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I saw Nels play with his band, the Nels Cline Singers at Yoshi's in Oakland a couple weeks ago. Yoshi's is a great jazz club, but the acts that come there are sometimes on the smoother side of things, but Nels fucking blew the doors of the place. It makes you see why Jeff asked him to join in the first place. I spent sometime talking to him between sets and after. He said he had a great time playing in Australia. He seemed very happy. He said everyone in the band was having a great time and getting along well. I heard him joking about how maybe the summer tour will get cancelled because no one will like the album because its all "normal." I told him that the real fans know that they don't put out the same album twice and anyone thats really suprised by that hasn't listened to them enough. He agreed.

 

I asked him if it was true that they threw out the original Jim O'Rourke mix. He said that it was, but seemed reluctant to give more details. He ended up saying that he didn't know what was going on with Jim, but he speculated that he just doesn't like music anymore. I was puzzled by this. He said his mix was to wet and totally outside the intent of the recording, and he seemed to think that Jim was aware of this. Nels said he liked about a quarter of the recorded tracks that he mixed. He said he was much happier with the way the new mix turned out, he smiled when talking about them. He really is a cool guy, totally committed to his craft. His parts on the new album sound great and I bet he will make it even cooler live.

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That makes total sense. Jim said he was moving to Japan (how long ago was that?) to concentrate on film and stop playing music. It's no shocker that maybe his head wasn't in the right place to mix a Wilco record. But Wait! Could this be the only point of drama and tension in the history of SBS. Someone needs to find out a little more about it and totally blow it out of proportion so we can get something new from the magazines every time they write about the band.

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The Nels's story makes it sounds like there is tension between O'Rourke and Wilco. I thought so to because of Wilco choosing Jim Scott's mix, but then I read Pitchfork's interview and Tweedy said him and O'Rourke are best of friends.

 

It's awesome that you saw The Singers. I really hope they play somewhere near Chicago when Wilco is not touring. What did they play? and did Nels say anything about his new album?

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The Nels's story makes it sounds like there is tension between O'Rourke and Wilco. I thought so to because of Wilco choosing Jim Scott's mix, but then I read Pitchfork's interview and Tweedy said him and O'Rourke are best of friends.

 

It's awesome that you saw The Singers. I really hope they play somewhere near Chicago when Wilco is not touring. What did they play? and did Nels say anything about his new album?

 

Nels played two sets at Yoshi's. He opened both sets with a tribute to the recently departed Andrew Hill, playing Hill's Reconciliation the early set and Dedication the later set. Tunes I remember from the early set are Sunken Song, A Mug like Mine, A Cause for Concern, Ghost of the Pinata, Something About David H. Some of these tunes were played (unintentionally, he said) as a suite. The first set were mostly earlier compositions, while the second set were newer ones: Blues too (dedicated to Jim Hall), Fly Fly, an interlude of Sonic Youths Mildred Pierce, and a few selections from the upcoming Draw Breath. I didn't hear him say much about the new album, except that he seemed pleased with it.

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in one of the most random occurrences...

 

a friend o' mine knocked on my door this past saturday with what looked to be a postcard in his hand. turns out, it was nels cline's autograph on a flyer of some club, winston's in ocean beach, that cline was playing or frequenting, or something, i don't know, things get kinda cloudy there.

 

anyway, my friend mentioned to his friend in the biz that i was a huge wilco fan (somehow he had a connection with cline) and hooked me up.

 

i am usually not one to get too fired up about autographs or what-have-you, but what really floors me about this story is the whole "degrees of separation" idea.

 

neat.

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I've decided that Nels Cline is the Yngwie Malmsteen of Wilco.

 

His guitar playing, while technically incredible, is both overkill and boring at the same time. Jay Bennett and Jeff's(AGIB) guitar work was/is much more interesting and subtle.

 

Time to shake things up again, Jeff.

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I've decided that Nels Cline is the Yngwie Malmsteen of Wilco.

 

His guitar playing, while technically incredible, is both overkill and boring at the same time. Jay Bennett and Jeff's(AGIB) guitar work was/is much more interesting and subtle.

 

Time to shake things up again, Jeff.

What are you talking about?

Nels adds so much to the sound.

 

I really love what I have heard of Nel's solo stuff. When I get paid I'm going to have to invest in a record or two.

 

He's also a very nice man. Gave me a pick the first time I met him. I carry it around with me because I think it's good luck.

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I've decided that Nels Cline is the Yngwie Malmsteen of Wilco.

 

His guitar playing, while technically incredible, is both overkill and boring at the same time. Jay Bennett and Jeff's(AGIB) guitar work was/is much more interesting and subtle.

 

Time to shake things up again, Jeff.

 

i disagree but nels does have a signature sound and i can see how some might not like it. i also know he can mix it up a lot more than we've heard on most of sbs and kicking television. his work on "airline to heaven" is sweet and much more subtle than jay's live versions i've heard. i'll also add, check out the session work nels has done, listed extensively on his website , and you'll see how talented and adaptable he is.

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i disagree but nels does have a signature sound and i can see how some might not like it. i also know he can mix it up a lot more than we've heard on most of sbs and kicking television. his work on "airline to heaven" is sweet and much more subtle than jay's live versions i've heard. i'll also add, check out the session work nels has done, listed extensively on his website , and you'll see how talented and adaptable he is.

 

even though nels and jay play different instruments on Airline, they both add to the album version, me thinks

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That really bums me out about Jim O'Rourke. He's such a talented musician it's too bad he's drifiting away from the trade. I'm a huge fan of his solo work, and his work on YHF and AGIB, not to mention Loose Fur, it's sad that he's leaving the musical realm.

 

I'm really curious to hear what his mix sounds like. Anyone think it will turn up at some point down the road?

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Whoa. Yngwie Malmsteen?? I went and saw him once, here in Sydney at the Hordern Pavilion about 18 years ago. He kept kicking his picks off the toe of his shiny snakeskin boots after every solo. Since it's all about the solo, the first few picks (one of which nailed me in the forehead) nearly caused a riot. After a while, there were picks everywhere and it seems like everyone in the front row had a couple to spare. Eventually, I invented eBay so I could sell my picks. I also have a Willie Nelson pick. And a Pete Anderson. But not a Nels Cline. Therefore I have discredited your argument completely.

WARNING: only parts of this story are true. The stuff about Yngwie is TOTALLY true. I might have lied about inventing eBay. But how would you know?

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