{"title":"Alan Sparhawk","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"white-roses-my-god","title":"White Roses, My God","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAlan Sparhawk\u003c\/strong\u003e of \u003cem\u003eLow's\u003c\/em\u003e solo debut for Sub Pop is at once a bold new, electro-pop-infused adventure, and an extension of the innovation and experimentation that drove his work as a member of Low. It is his first album since the tragic 2022 loss of his wife and partner in Low, \u003cstrong\u003eMimi Parker\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eRecorded primarily by Alan at his home, with additional work and mixing by co-producer and young Minneapolis musician Nat Harvie. Alan Sparhawk has always been a prolific, protean musician. A restless soul eager to explore unfamiliar sonic and psychic terrain.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThough he’s obviously (and justifiably) best-known for his thirty years as frontman of the legendary band Low, a look at Sparhawk’s many side projects across that same span of time shows him experimenting with everything from punk and funk to production work and improvisation.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLow\u003c\/em\u003e itself never settled for a set sound or approach. The band was always a collaboration—a conversation, a romance—between Sparhawk and his wife, \u003cstrong\u003eMimi Parker\u003c\/strong\u003e, who was the band’s co-founder, drummer, co-lead vocalist, and its blazing irreplaceable heart.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eTo take the journey from Low's hushed early work, through the tremendous melodies of their middle period, all the way to the late lush chaos of their final albums, is to witness heads, hearts, and spirits in an act of perpetual becoming.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eParker passed away in 2022 after a long battle with cancer, and there is no question that \u003cem\u003eWhite Roses, My God\u003c\/em\u003e is a record borne of grief. You can hear it in the title, as well as tracks such as “Heaven”, in which Sparhawk describes the afterlife, wrenchingly, as “a lonely place if you’re alone.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eYou can sense it too in Sparhawk’s decision to create this thing entirely on his own: every note, every lyric, every programmed beat. It would be reductive, even foolish, to see grief as the sole source or the final limit of this taut, brilliant, provocative, thrilling album, whose bold experimentation is powered by profound lyrics and propulsive beats.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e“Can you feel something here?” Sparhawk asks on “Feel Something.” The line repeats over and over, evolving first into “I want to feel something here” and then “Can you help me feel something here?”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eMeanwhile the musical means he’s chosen to convey this message—especially the pitch-shifter—might seem at first like they’re making it harder to access that very something he wants us (and himself) to feel. Isn’t the vocoder a barrier between us and the deep emotionality we’ve long associated with an Alan Sparhawk vocal? Maybe, maybe not. Probably not. But even if it is, then it’s a barrier worth breaking and the music itself is the hammer.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAlan Sparhawk conjures forth the ghosts trapped inside these machines. \u003cem\u003eWhite Roses, My God\u003c\/em\u003e is an exorcism whose purpose is not to banish the spirit but to set it free.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn many ways \u003cem\u003eWhite Roses, My God\u003c\/em\u003e feels like a hard break with the past, almost a debut. And yet there’s incredible continuity with Sparhawk’s past work and his traditional ways of working. He’s pathbreaking, yet again, invested as ever in the endless process of becoming himself.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAs he puts it on “Station”: “I can please myself with the things I seek out.” Us, too. We are lucky to be here to hear it as it happens.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Sub Pop","offers":[{"title":"Purple LP | Rough Trade Exclusive","offer_id":50442617160011,"sku":"2210130","price":23.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"Clear LP","offer_id":50442616668491,"sku":"2210129","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50442614636875,"sku":"2210128","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/AlanSparhawk_WhiteRosesMyGod_1500px_14aea817_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727001695"},{"product_id":"with-trampled-by-turtles","title":"With Trampled By Turtles","description":"\u003cp\u003eNo one can help you build something beautiful quite like those who know you best. Alan Sparhawk knows this well. In his years in \u003cem\u003eLow\u003c\/em\u003e, he built decades of stirring music with his wife and lifelong creative partner Mimi Parker.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn recent years, he has performed around Minnesota with his son Cyrus in \u003cem\u003eDercho Rhythm Section\u003c\/em\u003e, a funk band that also frequently features his daughter Hollis on vocals. There's an irreplaceable naturalism that comes with this kind of dynamic. Those who know you understand you. They love you. They want to help you bring your greatest passions to fruition.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSo it made sense that Sparhawk would turn to fellow Duluth musicians Trampled By Turtles to realize his latest record. As friends and mentees of \u003cem\u003eLow\u003c\/em\u003e, taken under Sparhawk and Parker's wing from their earliest days as a bar band, Trampled By Turtles have performed with Sparhawk countless times over the years.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Duluth ties run deep: \"There's a certain vibe that has to do with underdog syndrome, coming from a small town,\" Sparhawk muses. \"Some of it is the weird grind and slackness that being at the mercy of Mother Nature puts in you. It humbles you.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn winter, 2024, Sparhawk and Trampled By Turtles created \u003cem\u003eWith Trampled by Turtles\u003c\/em\u003e, a record exactly as its name implies: Collective. Communal. Fraternal. Empathetic. A vessel for comfort, a reminder of the harmony that can exist when surrounded by those closest to you.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eWith Trampled by Turtles\u003c\/em\u003e is far more than just Alan Sparhawk and Trampled By Turtles. It's an affirmation of all the people who have been vital in Sparhawk's life and music, and an opportunity to hold each of their gifts into the light.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt's producer Nat Harvie, who has been collaborating and performing with him for years. It's Sparhawk's daughter Hollis, who duets with her father on \"\u003cem\u003eNot Broken\u003c\/em\u003e.\" And it's Mimi Parker, too: \"\u003cem\u003eToo High\u003c\/em\u003e,\" \"\u003cem\u003ePrincess Road Surgery\u003c\/em\u003e,\" and \"\u003cem\u003eNot Broken\u003c\/em\u003e\" were all tracks she and Sparhawk had been working on in the last few years.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThese songs finally found a setting that stirringly commemorates them, bolstered by a full ensemble to make every note sing. Their presence is a kind of eternal connection to Parker, a way her musical grace will keep flourishing.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Sub Pop","offers":[{"title":"LP - Oxblood | Rough Trade Exclusive","offer_id":51435393286475,"sku":"R9339-7330","price":23.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP - Cream \/ UK Version","offer_id":51438535082315,"sku":"R9339-5377","price":23.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP - Sunflare \/ US Version","offer_id":51469280313675,"sku":"R9339-4762","price":23.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":51438535115083,"sku":"R9339-8233","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"Tape","offer_id":51438535147851,"sku":"R9339-1291","price":10.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/unnamed_7ac8057d-ebed-4191-b5f7-3b3c598990c8.jpg?v=1752229421"}],"url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/fr\/collections\/alan-sparhawk.oembed","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}