I just watched I am trying to break your heart. It's a documentary about the making of Wilco's magnum opus Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, filmed in beautiful black and white by famed photographer Sam Jones. The aesthetic makes all the studio jam sessions, cutting room arguments and off the cuff interviews seem reminiscent of another great rock and roll documentary by D.A. Pennebaker (it's called Don't Look Back).
The movie reinvigourated my love for Jeff Tweedy's strung-out heart-felt vocals, and Wilco's highly textured musical tapestries. YHF was a breakthrough album for the band, released at a time when the music industry didn't know the first thing about the digital age. It was also before the explosion of the indie-post-rock of band's like Broken Social Scene and Arcade Fire. My contention is that it likely informed much of the music that was to be released in the following decade (the '00s).
If you haven't seen the movie, you should. It's got some great alternate takes of all the best songs from YHF (namely, "Poor Places" and "Kamera"). It also showcases some great live footage of Wilco playing some of their '90s classics (think "Always in Love"). To tweak your interest a little more, here's a clip from the intro, featuring great shots of downtown Chicago (the band's homebase) with Tweedy playing an acoustic version of the album's opener, and title of the movie, "I Am Trying to Break Your Heart."(There's also a funny little glimpse into what happens with Wilco behind closed doors at the end of the clip. Enjoy.)
0 comments:
Post a Comment