Alan Sparhawk (Low)

Those who know you understand you want to help you bring your greatest passions to fruition, so it made sense that Sparhawk would turn to fellow Duluth musicians, Trampled by Turtles, to realise this album.

As friends and mentees of Low’s, 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. The 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.” The two artists hold the kind of ironclad bond.

Following Parker’s passing in 2022, Trampled by Turtles invited Sparhawk to join them on tour to give him a space to be surrounded by friends. Occasionally, he would join them onstage. The outpouring of love was palpable every time they played together - a surge of warmth. When playing together is that powerful, why stop there? In winter, 2024, Sparhawk and Trampled by Turtles created 'With Trampled by Turtles', 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. Where 'White Roses, My God', Sparhawk’s last album, plunged headfirst into electronica and radical vocal modulation, 'With Trampled by Turtles' leans into the folk and bluegrass stylings of its backing band, Sparhawk’s voice now completely unvarnished.

'With Trampled by Turtles' 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. It’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 “Not Broken.” And it’s Mimi Parker, too: “Too High,” “Princess Road Surgery,” and “Not Broken” were all tracks she and Sparhawk had been working on in the last few years. These 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.