that the only thing Wilco is, is Wilco. This is not true for every band, but Wilco is definitely about at unique as they come.
Moving on to my other gripes: I don't understand why people don't expect bands to evolve. The best musicians grow and tinker with their sound. Wilco has changed their sound with every single record. Why are people surprised when Sky Blue Sky sounds different from A Ghost is Born and YHF?
Lastly, this isn't so much of a gripe but more of a disagreement, I don't think it takes long to like these songs at all. They are all very accessible. The first time I heard this album I knew it was something special. Nels Cline adds another dimension to this band that takes it to a whole other level. Wilco goes from slow and contemplative with Either Way, Leave me (Like you Found Me) and Please be Patient with Me, to beautiful guitar Solos in Impossible Germany and Side with the Seeds, to folky in What Light. Tweedy even manages to sound happy in Walken. All in all, this is one of the best albums to come out in years, and does nothing but add to the collection of one of the greatest bands out there.
Free Music Review: Very good album...
Hit: 5 Stars
Not sure why some of the reviews are negative for this. Maybe peoples lives have changed since first they discovered Wilco. Who knows...
I for one have been a Wilco fan (not a huge fan, but I do follow the group and buy the albums) and thought this is way better than the last album. I very much like every song on here except one.
The music is the most inspirational. The guitar work and band have become so much stronger over the years, and this album shows that. Wilco has always done what they want, and this CD shows they are able to relax and let the music flow freely. Every track is a beautiful flow of Jazz, Rock, Contemporary, Pop and Folk. The "chops" of the group are so dead on one can really tell these guys have been doing this for awhile.
The one thing I have always liked about Wilco is the way they let the music come to them. There is no sense of urgency (unless the song really "call out" for it).
Highlights:
Impossible Germany -- This song is worth the album alone. What a great song. The guitar work is superb on this.
On and On and ON-- great song also.
Actauly the whole CD is good. Take your time and listen to it....it is def a more "chill out" CD, and I have loved it since the second time I heard it.
Sometimes I think the Wilco fans expect "perfection" from the band....I don't get this. There are Wilco albums where I liked only 2-3 songs, and others where I like the whole album. This is one of them.....
Any Wilco fan should own this...a few of these songs remind me of my favorite song of all time from Wilco...Sunken Treasure.
Free Music Review: Oh, you know you'll love it
Hit: 5 Stars
I just got the new album. It sounds good, real good. And in a year, I'll consider it a five-star album.
Here's the thing about Wilco. As a lot of the other reviewers point out, for every album they do something different, and for a lot of us, it takes months, up to a year, to finally enjoy it. With the exception of "Heavy Metal Drummer," I was ready to chuck Yankee Hotel right away. And it took me over a year to find Ghost is Born even listenable (helped when we saw them live). Now "Handshake Drugs" is one of alltime favorites. They just do it different every time, and you just have to get used to it. For you fans who came to this band with those "experimental" rock albums, now you're learning that Wilco's sound is pretty much what music Jeff Tweedy et al. is in the mood to make. But be patient; they hit the mark every time.
This album doesn't sound like it's going to be too hard for me to love at any rate. My favorite Wilco is the second half of Summerteeth ("When You Wake Up" / "Pieholden Suite"), so all these sweet mellow melodies are bliss. The first three songs are absolutely beautiful. Speaking of "Impossible Germany," anytime your song is compared to Steely Dan, that's a great thing. "Sides with the Seeds" starts with some bluesy solo Lennon, but ends in that guitar solo we all love. "Walken" reminds me of a raucus Band song, and that's always a good thing. "On and On..." is just beautiful. The only throwaway that I see is the jittery "Shake it Off." Eleven out of twelve, not bad.
You'll love it, eventually. That's how it always is with Wilco.
Free Music Review: Another solid effort from America's greatest band
Hit: 5 Stars
I'm also a Wilco fan. I hopped on board when I bought "Yankee Hotel Foxtrot," and it became the soundtrack to a very key time in my life. I loved the sonic difference between the songs, and although some songs took a while to grow on me, I can say I love every song on the album. Same with "A Ghost Is Born." At first the noise experimentation on both albums were a little off-putting (in fact, the amount of feedback and screeching in "Ghost" was the reason that my father-in-law gave me his copy), but I soon grew to love that as part of the wonderful music. However it was (and still is) disappointing that both albums have songs with swearing in them. This limits the number of people I can recommend the album to.
Enter "Sky Blue Sky." Jeff Tweedy is back from rehab with a fresh outlook on life and music, and man, does it show. He must be filled with newfound clarity and hope, and it spills over into the music. Ignore those idiots over at Pitchfork (they gave it a 5.2 rating), since they wouldn't know a good album if it came up and kissed them on the mouth. This is, in my opinion, their greatest record. I have listened to the album from cover to cover a few times, and I enjoy every single song on the disc. To top it off, there's nary a dirty word to be found on it. Sonically, it's closer to "Summerteeth" than the last two studio albums. I would like to take a moment to compliment Jeff's lead guitar work, which I have consistently underestimated. Nels is awesome, but Jeff is pretty competent as well.
Bottom line: You need this album. You need this album. You need this album.
Free Music Review: My Two Cents Worth
Hit: 5 Stars
Wilco albums have now become events. You wait to see which avenue the talented Midwestern band is going to explore. SKY BLUE SKY is an album worth the wait, but a bit of a shock, in that this one does not follow the more experimental trajectory of the last two releases. SBS seems to revisit the familiar, but fertile fields of BEING THERE and SUMMERTEETH to great effect.
Such a retro move would be disappointing if it were not for the great songs and strong playing. Tweedy has once again delivered a set of songs that both challenge the listener to interpret, plus will hold up to repeated listening listening. His songwriting has a open, warm feeling that has been missing from his last few releases. The band delivers solid arrangements highlighting Nels Cline's agile, if a little emotionally cool guitar workouts (most notably IMPOSSIBLE GERMANY). This version of Wilco, is in my opinion, the strongest musically and support the songs well, using muscle in the right areas (WALKEN, SHAKE IT OFF) and finesse in others (SKY BLUE SKY, WHAT LIGHT, ON AND AON AND ON). The song WHAT LIGHT may be one of the most beautiful songs that Tweedy has written. The song talks about when one releases art to the public, that one loses possession of it, but not to worry let the angst of that situation get you down.
I've only had the chance to hear it a few times through, but at this point SKY BLUE SKY stands with SUMMERTEETH and YANKEE HOTEL FOXTROT at the top of the Wilco catalog. It's a solid album, perhaps one of the best we'll hear this year.