After seven studio albums, various collaborations and countless days on the road over the past 15 years, Wilco tried something new before starting work on its eighth record, The Whole Love, due Sept. 27 on dBpm Records: The Chicago band took a vacation. Staying off stage for most of the latter half of 2010 was the longest break from touring that bandleader Jeff Tweedy has had in a career stretching back more than 20 years. “It was a real breath of fresh air,” says Tweedy, the singer, songwriter and guitarist who founded the group in the mid-’90s. “Wilco has pretty much been recording in between scheduled tours for 15 years or more, so it was really great to have a chance to recharge and forget how to play all the old songs.”

Or, more specifically, to put the old songs out of mind long enough to write some new ones. The result is 12 stunning songs that showcase Wilco in a new light, on bold rockers, somber acoustic ballads and punchy pop songs, bookended by the propulsive 7-minute opener “Art of Almost,” and a meditative 12-minute closing track, “One Sunday Morning.” The Whole Love follows the band’s 2009 Grammy-nominated Wilco (The Album).

Coinciding with the album’s release will be Wilco’s North American tour, with a stop at Austin City Limits Live on December 1^st.

Check out the trailer for the new album, The Whole Love here.