A packed London Roundhouse is the setting for a two-date jaunt by everyone’s favourite purveyors of Americana-tinged indie rock. Tonight’s set is for the most part made up of nuggets from current opus The Whole Love and, as with the album, it opens with the unwieldy yet intoxicating experimentation of ‘The Art Of Almost’ before skipping nonchalantly to the upbeat distorted pop of ‘I Might’.
From the outset the Camden crowd are vocal in their adoration of the Chicago troupe. Jeff Tweedy is shouted down with cries of, “We love you Jeff” when he tries to apologise for the infamous 1997 Shepherd’s Bush show, where the audience’s impatience caused him to caustically declare the disgruntled onlookers “snotty Brits”. But much has changed since then.
Throughout this stellar performance the extensive back-catalogue is mined for gems from albums past, such as the hypnotic ‘I Am Trying To Break Your Heart’ from Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, the haunting beauty of ‘One Wing’ from 2009’s self-titled outing and A Ghost Is Born’s ‘Handshake Drugs’, on which Tweedy’s impressive solo and bassist John Stirrat’s captivating backing-vocals are remarkably disarming.
As with all Wilco shows the quality of musicianship on display is exceptional, Nels Cline’s guitar during ‘Impossible Germany’ inspires sundry whoops of delight, elsewhere multi-instrumentalist Pat Sansone’s chameleon-like talents shine and Glenn Kotche’s drumming is a thing of wonder, at times propulsive and frenetic, then nuanced and subtle, but always refreshingly unorthodox.
An encore of a jubilant ‘Whole Love’ and explosive ‘Shot In The Arm’ (on which the crowd take care of the chorus vocals) bring the night to a triumphal close.