I actually mentioned "Art Of Almost" in the original draft, but I think the "adventurousness" of that song is a bit of a red herring. Wilco has included similarly Krautrock-influenced tracks on two of its last three albums, and of that trilogy, "AOA" is the weakest IMO.

Whoa, really? Aren't you disregarding the first 2/3 of the review here? I like the record, and have a lot of nice things to say about it. We're just talking about different degrees of like—I think it's good, you (and others) think it's great. To my ears, this is an enjoyable record that doesn't quite have the heft or…

No.

Yes. http://www.avclub.com/artic…

You are correct. 

You're probably right. But this was my best excuse to write about the greatness of "Lately."

I mentioned it. 

I like the record, but I listened to both ERA and PSYCHIC CHASMS a lot in the past few weeks, and I have a hard time telling the difference between the albums. The "My Bloody Valentine meets Boards of Canada" description seems like a reach to me, but I probably will revisit this, since I do like it, despite my…

A note about grades: The A.V. Club is not a hivemind. Grades only reflect the opinion of the person who wrote the review. I liked the Washed Out record more than the person who reviewed it for us. For me, it's one of the best albums of the year.

This comment made me laugh out loud. Well done. 

I hear you on the album thing. But I'm not slamming him. I don't hate him at all. I'm not complimenting him, either—I'm just trying to get to the heart of why he was so big, and understanding him. You're talking in black-and-white terms; I'm more interested in the shades of gray. But I think we're just not on the same…

Also, the goal of the series is stated clearly up front: "In We’re No. 1, A.V. Club music editor Steven Hyden examines an album that went to No. 1 on the Billboard charts to get to the heart of what it means to be 'popular' in pop music, and how that concept has changed over the years." It's not simply "what was the…

I am not being ironic. No offense, but you completely missed the point of what I wrote. Looking at your comment again, you also misread the Kanye piece as well. "Don't most people wish they could hear their favorite performers with not studio/technological hookum?" That was so not the point of that piece at all.

Hatchet job? I am stunned that you think I'm insulting him here.

I see what you mean, but is that really economic reality, or fantasy?

You too, Flaubert? That's disappointing. 

Hm, I don't think so. Appearing in a documentary isn't quite the same thing as appearing as yourself (or a version of yourself) in a work of fiction. That is a really good doc, though.

We should have one up by the middle of the week.

I think that's a really strong record. "Object" is a brilliant song.

No arguments here: "Quebec" is great. So much great Ween, so little space to write about great Ween.