Wilco – Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
Rock – Released April 23, 2002 – 11 songs, 52 mins
REID
I targeted this band a couple months ago as one I’ve been meaning to get into. If it wasn’t for Miley’s new release, I would’ve dropped Summerteeth on us. However I was out last night with my buddy, Andre, for the first time since 2016. (Yes, the PJ Andre.) We’ve always bonded over music so we had a few drinks in us and this group came up. He highly recommended this album instead. He said they were dubbed the ‘American Radiohead’ by some in the music industry and that this album was their ‘Kid-A’. Not necessarily because it sounds similar but they changed their sound quite a bit from their previous release. (Worth noting Andre doesn’t exactly like the band comparison, but thought it was cool to note).
Album review activity bears fruit again… totally into Wilco.
Yankee Hotel Foxtrot kicks off with I Am Trying To Break Your Heart, a super cool jam. The chill mix of guitar, piano, off-tuned xylophone (I think) and monotoned lyrics is almost distressing. It certainly sets the tone for a complex release. Kamera is another fun one, reminds me a little of The Shins, who I also love. Radio Cure slows things down, almost to a halt at times. Really dig the bells part. War on War and Jesus Etc. are two more great indie jams, what else can I say? Love that violin. Ashes of American Flags loses me a little but I appreciate its eerie vibes. Heavy Metal Drummer and I’m The Man Who Loves You are both catchy as hell. They make me want to go on a road trip with the lads; I miss traveling. Pot Kettle Black and Poor Places are both interesting jams with plenty of instrument variety. Reservations doesn’t do too much for me - too long.
This album is right up my alley. Love it. I get some of Pablo Honey vibes throughout, so I do understand the American Radiohead reference, but I don’t really agree with it. I plan to dig further into’s Wilco’s discography for some more gems.
Overall Rating: 9.2/10
Favourite Song: Jesus, Etc.
ROZ
It’s time to dig into this weeks album Yankee Hotel Foxtrot by Wilco, a band that I’ve yet to experience.
I Am Trying To Break Your Heart comes up first and right away I’m captivated by both the front mans voice as well as the piano elements throughout. As as an aside, I'm a sucker for studio drama and as I looked into the bands history after my first few listens, this seemed to be plentiful - also centered the mixing on this song, interestingly enough. From what I read, the band kicked the person out who first mixed the album. Cold blooded in hindsight, considering the albums future success.
Kamera comes up on the track list next, a song that totally sounds like an early 2000’s album in every and all ways. On Radio Cure, the fingerpicking is great and both the vocals and organ piano are extremely haunting. I really felt Mazzy Star vibes from this one which is right up my alley, Look On Down From The Bridge specifically. That song in particular is still one of my favourite sad songs ever pressed, so the comparison is one of high praise. Jesus, Etc. is yet another catchy little number on the album and eventually became my second favourite on the record. Not all moments are positive ones, as I found I'm The Man Who Loves You to be very weak; some good guitar work yes, but even that seemed all over the place.
Reid mentioning them as a potential "American Radiohead" when suggesting we review this may have set the bar a little too high, but ultimately at the end of the day Wilco’s Yankee Hotel Foxtrot was an easy listening experience with many stand out moments.
Overall Rating: 7.8/10
Favourite Song: Radio Cure
LUNDI
First off. Let’s get one thing out of the way. These guys are not American Radiohead and if they are it’s certainly not this album that gains them that comparison.
YFT is overall a rewarding listen. I found myself enjoying new parts of most track as I increased the number of of times I listened, however there were parts that did drag for me as some parts of this album stray into more country than rock.
The opener itself I Am Trying To Break Your Heart is a mood, as the kids say, and almost made the cut for my favourite. It’s progression rewards multiple listens. The rest of the front half is split as I enjoyed Kamera despite its simplicity as well as War on War and Jesus, Etc but Radio Cure and Ashes of American Flags are skippable and the low points of the album for me.
The back half of the album starts with my two favourite tracks. Heavy Metal Drummer and I’m the Man Who Loves You stand out as excellently composed and written songs. Maybe that feeling is because I’ve heard them many times before this album review on top indie charts but alas I love em both.
Pot Kettle Black is a fun time with Poor Places falling as the ugly child of the second half. Finally the album heads into Reservations which is a mostly instrumental ender which is an approach I’ve always loved from bands, however this one doesn’t stack up to some of the best.
It sticks in the Spotify album list for now because as I mentioned before the album has grown on me over many listens.
Overall Rating – 7.4/10
Favourite Song – I’m the Man Who Loves You