Wilco - Unlikely Japan
Somehow, despite my best efforts, “Impossible Germany” has become a favorite at Wilco shows. It’s long and boring and has about 19 different guitar solos, all of which strike me as wankery but never fail to rouse the crowd. When I saw Wilco in Tucson this year, and the band launched into “Impossible Germany,” people went slightly crazy, almost as if Wilco were playing a good song. Stop it, I wanted to shout. You’re only encouraging them.
Anyway, in July Kevin turned me on to the “You Never Know” single, which contained an intriguing B-side: “Unlikely Japan,” a kind of exploded, deconstructed version of “Impossible Germany” that eschews rock-god theatrics for something infinitely more chill. Some will find it boring, but I’d take it over the Sky Blue Sky version any day. And is that Jeff Tweedy being Auto-Tuned at the end?
(crumbler)
This is a great b-side. I feel as if Wilco took all the lessons they learned in YHF and applied them to exactly the wrong ends. Sure, Nels Cline. But honestly, Neil Young wankery is not Wilco’s strong point. They’re strong point is making attention-grabbing, rapturous avant-guard country music. And even though this song is comparatively skeletal, it gets to their strengths with much purity and directness.
