Gimmicky titles aside, Wilco (The Album) and “Wilco (The Song)” are perfect examples of why Wilco (The Band) continue to be one of the most relevant and accessible indie-rock bands on the planet. Wilco’s new-found stake in playfulness allows them to embrace the overt rockism that guided 2007’s Sky Blue Sky, while Jeff Tweedy continues to mine genuinely emotional territory without drowning in his own emotional wreckage. Consequently, relationship songs like “One Wing,” “I’ll Fight” and the lovely “You and I” (a duet with Feist) are both honest and clever, while the dramatic character study “Black Bull Nova” is one of the most powerful and terrifying pieces they’ve ever produced.

Other than getting kicked off of their former label for making the minor masterpiece Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, the best thing to happen to Wilco is still Nels Cline. But where Sky Blue Sky felt at times like a showcase for the San Francisco–based guitarist, on Wilco, Cline leans on his talent for textures rather than his flair for barn-burning solos. Wilco (The Album) is another crown jewel for Wilco (The Great).