Wilco - Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (2001)
Based on the news-worthy events of the past 24 hours, I thought a spin of this album would be appropriate for this morning's rainy commute. I won't beat you down with tired proclamations about never forgetting 9/11, but I will fill you in as to why this record hits home in an almost eerie fashion today.
Originally scheduled to be released on September 11, 2001, record label issues prevented YHF from being available to the masses until a week later. Without getting too detailed about the brilliance of this album musically (my top album of the 2000's), it was somewhat of a departure from the traditional alt-country sound of Wilco's earlier works. Hints and traces of Dylan, Radiohead, Pavement, and damn near everything in between can be felt throughout.
Now, I have always had a sort of melancholic fascination with that particular day in history. I watch every documentary I can find on the anniversary each year. I remember where I was when I found out (walking through the Student Union at UNT). I remember where I went to eat after I found out classes had been canceled (Sweetwater Tavern in the Denton square). What I wasn't aware of at the time, however, was that there was a critically acclaimed album floating around that featured some strange parallels with this infamous day.
The cover is adorned with two large structures from the Chicago skyline. A lyric in the masterful song "Jesus, Etc." illustrates "tall buildings shake, voices escape singing sad, sad songs," and "skyscrapers are scraping together." Another passage from earlier in the recording states "It's a war on war, you're gonna lose." Although contextually irrelevant, these isolated phrases paired with the intended release date make for some pretty crazy coincidences.
And just to kinda bring things full circle here, I am also lucky enough to have tickets to Wilco's concert on Saturday taking place at none other than the UNT Auditorium building in Denton. So yeah, this was a good choice for today. "I would like to salute the ashes of American flags."
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