A long time has passed since this media-touted super-group put out their last (and only record), but 2006 sees the coming together once again of Jim O’Rourke with Jeff Tweedy and Glenn Kotche of Wilco.
Unfortunately in that time, it seems as though the fame of Wilco may have tilted the scales of what was once a well-rounded partnership, to a much more Tweedy influenced collection of songs. Maybe this was accidental, maybe it happened on its own as these songs were coming together, but for the majority of this album all I hear is Tweedy, which for me is just not acceptable.
Sure it’s a solid record, but Born Again in the USA just feels like it doesn’t live up to its potential, or its hype. While the inside layout does retain the similar, and clever, format of their previous album where the instrumentation is represented visually in pictures below the gents who made the sounds, the music itself just seems like Tweedy’s pet project, and whether that’s true or not, the impression is strong enough to leave a bad taste in my mouth. Or maybe it’s just Loose Fur.