Guitarist Nels Cline has announced a run of dates with his newly-assembled quartet, The Nels Cline 4. The four-stop run comes in support of the group’s debut record, Currents, Constellations, released on April 13th via Blue Note Records. The new outfit builds upon Cline’s acclaimed and enduring collaboration with guitarist Julian Lage by adding bassist Scott Colley and drummer Tom Rainey. Jorge Roeder will cover bass duties for the upcoming dates, including stops in St. Paul, Milwaukee, Louisville, and St. Louis. Watch The Nels Cline 4 perform “Imperfect 10”, courtesy of NelsClineVEVO:
The Nels Cline 4 – “Imperfect 10”
As the announcement press release explains, despite his various projects (since 2004, he’s been most widely known as the guitarist for Wilco), Cline ranks his 2014 album with Lage, Room, among his most special. As Cline told JazzTimes:
“When Julian and I started playing together it kicked my ass hard. At the same time it inspired me and refreshed my soul. … Even in the earliest days of the duo we used to say, ‘I wonder what we’d do if we ever had a rhythm section,’” Cline recalls. In 2016 he decided to find out by inviting Colley and Rainey to collaborate with he and Lage during a residency at The Stone in New York City. “I brought in a few themes and we just kind of went for it. Everyone was enthusiastic about continuing the work.”
You can stream The Nels Cline 4’s album, Currents, Constellations, below via Spotify:
The Nels Cline 4 – Currents, Constellations – Full Album
See below for a list of dates. For more information on The Nels Cline 4 and the rest of Clines various projects, you can head over to his website.
