Tag Archive: Mimi Parker


A COMFORTABLE LOW

lowband

LOW : Live at Teatro Antoniano, Bologna

I must be getting old. When Alan Sparhawk said during this show: “I’m sorry that you have to sit”, my immediate thought was: ‘there’s really no need to apologize’.

A concert in a comfortable theatre venue strikes me as a sensible choice, particularly for a band like Low. Let’s face it, their intense, reflective brand of rock is hardly party music! To dance to their songs, you’d need a lot of imagination.

Sparhawk’s comment is also a little odd since it seems that he and wife MImi Parker go out of their way to ensure their music is heard in such settings. The last time I saw them in 2002 at a small club (also in Bologna), seating was provided and, presumably out of respect for the Mormon couple’s teetotalism, the bar was closed. Continue reading

LOW MURDERERS AND MORMONS

YOU MAY NEED A MURDERER – A film by David Klejwegt (2008)

low-mayneedmurdererLow are something of an Indie rock institution having continued to produce their slow, introspective yet powerful music for the best part of two decades now.

The core of the Minnesota-based band are husband and wife Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker, both of whom are devout Mormons although I doubt that you’d guess this from listening to their records.

I suppose their songs could be said to have a certain spiritual quality although not in a ‘praise the Lord’ way. This documentary made by a Dutch filmmaker takes its name from the chilling track Murderer on the band’s 2007 album Drums And Guns which is a song that suggests a pact with the devil rather than cozying up to Christ.

The film  follows the couple in their small ,and boring looking, community in Minnesota and travelling on the road. It presents them as strongly committed to the Church of Latter Day Saints, devoted to their family (they have two young kids) and passionate about their music. Continue reading