Farrar's turn to experiment

Jay Farrar, founding member of Uncle Tupelo, has been around long enough to know his stuff. Whether or not you agree that Uncle Tupelo was the pioneering alternative country act, the power behind Farrar and co-founder Jeff Tweedy was undeniable. \nSince then, Farrar and Tweedy have both gone onto their respective careers. Tweedy now heads the alt-country turned progressive rock band Wilco. Farrar began his post UT life with Son Volt and now is an established solo artist. \nWith Farrar's latest album, Terroir Blues, he and Tweedy are crossing paths again without playing together. Much like Wilco's latest efforts, Terroir Blues is an eclectic mix of songs that are distinctively different, while oddly congealing into a cohesive and beautifully structured whole. This is Farrar's chance to experiment with backwards tracks, echo effects and an assortment of instruments. \nAlthough Farrar may be pulling some of the same tricks, he is not taking the Wilco route and abandoning alt-country entirely. Instead, he has chosen to work within the genre by stretching it to the absolute limits. He remains faithful to the acoustic and pedal steel guitar, twisting the old and the new around his deeply personal lyrics.\nAlternative country doesn't entirely mean what it used to. Now it can mean straight-up rock and roll or aching orchestras, but as long as musicians like Farrar keep reinventing themselves and the genre, it will never go stale.