Jeff Tweedy Hints At New Wilco Songs

While Wilco haven’t performed any new songs over the course of their hiatus-ending run in Knoxville and current tour of Europe, that may soon change. Frontman Jeff Tweedy teased performances of new songs at the band’s upcoming Solid Sound Festival, which will be held at MASS MoCA in North Adams, Massachusetts June 28 – 30.

Tweedy spoke about Wilco’s return and Solid Sound in a new interview with Rolling Stone. “The second show, I think, maybe we’ll try and showcase a new song or two,” the Belleville, Illinois native told Rolling Stone in reference to the band’s set on Saturday, June 29. He did mention Wilco will try “something kind of fun for the first night [Friday, June 28] that I’m not ready to talk about yet,” but it was unclear whether he was referring to “Live Band Karaoke” due to the timing of the interview. Jeff called Rolling Stone’s Simon Vozick-Levinson from Wilco’s Loft facility in Chicago, so the interview took place before the band’s European Tour.

Wilco took a hiatus from live performances that started on November 17, 2017 and continued through their return to the stage in Knoxville on June 5. “We’re as excited as we’ve ever been,” Tweedy explained. “Maybe a little bit more, because it’s coinciding with the end of a pretty long stretch where we haven’t seen each other a whole lot. I’m expecting it to have the feel almost of a reunion, but for a band that never broke up.”

The follow-up to 2016’s Schmilco may not be far off. “We’ve been getting together to do some studio recording,” Jeff revealed to Rolling Stone. “You’ll be hearing about that pretty soon.” He went on to discuss his appreciation for the band he founded in 1994:

“I think [the hiatus] revitalized everyone’s energy for the band, and our interest in pushing forward and not just resting on some past output. Everybody in the band is pretty ambitious. It’s good to let go of something that’s a huge, identifying part of your life, and realize that you still have deep affection for it and a deep interest in having it be a living, breathing entity capable of surprising you.”

Next up for Wilco is a performance in Rouen, France tonight.