Summerteeth

iTunes Review

Summerteeth, Wilco’s third album, teeters between the band’s willingness to make radio-ready pop-rock and its quest for more experimentalism — a quest that led to Wilco’s departure from its label before the release of its next work, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. While not as “out” in tone as Yankee, Summerteeth is often unsettling in its effect. “She’s a Jar” is an emotionally complex sketch of a relationship that’s bookended with a lover’s wishes that the singer not “miss her” and not “hit her.” “I dreamed about killin’ you last night/And it felt all right to me,” the opening lines of “Via Chicago,” are likewise the kind of thing mainstream rock radio doesn’t leap at. At the same time, most of the album’s songs are marked by a dreaminess that’s hard to separate from the dark. Even an apparent hit-single attempt such as “I’m Always in Love” doesn’t make clear whether the title’s state of being is a good thing or not. Summerteeth is ultimately as challenging and rewarding as any album Wilco’s made.