Rock Candy

I'm pretty sure they came through (maybe to Juanita's?) back when they were simply just one of those post-Uncle Tupelo bands playing a jangly kind of alt-country. Four stylistic shifts later, and surely a good decade later, Wilco returns, somewhat triumphantly, as the gold standard of the new adult alternative, the soundtrack to Starbucks, the hero of hipster yuppies everywhere. Clubs can't hold them anymore. They're touring exclusively in theaters and auditoriums now, though, despite widespread critical fellating, their last album was a terrific bore. Snark aside, I bought my tickets the morning they went on sale. Few bands play with more skill or dynamism. After a steady stream of entrances and exits, the band seems to have landed on a steady five-man line-up. You'd be hard pressed to find a more innovative or compelling drummer than Glen Kotche (on tours past, he had a tube connected to his kick drum that he'd blow into to change the pitch). And Nels Cline, the band's guitarist, plays with a fierce and mesmerizing improvisatory flair. Plus, you can be sure Wilco will dip fairly deep into its back catalogue to albums with a little punch.