By Jono Baron

Gargoyle senior editor


Posted Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2007, The OG, arts

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AT A GLANCE

— CD: The Autumn Defense, “The Autumn Defense”
— Released: Jan. 16, 2007
— The Autumn Defense's Web site

— The Autumn Defense's MySpace page
— The Autumn Defense's Wikipedia entry

IT'S NOT OFTEN that I wait, gripped with anticipation for a new album's introduction to the general public, but the new self-titled release by The Autumn Defense was an instant exception.

I was lucky enough to see The Autumn Defense (a side-project started by John Stirratt and Pat Sansone, two members of the band Wilco) live, when they preformed with Jeff Tweedy (Wilco's most prominent member, and lead vocalist) at Foellinger Auditorium in November, and I was floored. I'd never heard any of their music, but it awed me.

I decided then not to buy their EP, because I knew most of the tracks I'd enjoyed from that night in November would be held off until the release of “The Autumn Defense.” In retrospect, this was probably the best musical choice I've ever made: This is a fantastic album.

“The Autumn Defense” combines multiple acoustic guitar styles, mellow electronic overlays, and experimental instrumental embellishments with solid, calculated vocals and intelligent lyrics that transform something so simple as “I love you” into a medley of emotion, mixing love with sorrow: “Sometimes I can throw it all away/ and I don't even care baby/ but one little thing can put me there/ can't you see that I never knew how to forget you/ and now I'm learning how.”

The record, the band's third album, is filled to the brim with innovative guitar rhythms, aided by an incredible amount of carefully placed percussion sounds in addition to drums that augment the already amazingly well-timed lead parts and create a fuller sound.

In truth, The Autumn Defense match Wilco's own phonic beauty — the resonance Stirratt and Sansone lay out in this album is startlingly smooth while maintaining a mind-blowing depth that will haunt your ears with its sheer intricacy.

What's more, each song is infused with a distinctive assembly of fresh tones and traditional forms that results in an auditory compilation spanning almost every imaginable genre from Latin and samba to folk and grassroots blues. Add Stirratt and Sansone's fresh sounds (indicative of Wilco's own creativity) and harmonies, and “The Autumn Defense” presents a combination that surely earns the right to an uninterrupted listen, if not a lifetime of praise, as it floats into your head and back out over and over again.

“The Autumn Defense” plays through in just under an hour, and is arranged beautifully — the effortless flow that the track list presents is representative of the light, velvety groove that each individual song also adheres to.

But while “The Autumn Defense” is more appropriate for relaxation than head-banging, it isn't delicate or flimsy by any stretch of the imagination. Rather, “The Autumn Defense” presents a bold variety that challenges previous notions of indie acoustic, pushing the boundaries of acoustic/folk just as powerfully as your favorite metal bands' tearing guitar riffs.

“The Autumn Defense” will provide you with the perfect, thirst-quenching amount of folk, jazz, samba — anything — and it'll fit your mood just fine, anytime, while also giving you the opportunity to discover ground-breaking musical blends.

Even after I saw Stirratt and Sansone perform live, and understood their genuine talent, “The Autumn Defense” exceeded even my wildest expectations. I wouldn't go so far as to say that the tracks I saw live (“Where You Are,” “Winterlight,” and “City Bells,” most notably) are better on the CD — the tone The Autumn Defense established at Foellinger was perfectly adjusted to their reverberating sound, regardless of its clarity compared to a “perfect” recording — but I might admit that “The Autumn Defense” at least presents a formidable recorded equivalent.

This album is great as a standalone piece and as a special gem in Wilco's crown. “The Autumn Defense” is in a class of its own. It transports an established genre of music (namely, folk as a whole) in a fully new direction. “The Autumn Defense” is unique to its core, and something tells me that the band still has a lot of momentum.

Note: The Autumn Defense are scheduled to play the Canopy Club in Urbana on Feb. 27. Tickets are $10 in advance.