Wilco: Nothing But Blue Skies

Sky Blue Sky
Wilco
(Nonesuch)

It never has been easy to predict the direction in which Jeff Tweedy would take Wilco from album to album. In hindsight, though, a pattern emerges.

On its debut, 1995's "A.M.," Tweedy took the remains and, in part, the sound of Uncle Tupelo while shedding the shackles of alt-country by adding more of his still-growing gift for pop melody. On each of its next four albums, Wilco increasingly added layers of ambient noise and instrumental excursions that at times obscured the pretty tunes that lay beneath. The band's 2004 release, "A Ghost is Born," took the indie-rock experiments of 2002's "Yankee Hotel Foxtrot" to extremes, creating stark, dissonant and disconnected soundscapes that strayed even further from the songs' melodies. It was alternative-something, but a long way from country. The band gained new fans with its boldest moves, but one has to think that they alienated as many as their albums became less accessible.

Wilco's new disc, "Sky Blue Sky," breaks the pattern, such as it was. Tweedy gets back to conventional song structures, settling on a mellow, '70s rock vibe that also recalls the band's earlier, country-tinged work. Overall, the disposition is sunnier, too.

Tweedy has plenty of reason to be happy. His stint in rehab for addiction to painkillers is behind him. Wilco is fielding a stable lineup for the first time in, well, ever. Life is pretty good.

In fact, the opener, "Either Way," finds Tweedy sounding almost optimistic: "Maybe the sun will shine today / The clouds will blow away / Maybe I won't feel so afraid / I will try to understand / Either way," he sings. Lead guitarist Nels Cline, who joined the band for the "Ghost is Born" tour, adds to the lilt with a pretty, jazzy solo.

Much of "Sky Blue Sky" treads familiar ground in the canon of popular song: the singer is in love, or looking for love, or lamenting lost love, or looking to fall in love again, maybe with a little less hurt this time.

Speaking of pop songcraft, Wilco here resembles a first-rate pop band that has been a frequent touchstone: The Beatles. "Hate it Here" sounds like the Fab Four post-"White Album" as Tweedy sings about doing the dishes and folding shirts to try to forget. That's a telling comparison in wake of "Spiders (Kidsmoke)" from "A Ghost is Born," which was earning Wilco comparisons to Kraftwerk. It's not so much the writing that makes "Sky Blue Sky" an enjoyable listen. It's the band's return to a more organic style of recording. The songs sound like they were made by musicians playing in the same room rather than putting down parts and piecing them together on a laptop.

The adventurous spirit of "Yankee Hotel Foxtrot" endeared Wilco to many new fans, and the subplot of the album being rejected by Warner/Reprise certainly made the band a lovable underdog. As a result, the band became a hit in the indie-rock world. The fans that climbed on board then and were encouraged by the envelope-pushing aspects of "A Ghost is Born" won't necessarily be disappointed by "Sky Blue Sky." "You Are My Face" sports a skronky guitar solo that should help satisfy the noise-rock fans. "Side with the Seeds" also gives Cline some room to move on semi-clangorous passages. I'm not really sure what the lines "Impossible Germany / Unlikely Japan" mean in "Impossible Germany," but I'm not sure that it matters. The tune seems like it was written so they'd have a place to tack the coda, three-plus minutes of intertwining guitar duel courtesy of Cline and Tweedy.

Cline wasn't the only outstanding addition to the band in recent years. Pat Sansone also joined up after the release of "A Ghost is Born," and makes his studio-recording debut here. He adds much to the overall vibe of the disc with his work on the Hammond organ and electric piano.

Some of the best moments on "Sky Blue Sky" come courtesy of the interplay of the piano and Hammond organ of Mikael Jorgensen and Cline's lap steel licks on "Walken." "The more I think about it / The more I know it's true," Tweedy sings. "Honey I think you're right / You're just right."

The same could be said for the balance Wilco strikes on "Sky Blue Sky." They retrace their roots while keeping a foot planted in their more experimental modern work. Wilco long has had a reputation as a great band. Now they stand a real chance of reaching enough fans for them to fully live up to that billing.