There was a spell in grad school when Wilco was the soundtrack of my every Sunday morning. I’d put on 2016’s Schmilco, an album whose haphazard title belies the beautifully crafted folk songs hidden inside, drink a cup of coffee, and slowly start the day.
I was living abroad, probably a little homesick, and the softly strummed guitars, lilting melodies, and lo-fi aesthetic was reminiscent of my youthful Sunday mornings in Central New York listening to the late Mimi Griswold’s Blue Moon Cafe.
Fronted by Jeff Tweedy, Leslie Knope’s favorite washed-up midwestern rocker, Wilco’s alt-country, Americana sound was on full display in two of the first three songs on Tuesday night at Beak & Skiff. If I Ever Was a Child, from my beloved Schmilco, and Cruel Country, the eponymous song from their 2022 album, fully embraced that Sunday morning sound.
But it was their opening song, Handshake Drugs, from 2004’s A Ghost is Born, that showcased just how deeply weird and deeply beautiful Wilco’s music can be.
