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Jeff Tweedy on Wilco’s New Album, Tour

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Wilco kicks off a 21-date U.S. tour in support of their new record June 12 in Cincinnati. Check out the full schedule below.

The record, simply titled Wilco (The Album), drops June 30, and frontman Jeff Tweedy tells SPIN.com that it’s a mix of pastoral Americana rock (think 2007’s Sky Blue Sky) and experimental studio sounds (2002’s Yankee Hotel Foxtrot).

On “Solitaire,” a downcast ballad about loneliness, acoustic guitars give way to wailing slide licks. And “Deeper Down,” the record’s most musically ambitious tune, sounds like Bach meets Yes. A classical harpsichord melody is mimicked by Nels Cline’s electric guitar, as what might be a beer can is slowly crumpled in the background.

“We wanted to use studio effects more and step away from the live recording we did on Sky Blue Sky,” says Tweedy.

Lyrically, the songwriter is exploring new ideas, too: “There are definitely more songs on this record that aren’t directly from my experience. There’s a song written from the point of view of a guy just killed his girlfriend,” Tweedy says of “Bull Black Nova,” a track with a classic-rock feel. And on “You and I,” a duet with “1234” songstress Feist, the pair play lovers singing about making a relationship work.

“It’s a great batch of songs,” says Tweedy. “And I think it’s due to the band havingsome longevity this time around — this is the first lineup that’s evermade two records together. There’s a really relaxedquality to the way we work together now.” Longtime Wilco members Tweedy and bassist John Stirrat were joined in 2004 by Cline and multi-instrumentalist Pat Sansone.

Wilco’s summer tour — which follows their spring jaunt and European outing in May — will hit major cities nationwide, including a stop at Tennessee’s Bonnaroo festival on June 13, before concluding at the 10,000 Lakes Festival in Detroit Lakes, MN, on July 23.

In related news, Wilco will release a new concert movie, Ashes of American Flags, this Saturday, April 18, as part of the nationwide Record Store Day. Click here for more information.

Wilco Tour Dates:
6/12, Cincinnati, OH (Aronoff Center)
6/13, Manchester, TN (Bonnaroo Festival)
6/15, Oklahoma City, OK (Bricktown Events Center)
6/17, El Paso, TX (Abraham Chavez Theatre)
6/18, Tucson, AZ (Centennial Hall)
6/19, Las Vegas, NV (The Joint)
6/20, Pomona, CA (Fox Theatre)
6/22-23, Los Angeles, CA (Wiltern Theater)
6/27, Berkeley, CA (Greek Theater)
6/28, Stateline, NV (Lake Tahoe Outdoor Arena)
6/30 Jacksonville, OR (Britt Pavilion)
7/3, Morrison, CO (Red Rocks)
7/8, Vienna, VA (Wolf Trap)
7/10, Wilmington, DE (Frawley Stadium)
7/11, Lowell, MA (LeLacheur Park)
7/13, Brooklyn, NY (Keyspan Park)
7/17, Portland, ME (Maine State Pier)
7/18, Wappingers Falls, NY (Dutchess County Stadium)
7/19, Lewiston, NY (Art Park)
7/23, Detroit Lakes, MN (10,000 Lakes Festival)