LA Times article on Cline twins

[jlynch3]

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/...story?track=rss

[jff]

Thanks for that.

 

Nels has ANOTHER new album out, this time with the Acoustic Guitar Trio. I haven't hear it yet, but here's what Nels has to say about it (courtesy of Downtown Music Gallery's weekly email):

 

 

ACOUSTIC GUITAR TRIO [ROD POOLE/NELS CLINE/JIM McAULEY] - Acoustic

Guitar Trio (Long Song 112; Italy) Recorded at Downtown Playhouse,

Los Angeles, July 26th, 2003. Rod Poole (acoustic guitar, bowed

guitar). Nels Cline (acoustic guitars). Jim McAuley (acoustic

guitars). When I received the info on this fine disc, it included

these words from Nels Cline which I felt were most appropriate.

 

"Sometime in the late 1990's, I finally heard Rod Poole play solo

acoustic guitar. I think it was at The Smell, an all-ages oasis for

underground music in downtown Los Angeles. He was playing his

just-intonated Martin guitar, fighting the very resonant leakage from

the jukebox in the Latino tranny bar next door, its patrons being

showered with blasts of Norteno that threatened a sonic incursion on

the intimate, crystalline purity of Mr. Poole's performance. But

nothing could sully this moment for me. Many had told me that I

should check Rod's music out. He had only been in Los Angeles a few

years, transplanted from his native England. He had been playing solo

concerts here and there, as well as performing his music for an

ensemble of bowed, open-tuned acoustic guitars. He had recorded a bit

at the now-defunct recording studio and underground music haven in

Los Angeles called Poop Alley, and I think that Poop Alley empresario

Tom Grimley may have been the first person to tell me about Rod. But

on that evening at The Smell, I was not only dazzled by the beauty of

Rod's music and by his concentration, I also wondered how I could

find an avenue that would lead me closer to his art, to a possible

collaboration of sorts.

 

Eventually, it came to me. I had known guitarist Jim McAuley since

the late 1970s. He had played numerous times in the 90s at a concert

series I once booked, performing on mostly acoustic guitars in

various states of preparation, different tunings, etc. And I have

long felt that Jim, always bubbling under the radar after years and

years of creative endeavor, was under-appreciated. Like Rod (and

unlike me), he possessed serious fingerstyle technique. Like me, he

had a non-systematic love and understanding of salient aspects of

microtonal music, which was Rod Poole's obsession (well, one of many,

it turned out). So I came up with the idea of an improvising,

microtonal acoustic guitar trio. When I approached these gentlemen

with the idea, they were enthusiastic, which was a bit surprising,

especially in Rod's case, because outwardly he had a sort of British

reserve, and also because I had heard and felt that he was one

serious fellow! Jim had apparently not heard Rod's music, but it was

no surprise that when he finally did that he loved it as much as I

did. The year was 1999. The Acoustic Guitar Trio, as it would

generically be called, was born; a group which I formed but one I did

not lead. Our work was purely collaborative.

 

Rod Poole was also a tireless documenter of the local improvising and

new music scene. He could often be seen in a corner, in headphones,

with his DAT-loaded mini-rack and luggage cart. As such, every bang,

scrape, and chime of the Acoustic Guitar Trio was recorded by Rod.

Lucky us! The release of this document, "Vignes" is, of all the

'live' recordings Rod made, the only one that was subject to Trio

scrutiny that lead to unanimous agreement on content. We really hoped

that someone would release it, in spite of the car noises and

whatnot, because we all liked these pieces. Rod could be quite a

stickler, and it was his ear for severe editing that shaved two sets

of improvising at the Downtown Playhouse (on Vignes Street) in Los

Angeles to the three pieces heard on this record. Rest assured there

is a lot of other good material waiting in the wings, but this was

what we hoped could be the follow-up to the eponymously-named studio

recording that Derek Bailey had released on Incus. Time and

circumstances beyond our control prevented this. Until now.

 

Sometime around 2003, Rod announced to Jim and myself that he wanted

to cease performing 'live' completely. Given his headstrong qualities

and seeing what a battle it is to play music of such uncompromising

delicacy and subtlety, I really couldn't blame him. This, along with

my burgeoning tour schedule with Wilco and numerous other groups

coupled with Jim's family responsibilities, caused us to all drift

apart, a drift I felt was surely temporary. Unfortunately, Rod Poole

was murdered not far from his and his wife Lisa's apartment in

Hollywood, the details of which I do not care to go into here.

Suffice to say that it was a pointless act of the most heinous type,

and we who loved Rod Poole and his music are forever wounded by it.

 

For now, enjoy "Vignes", a concentrated sampling of three microtonal

improvising acoustic guitars. Our methodology was quite simple: make

up a tuning on the spot for each improvisation, look around at each

other to find the nods and grins of agreement that meant that a

promising tuning combination had been arrived at, and GO. For Jim

McAuley and me, it was challenging yes, but more like breathing;

natural, nurturing. We hope you like the music. All love and respect

to Rod Poole, and thanks to Fabrizio Perissinotto for bringing it to

the world on Long Song." - Nels Cline

CD $16

[Three dollars and 63 cents]

While we're talking about Nels and new projects, the Singers finished a new album this week. Scott Amendola had this to say about it in his email newsletter:

 

The Nels Cline Singers were in the studio this week tracking our new record. We spent 5 days rehearsing new material. Some different stuff for this record. From the beautiful sublime balladry to the noise infested groovalacious pounding hearts of trioness. Devin even strapped on the ol' thunderstick (that's the electric bass for all you non KISS fans). Some great stuff...Some surprises.

 

No release date that I've heard of yet, but considering Nels recorded Coward last April and it didn't come out until last month, I have a hunch it may be awhile until we hear this one, though.

 

The Singers will be playing at Redcat Theatre in LA tomorrow on a double billing with the Jeff Gauthier Goatet, eight years to the day they first performed together.

[WaronWar]

Thanks for everyone for sharing the info. Really great stuff! I think I am going to get the Acoustic Guitar Trio record soon.

 

And I can't wait to hear the new Nels Cline Singers record though I think it will take a while for it to come out. I remember Nels saying something about "Coward" taking a while to come out because it is harder nowadays for a smaller label such as Crypto to release an album.

 

Phil

[jff]

I'm not sure this is the best thread for this, but here's some info on YET ANOTHER cd featuring Nels:

 

Taken from Downtown Music Gallery's weekly email:

 

STEPHEN GAUCI QUARTET With NELS CLINE/KEN FILIANO/MIKE PRIDE - Red

Feast (Cadence 1216; USA) Featuring Stephen Gauci on tenor sax, Nels

Cline on guitar & electronics, Ken Filiano on bass & electronics and

Mike Pride on drums. I was intrigued to see the line-up on this disc

since some of the folks had never played together and had come from

different backgrounds. It came together due to a friend of Steve's

who on the crew for Wilco, the roots/rock band that Nels is currently

playing with. Although Steve & Mike had played together on different

occasions and Nels & Ken had worked together in LA, as well as with

Vinny Golia in a quartet that I booked at The Stone, this is a first

time meeting of all four members of this quartet and man, do they

take off!

"Escape from the Hell Realms" opens with some cautious,

mysterious and most effective freer realms. I dig the way things

build with Steve's tenor and Nels guitar bending their notes around

one another magically. The rhythm team is also a fine form creating

turbulent rhythms propulsive the proceedings higher and higher. On

"Charnel House" the quartet do a fine job of creating dark and spooky

sounds, churning, hypnotic and molasses-like in density. I dig when

Steve and Nels toss sounds back and forth like a heated dialogue,

with the rhythm team swirling intricately around them. On the title

track Steve and Nels play quick yet calm waves of notes around each

other. While Steve shows off his gracious, warm jazz-like tenor tone,

Nels plays swell chords underneath. Ken takes a strong bass solo with

Mike playing exquisite brushes along with him. "Blue Tara" has an

eerie, spacious sound with ominous bowed bass, atmospheric guitar

sounds, haunting sax and skeletal drums. I dig the it evolves slowly

giving each of the four players a chance to stretch and push the

music in their own directions. Finally, "Like a Madman Beyond All

Limits" erupts quickly with streams of notes from all four burning

together. A most impressive endeavor from four strong spirits meeting

in the studio for the first time. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown

Music Gallery

CD $15