Yankee Hotel Foxtrot

Having hinted at their art-rock ambitions on 1999’s Summerteeth, Wilco goes all in here. For every nod to the winsome songcraft of Bob Dylan, there's a burst of avant-noise rock or a bloom of psychedelic freakiness. Strings, slide guitar, synths, glockenspiel—the group leaves no sound unturned. The spirited pageant is anchored by the weathered vocals of Jeff Tweedy, who mixes free-associative lyrics with poignant observations of angst and despair. As he states plainly, he's "trying to break your heart.”