In 1997, Wilco’s double album Being There became a fundamental pivot for the Chicago band in a decade filled with triumphs. Twenty-five years later, those songs live on in the band’s live shows, even though in the studio Wilco have traveled to a very different place. The evidence lies on Cruel Country, the band’s second […]
Tag: Nels Cline
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Chicago squares off against New York City on the fourth volume of Mars Williams’s Ayler Xmas project
Among the myriad injuries inflicted upon Americans by COVID-19 (though admittedly one of the mildest) is the impossibility of attending your favorite holiday concert. For the past dozen years, Chicago-based saxophonist Mars Williams has hosted a unique variation on that seasonal tradition. Each December he convenes Witches & Devils, his combo devoted to the music […]
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Jazz drummer Gerald Cleaver explores electronica on Signs
Drummer Gerald Cleaver has explored the edges of jazz in a career that’s already stretched over more than four decades. On last year’s What Is to Be Done (Clean Feed) he joined saxophonist Larry Ochs and Wilco guitarist Nels Cline for a set that swayed and jerked about in the space between free playing, ambience, […]
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Wilco guitarist Nels Cline, Rova saxophonist Larry Ochs, and jazz drummer Gerald Cleaver deliver shape-shifting improvisations
This rugged improvising trio is composed of musicians with extraordinarily disparate personalities who seek common ground while expressing their individual voices. Guitarist Nels Cline and saxophonist Larry Ochs both established themselves in California, the former in LA, where he added a punk ethos to his mixture of free jazz and fusion, and the latter in […]
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Wilco drops unexpected new album on the eve of its headlining slot at Pitchfork Music Fest
The band shares the unexpected new Star Wars for free on its website.
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You have no excuse to give anyone a holiday album
Especially now that you know about these ten amazing box sets from the likes of Bob Dylan, Miles Davis, Pierre Boulez, Captain Beefheart, and Wilco
Posted inFilm
Our guide to the Summer Music Film Festival at Music Box
The Summer Music Film Festival screens documentaries on Death, John Fahey, Nels Cline, and Levon Helm.
Posted inBlogs
City announces 2013 lineups for Downtown Sound, Loops & Variations, and Made in Chicago
What’s scheduled for some of this summer’s best free concert series.
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Bassist and onetime Chicagoan Devin Hoff returns for April
A conversation with bassist Devin Hoff about his April residency in Chicago
Posted inBlogs
12 O’Clock Track: The soulful yet scrappy jazz of Bay Area clarinetist Ben Goldberg
A soulful track from veteran Bay Area clarinetist featuring a corker of a solo from Wilco guitarist Nels Cline.
Posted inBlogs
This week on the B Side
Overlooked releases from 2011, tons of local music news, and a chat with one of the Wilco dudes
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Artist on Artist: Nels Cline of Wilco
Nels Cline of Wilco talks to Jim Elkington of the Horse’s Ha and Eleventh Dream Day
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This Week in Reader Music
A nice surprise from Tiger Bones, two helpings of great lo-fi pop, SoundCloud’s decision to alienate its DJ friends, hot Pitchfork Music Festival news, and more
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The List: March 3-March 9
Music Critics’ Choices and other notable shows: Barrington Levy, Resonance Ensemble, American Heritage, Iron & Wine, Janet Jackson, the Ex, Nels Cline, Rafael Toral, and more
Posted inMusic
The List: June 24-30, 2010
Critics’ Choices and other notable shows: Eddy Current Suppression Ring, Bert Jansch, Omar Souleyman, the Melvins, Woven Bones, Huntsville, and more