Minnesota band Low is on a creative high, finally set to tour in support of 13th album “Hey What.” Released in September, the record earned widespread acclaim and spots on a number of Best of 2021 lists for its experiments with sounds, textures and song structures arrayed alongside the unmistakable vocals of Mimi Parker and Alan Sparhawk. “It’s nice to see that people are picking it up… reacting to the originality of it, the new frontiers it presents,” says Sparhawk from snowy Duluth, the band’s hometown.
Low returns to Atlanta for an early show at Terminal West on Saturday, March 26.
The third consecutive Low release produced by BJ Burton, “Hey What” continues on the sonic journey the group undertook with its predecessor, “Double Negative.” While guitar, bass and drums remain the band’s instruments of choice, you’d be hard pressed to find another set of songs featuring those instruments sounding less like you would expect them to.
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
Take “More.” At just over two minutes long, the song revolves around the buzzsaw of Sparhawk’s guitar, which sounds like it’s being run through a chainsaw, then some old computer program, then a badly damaged amplifier. “I paid more than it would have cost,” sings Parker over top of the maelstrom. “That’s a couple layers of guitar synth run into a gated distortion. It’s really unnatural sounding, but very simple,” notes Sparhawk.
A significant factor in the band searching for something new is Sparhawk’s tiring of hearing the same things emanating from his axe. “I love the guitar, I’ve been playing it all my life,” he says. “But it’s a struggle — sometimes it gets old hearing those sounds it makes. And yet you love it.”
Parker takes it one step further. “Neither one of us is precious about having our respective instruments focused or highlighted,” she asserts. “There’s rhythm on it [the new album], there’s a little bit of drums, but I don’t care. Alan does not want the guitar to sound like a guitar, so you wouldn’t even know he was playing the thing other than he was going through a synth,” Ultimately, Parker adds, “Once you let go of that, anything’s possible.”
Another highlight of the album’s adventurous spirit, one showcasing it in a style far different from “More,” is the nearly-eight-minutes-long “Hey.” Waves of synth roll along in a glitchy, sound effects-esque landscape for some time, finally joined by Parker’s lilting soprano voice: “We didn’t get past Michigan and Lake/Before we found ourselves beneath the weight,” she intones. After a few verses, the song melts into a freeform wave punctuated by atmospheric sounds and wordless vocals. Its beauty lies in its hypnotic patterns.
If it weren’t for the distinctive vocals, you would be forgiven for not realizing this is the same group that recorded the gorgeously spare and equally brilliant “What Part of Me” just a few albums ago (from 2015′s “Ones and Sixes,” their first collaboration with producer Burton).
Perhaps surprisingly for a record so experimental in its sound, Low did not build it by layers and overdubs. “By the time we were done tracking, the song was done,” notes Parker. “There was hardly any post-production. As we recorded these songs, BJ was finding the sounds.” Once they found that signature sound for each song, they didn’t have to add anything beyond the basic track.
Parker and Sparhawk, who are married and have two children, have (alongside a series of bass players) been active as a group for almost 30 years. After 12 years as the band’s bassist, Steve Garrington left in 2020. Liz Draper is now onboard as a touring member and learning the discography one rehearsal at a time.
The secret to Low’s longevity? Besides their songwriting talents and musicianship, it’s their ability and space to create as they see fit. “”We’ve never been beholden to a hit,” acknowledges Parker. “We’ve never been successful enough that we’ve had to stay in that lane.” Sparhawk adds, “We’ve been able to do a lot of records and been given the freedom to do them the way we want. Most bands — they’re lucky if they get two or three records out.” Thirteen albums released through a combination of independent record labels — the legendary Sub Pop since 2005 — track the journey of the band with the vocal blend as the cornerstone.
Aside from singing in Low, Parker and Sparhawk sing in their church choir — when it’s active. “I like singing in church,” says Sparhawk. “I really think hymns probably influenced the way I write and the way I sing and the way we harmonize.”
The band’s Twitter account, handled by the guitarist, is a light in the often murky world of social media and a vehicle for sincere interactions with fans of the type curtailed in the concert-less COVID-19 era. Sparhawk sent love to everyone on Valentine’s Day and offered a heartfelt, thankful response to a fan who made it clear that Low’s music had helped him out of a dark place. “You sense that responsibility and that connection right away,” he reflects. “You learn to respect it. It’s weird because you don’t know the person and don’t know what they’ve been through, so you don’t feel immediately deserving of their gratitude.”
“But I think it’s more than that,” Parker interjects. “It’s an understanding of humanity. We’re all human, and we’re all going through crap.” Sparhawk concludes: “Who hasn’t experienced how awesome it is to have a bad day and have someone take a moment to say, ‘Hey, are you OK? I know you’re anonymous and I don’t know you, but I do feel you and I love you and it’s worth getting through this day.’”
Low’s played only a few shows so far in support of “Hey What,” each including the group playing the album in its entirety. Parker’s particularly enjoying playing closer “The Price You Pay.” “‘Days Like These’ is really a tightrope walk for me,” adds Sparhawk. “It’s a lot of little subtleties and moments and a dynamic that I have to control. But when it works, it can be really satisfying.”
And the band is — finally — ready to hit the road. Lockdown delays threw off the traditional routine of touring right as an album is released, which was jarring for them. “The timing is weird this time,” acknowledges Sparhawk, who adds that the pause did give them “more time to think about how we want to present the stuff live.”
Given the band’s longevity, Sparhawk and Parker have dozens of Atlanta memories, from staying with good friend, former Swans member and Atlanta resident Jarboe to (inevitably) getting lost (“A lot of damn Peachtrees. Big streets!” exclaims Parker.) With energy to unleash from such a long tour wait and a dazzling set of critically acclaimed new songs to play, Low will undoubtedly add a few more good memories to that list on Saturday.
CONCERT PREVIEW
Low
6:45 p.m. March 26. $22-$25. Terminal West, 887 W. Marietta St. NW C, Atlanta. 404-876-5566, terminalwestatl.com.
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