Prog-rocker Steven Wilson has begun a tandem career as one of music’s most respected remixers — having worked on classic albums from King Crimson, Jethro Tull and XTC. But Wilson now says he’s leaving Emerson Lake and Palmer behind.
ELP fans will certainly miss Wilson’s careful craftsmanship with 5.1 and high-resolution stereo mixes, work that has quickly made his curated reissues into these treasured new listening experiences.
Wilson scored a signature early success with a remix of his band Porcupine Tree’s 2007 album Fear of a Blank Planet, which was nominated for a Grammy for best mix in surround sound. Other notable efforts have included Wilson’s “definitive edition remix” of Court of the Crimson King in 2009, followed by Tull’s Aqualung which had always been a muddy mess in the CD era. He took on both Emerson Lake and Palmer’s 1970 eponymous debut and 1971’s follow up, Tarkus, in 2012.
[SOMETHING ELSE! INTERVIEW: Steven Wilson dropped by to talk about classic 1970s sounds, prog’s rebirth and his amazing album ‘The Raven.’]
These re-done favorites have become so in-demand among audiophiles that Burning Shed has launched a store devoted entirely to Wilson’s remixes.
Wilson revealed why he’s handing the Emerson Lake and Palmer series over to someone else in a new talk with Anil Prasad of Innerviews.
And it’s for very personal reasons.
“I’ve chosen not to do any more of their records,” Wilson tells Prasad, “because I can’t honestly say I love them. I didn’t feel as connected to them as the King Crimson or Jethro Tull albums.”
Wilson says the remaining ELP reissues will be handled by Jakko Jakszyk, a Robert Fripp collaborator.
“Going forward,” Wilson adds, “I’m only going to do things I genuinely really, really love. The main thing about doing them for me is what I learn from the process. I really have learned a lot from working on these records. I absolutely love the King Crimson, Jethro Tull and XTC records I’m doing now.”
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