Sparklehorse

10 Great Rock Albums Produced by Electronic Musicians

It’s nice to be pleasantly surprised once in a while, and Free Reign, the new album by UK band Clinic, has been on high rotation here at Flavorpill of late. We’ve always rather liked Clinic’s work, but we’ll be honest — we didn’t expect to enjoy this record nearly as much as we have been. Perhaps the most notable thing about Free Reign in comparison to Clinic’s other records is just how interesting its production and general sound is, which is perhaps not surprising since Oneohtrix Point Never assumed production duties. There have been plenty of examples of electronic artists producing songs for rock-inclined types over the years, everything from Giorgio Moroder working with Blondie on “Call Me” to Alec Empire collaborating with the John Spencer Blues Explosion and, um, Chris Cornell working with Timbaland on the ill-fated Scream. Here are some of our favorites. Did we miss any? … Read More

Daily Dose Pick: Dark Night of the Soul

Featuring an all-star cast of vocalists, the multimedia collaboration between David Lynch, Danger Mouse, and Sparklehorse finally receives an official release today.

Guests on the album include the Flaming Lips, Super Furry Animals singer Gruff Rhys, Julian Casablancas, Iggy Pop, and Danger Mouse’s Broken Bells bandmate James Mercer. Lynch himself sings on two tracks, as well as contributing dozens of haunting photographs for a companion book available in the deluxe edition.

While the album was originally ready to go last year, label issues caused indefinite delays regarding when, or if, it would finally appear. Its release this week is bittersweet, as it now serves as an epitaph for one of its contributors, Vic Chesnutt, as well as one of its masterminds, Mark Linkous (aka Sparklehorse), both of whom took their own lives since the music’s initial appearance in 2009. … Read More

A Wonderful Life: Remembering Sparklehorse’s Mark Linkous

Like many great artists, Sparklehorse mastermind Mark Linkous led a troubled life. His struggle with drugs and personal demons led him to a near-death overdose experience while on tour with Radiohead in 1996. However, it also drove him to explore deep creative recesses, and saw him collaborate with a plethora of modern music’s finest, including the Flaming Lips, PJ Harvey, Tom Waits, Vic Chesnutt, Danger Mouse, David Lynch, Iggy Pop, and Radiohead themselves.

Over the weekend, however, Linkous lost his inner battles, taking his own life in an alleyway in Knoxville, Tennessee. He was 47. The artist was in the process of relocating to the area, where his frequent collaborator, Scott Minor, is based, and was reportedly putting the finishing touches on a new album, the follow-up to 2006′s Dreamt for Light Years in the Belly of a Mountain — an album that scored an enviable 8.3 rating from Pitchfork. … Read More

Two Handfuls of the Best Songs by the Late Great Vic Chesnutt

Vic Chesnutt died on Christmas Day. And if he had to go, so damn early, and so damn cruelly, and so damn needlessly, there may have been no better day for him to do so. Dying while much of the world was celebrating the birth of a prophet could not have been more poetic. And Vic Chesnutt was sheer poetry.… Read More

Breaking News: Danger Mouse + Sparklehorse Album Scrapped

Note: We’ve been listening to this in our office all week, and loving it, so this comes as really sad news… “It’s been one of the most hotly anticipated albums of 2009 since it was first announced: Dark Night of the Soul, a collaboration between the producer Danger Mouse (Gnarls Barkley, Gorillaz, The Black Keys)… Read More

What We’re Listening to at Flavorpill

Yay! It’s Friday! Which means it’s time for What We’re Listening To, a weekly roundup of the tracks that have been getting the repeat treatment in our office. After the jump, ten songs that Flavorpill staffers are loving right now, along with some light commentary on why we think they’re special (we hear A LOT of music ’round here). Enjoy and feel free to leave your own recent obsessions in the comments. … Read More