Wilco

If the men of Wilco aren't enjoying much FM airplay these days, then all they need to do is wait a few decades for their fans to hit retirement age. If the Earth is still populated circa 2039, Wilco will rule golden-era-of-indie-rock playlists all over the world. At least, that's how it's looking 15 years and seven proper albums into the group's career — a musical trajectory that has found Jeff Tweedy and company, if not always totally accessible, never in danger of becoming boring. After the group hired hotshot stringbender Nels Cline and embraced epic soft rock on Sky Blue Sky, the threat of mellow tedium loomed. But this year's Wilco (The Album) dispels any worry, proving that, if anything, Wilco is at its most radiant when practicing slow-turning-mirror-ball balladry. Songs such as "One Wing," "Country Disappeared," "You and I" (on which Feist appears like a genie out of a craft-beer bottle) and the bouncy "I'll Fight" are chill but dynamic, intricate but easy to listen to and, above all, honest and soulful. Wilco the baby maker? If you see any fogged windows in the Crossroads parking lot this Tuesday, leave 'em be.