Wilco return with their new album Ode to Joy on October 4th via dBpm Records and have prepped the way with their lead single “Love Is Everywhere (Beware).” “Love Is Everywhere (Beware)” is gentle and airy track that focuses itself on the positive side of things. Jeff Tweedy discusses it below.
“There MUST be more love than hate. Right?! I’m not always positive we can be so sure. In any case, I’m starting to feel like being confident in that equation isn’t always the best motivation for me to be my best self – it can kind of let me off the hook a little bit when I think I should be striving to contribute more love outside of my comfortable sphere of family and friends.
So… I guess the song is sort of a warning to myself that YES, Love IS EVERYWHERE, but also BEWARE! I can’t let that feeling absolve me of my duty to create more.”
Following his two solo albums, WARM and WARMER, and memoir, Let’s Go (So We Can Get Back), Tweedy gathered Wilco to The Loft in Chicago. While all six members of the band can be heard on every song, Tweedy and Glenn Kotche were the launching pad from which most of the songs on Ode to Joymaterialized – Kotche’s percussion propels the music forward while Tweedy’s measured words flesh out the cleared paths. As a result, the album is comprised of “really big, big folk songs, these monolithic, brutal structures that these delicate feelings are hung on,” as described by Tweedy. Across the entire album, drums pound and plod with a steady one–two pulse, meant to mimic the movement of marching—a powerful act utilized on both sides of the authoritarian wall. There’s also a sense of comfort that comes with the rhythmic marching sound.
Whether our joy is measured by sparks felt when clutching old sweaters to our chests, by the number of tiny digital hearts earned from a shared photograph, by a guitar solo or a drumbeat or a piece of cotton on a stick in your ear, or by something even greater, Wilco wants to sincerely remind us to wear that feeling loud and proud. This is Ode to Joy: pick it up, hold it tight.
Ode to Joy is available for pre-order now. The album will be available in a variety of formats – compact disc, standard black vinyl, limited edition color custom vinyl, and a special deluxe LP book, designed by long-time Wilco collaborator Lawrence Azerrad. Wilco will tour Europe and North Americasurrounding the album’s release. All shows are listed below and tickets are available for purchase here.
Listen to “Love Is Everywhere (Beware)” –
Pre-order Ode to Joy –
Ode to Joy Tracklist:
1. Bright Leaves
2. Before Us
3. One and a Half Stars
4. Quiet Amplifier
5. Everyone Hides
6. White Wooden Cross
7. Citizens
8. We Were Lucky
9. Love Is Everywhere (Beware)
10. Hold Me Anyway
11. An Empty Corner
Wilco Tour Dates:
Wed. Sept. 4 – Trondheim, NO @ Tapperiet &
Fri. Sept. 6 – Stavanger, NO @ Stavanger Konserthus Zetlitz &
Sat. Sept. 7 – Bergen, NO @ USF Verftet &
Sun. Sept. 8 – Oslo, NO @ Sentrum Scene &
Tue. Sept. 10 – Copenhagen, DK @ Den Gra Hal &
Thu. Sept. 12 – Berlin, DE @ Tempodrom &
Fri. Sept. 13 – Cologne, DE @ Carlswerk Victoria &
Sat. Sept. 14 – Hamburg, DE @ Elbphilharmonie – SOLD OUT
Sun. Sept. 15 – Warsaw, PL @ Progresja &
Wed. Sept. 18 – Zürich, CH @ Volkshaus *
Thu. Sept. 19 – Milan, IT @ Fabrique *
Fri. Sept. 20 – Padova, IT @ Gran Teatro Geox *
Sun. Sept. 22 – Paris, FR @ Le Trianon *
Mon. Sept. 23 – Utrecht, NL @ TivoliVredenburg Grote Zaal *
Tue. Sept. 24 – Antwerp, BE @ De Roma * – SOLD OUT
Thu. Sept. 26 – Glasgow, UK @ Barrowlands *
Fri. Sept. 27 – Manchester, UK @ Albert Hall *
Sat. Sept. 28 – London, UK @ Eventim Apollo *
Tue. Oct. 8 – Toronto, ON @ Budweiser Stage (w/ special guest Lord Huron)
Thu. Oct. 10 – Boston, MA @ Boch Center Wang Theatre
Fri. Oct. 11 – Boston, MA @ Boch Center Wang Theatre
Sat. Oct. 12 – New York, NY @ Radio City Music Hall – SOLD OUT
Sun. Oct. 13 – Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Steel – SOLD OUT
Tue. Oct. 15 – Washington, DC @ The Anthem
Wed. Oct. 16 – Cary, NC @ Koka Booth Amphitheatre
Fri. Oct. 18 – Atlanta, GA @ Cadence Bank Amphitheatre at Chastain Park
Sat. Oct. 19 – Birmingham, AL @ Alabama Theatre
Sun. Oct. 20 – Nashville, TN @ Grand Ole Opry House
Tue. Oct. 22 – Tulsa, OK @ Cain’s Ballroom – SOLD OUT
Wed. Oct. 23 – Irving, TX @ The Pavilion at the Toyota Music Factory
Fri. Oct. 25 – Houston, TX @ Revention Music Center
Sat. Oct. 26 – Austin, TX @ ACL Live at the Moody Theater – SOLD OUT
Sun. Oct. 27 – Austin, TX @ ACL Live at the Moody Theater – SOLD OUT
Mon. Nov. 4 – Grand Rapids @ 20 Monroe Live
Tue. Nov. 5 – Ann Arbor, MI @ Hill Auditorium
Wed. Nov. 6 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Heinz Hall
Fri. Nov. 8 – Charlottesville, VA @ Sprint Pavilion
Sat. Nov. 9 – Cincinnati, OH @ Taft Theatre
Sun. Nov. 10 – Columbus, OH @ Palace Theatre
Tue. Nov. 12 – Indianapolis, IN @ The Murat Theatre
Wed. Nov. 13 – Louisville, KY @ The Louisville Palace
Thu. Nov. 14 – St. Louis, MO @ Fabulous Fox Theatre
Fri. Nov. 15 – Cedar Rapids, IA @ Paramount Theatre
Sun. Nov. 17 – Kansas City, MO @ Arvest Bank Theatre at The Midland
Tue. Nov. 19 – Denver, CO @ Mission Ballroom
Wed. Nov. 20 – Omaha, NE @ Orpheum Theatre
Sat. Jan. 18 – Tue. Jan. 21 – Riviera Maya, MX @ Hard Rock Hotel
&= w/ Spiral Stairs
*= w/ Ohmme
