Kicking Televisions

I really dig Wilco. They're not my favourite but they're pretty damn cool. I didn't get into them until a couple of years ago when a friend lent me a 4 CD, 2 DVD bootleg of them in concert. I was initially impressed with the catchy songs, and Jeff Tweedy's laid back demeanour while maintaining a strong stage presence. I wanted more.

I'd never been a fan of Ryan Adams, but after researching Wilco, seeing their roots lay in Alt. Country heroes Uncle Tupelo, I started tracking other artists down - The Handsome Family, The Silver Jews, Drive By Truckers, anything that was remotely non-mainstream country. Americana. Whatever. Its not exactly a "genre" in the strict sense of the word. The point is that Wilco started something big with me. I always enjoy discovering new things in music, turning over new stones to see whats underneath. Wilco was like discovering a whole new type of goodness.

Sure, there are similarities with other awesome bands. They're a little similar to Dinosaur Jr. Noisy guitars, weird solos, hints of country influence. They're songs are pretty non-linear and they work the loud/quiet dynamic well, so in that way they're similar to Pixies and like I said, the songs are catchy as fuck.

Their albums are a challenge to get into from the outset. Complex melodies, lots of feedback and non-standard solo's don't help, but get past that and you discover music which evokes a bleak North America, from the prairies to the bustling but lonely cities. They're from Chicago but Tweedy (and previous members of Uncle Tupelo) were based in St Louis.

Tweedy himself is almost a contradiction. In a lot of ways he fits the stereotype of anguished Rock and Roller, maybe not quite as well as Ryan Adams, but I digress... Known for being a tad temperamental, somewhat controlling and a fraction tortured, he would seem on first glance to be your typical front man. Look deeper and you find a shy and unassuming frontman who treats his profession as a craft. Something rare in todays music industry filled with disposable pop heroes and disposable songs.

So check them out - if you enjoy the likes of Pavement, Pixies and Sonic Youth; head straight for Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, otherwise start off with the excellent Kicking Television live in Chicago. Heres a vid.