Well, this was quite a surprise! I wasn’t really expecting much from Jeff Tweedy’s solo career after the excess that was Sukierae, but this was quite the opposite: a very stripped-down record with just Jeff and his drummer son Spencer making a laidback, alterna-folk disc that ends up as one of the strongest of the year. Opening track “Bombs Above” is as laidback as one can imagine, but it works really well.
“Some Birds” feels like a country rock from about 1976, but it’s a really good one that you want to hear over and over again. Not everything is a winner, though. “Let’s Go Rain” is too upbeat and poppy while “Don’t Forget” sounds like a full-on Wilco song — which is not what a lot of people are coming to this disc for. “I Know What It’s Like” is another track for Wilco diehards. For the uninitiated, it’s just okay. For the most relaxed music of the year, check out “How Hard It Is For A Desert To Die;” it will get you feeling very chill in no time.
“The Red Brick” is another great song that to some might have felt like an outtake, but to other ears, it’s pretty good and really shows the dynamism between father and son in the studio. The album’s six minute finale “How Will I Find You?” is one of the most interesting tracks of the year. A slow burner of a folk song, Tweedy manages to extract every bit of emotion out of the music and lyrics and turns it into what could be one of the best songs he’s ever written.
All in all, this was a late arrival for a list of the best records of the year, yet it’s definitely earned its spot with its remarkable songwriting and musicianship.
