Wilco "Impossible Germany"

At some point, it fell out of favor, at least among the music I listen to, for rock songs to be considered "good" if they built up toward a huge guitar solo or two as a climactic moment, or as a bridge to a song-ending chorus refrain. Enter Nels Cline, who on Wilco's new one Sky Blue Sky (color not represented on album cover at left) revisits the virtuosic color he brought to A Ghost is Born's best song "Muzzle of Bees." Where the squelchy sound effects and experimental feel of Summerteeth and Yankee Hotel Foxtrot clearly marked the studio presence of Jay Bennett, and Ghost was clearly a transitional moment for the band, Sky Blue Sky's lengthy and climactic guitar solos, best evidenced on the lovely "Impossible Germany" (mp3) are evidence that Cline is in the building, and thankfully so. Flatly put, I'm a fan of a well-executed wank-fest, and Cline is probably the exemplar of fret-flaming finger dancing among those making music today. I'm also a long-term, rather rabid fan of Steely Dan, and Cline's solo on "Germany" revisits the sublime (and often unheralded) song-ending solos of Steely's hired guns Denny Dias, Rick Derringer, and Larry Carlton, on songs like "Change of the Guard," "Chain Lightning," "Kid Charlemagne," easily some of the best guitar-rock of that decade, if not the best. Sky isn't as complete an album, and its songs aren't as instantly ingratiating, as Wilco's done in the past, but whatever. I'm fine with setting aside impeccable Tweedy melodies for an album, and just waiting the length of a song for the fun to start.

Sky Blue Sky comes out May 15th. Pre-order here.