This weekend marks another year of Wilco’s annual Solid Sound Festival, and that might be the inspiration behind the band’s latest release, Hot Sun Cool Shroud. The six-track EP was birthed from leftover demos from Wilco’s last album, 2023’s Cousin. The songs were shined off and shipped out by frontman Jeff Tweedy and engineer Tom Schick and neatly packaged with the rotten fruit artwork of Kathleen Ryan. In the spirit of Solid Sound, Wilco will sell an exclusive white vinyl pressing of Hot Sun Cool Shroud. Along with the festival-only vinyl, fans can use stickers inspired by Ryan’s work to decorate their own cover. These designs can be submitted for the chance to be used on the general public’s pressing of Wilco’s latest effort.
The six songs on Hot Sun Cool Shroud are from the drafts of Cousin, so the new project feels like an unofficial deluxe version of the album. Listening to these six tracks, it’s clear not all of them could’ve fit in the bright, pop-leaning sonic direction of Cousin. These tracks are a bit more experimental and sentimental, harkening back to Wilco’s history of bending the rules of the rock world to fit into their lofty visions. As a matter of fact, the only track on here that could possibly fit on Cousin is the infectious “Annihilation,” but even this cut features complex, industrial-style guitars and a more solemn performance from Tweedy. The rest of the project seems to bounce between different eras of Wilco while still sounding present. The experimental chaos of the instrumental cut “Livid” sounds like it could fit on Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. In contrast, the slow-burning and heartfelt “Ice Cream” sounds like it was made initially for Tweedy’s solo project WARM.
Hot Sun Cool Shroud is a polished collection of songs that would have otherwise been left on the cutting room floor, but there are some highlights on here that diehard Wilco fans won’t want to miss. The new EP has moments that fans of Cousin will relish, while moments like the twangy ballad “Say You Love Me” will satisfy fans of the more downtrodden Wilco. It is interesting to hear the different directions Tweedy and the band considered going in for Cousin. To think there are drafts of Wilco’s 2023 effort that are more off-kilter will have fans ruminating while also giving us a look at the band’s arcane creative process.
Call it a promotional tool for their giant festival if you like, but Wilco found time to release some of their most daring music in years on Hot Sun Cool Shroud. The quick yet potent EP has the band leaping from country-inspired balladry to experimental electro-garage rock. For a band that thrives on challenging themselves, Wilco miraculously creates a honed EP from old recordings that feel expansive and purposeful while being built around loose and tossed-away ideas.
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For me, this is the long-awaited moment when Wilco lives again. I don’t mean there haven’t been some graceful moments since 2007’s “Sky Blue Sky” (the magnificent song “Art of Almost”, the albums “Star Wars” and “Ode to Joy”), but most of Wilco’s output since 2007 has lacked focus. And it’s focus just what suddenly is on “Hot Sun Cool Shroud”, even if this is a largely accidental effect. I even encourage Wilco to follow this path and to take risks again: this is what we fans want. It could even become a third act for Wilco: living to fulfill its promise. I will stay tuned again, and I’m happy.