This new Loose Fur album, that I expressed hope for not too long ago, actually blows.

It's playing now. It's a lot more Jeff Tweedy than Jim O'Rourke. The sound is thicker than on the first album, but it's not "dense," it just takes away that minimalist sense of space. It's not as mellow as the first either, it's theoretically more rocking; but never actually rocking, never bringing me to that state of being rocked, getting psyched, etc. It's just dull and nowhere, hard to get excited about.

Actually, no, it's rocking out a little bit right now, noisily, but it does it in short bursts.

There's just no mood at work. The first album was a nighttime in warm weather record, this is just... It's not too good. Did I ever talk about the conclusion that I came to about Wilco? It's this: I only like Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, (or, as my copy is now labeled, Yankee Hotel Buttfuck) as an album, but that was enough to convince me I liked Wilco, even though the other records I own, I like maybe four songs on apiece. And that's after listening to them a lot, I can't think of anything good on A Ghost Is Born. I liked them when I saw them live, too, but that was on the Yankee Hotel Foxtrot tour, playing with Sonic Youth.

But yeah, this Loose Fur record- I don't think I like it. It's also, I should note, a concept album, seemingly, about Jesus and religion. Tweedy's voice, lyrically, is more smart-ass than emotionally affecting, more witty/clever than poetically declarative- I guess that's the O'Rourke influence, but I'm going to say it doesn't work.

EDIT: However, this Books live show I downloaded off the same guy I got the Loose Fur record from is totally amazing, oh man you guys, want to see them when they come to Seattle, if we can, and if we can't, maybe a trip to Canada would be in order? So good, so good!