Alan Sparhawk | Game Program
Brudenell Social Club, Leeds
4th November 2024
Alan Sparhawk returns to The Brudenell Social Club with an electrifying and emotional performance. Andy Brown shares his thoughts for Louder Than War.
It was never intended to be this way yet the 2021 album Hey What would prove to be the final album by Low. An experimental offering that found the band around 28 years in and still thirsty for adventure. The slowcore legends formed in Minnesota with married couple Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker at its core. I was lucky enough to see them live on a few occasions, including shows at this very venue. I was due to see them again at the Brudenell Social Club in late 2022 but sadly this wasn’t to be. After battling ovarian cancer, it was announced that Parker had passed away at the age of 55.
Earlier this year, Sparhawk unveiled a startling new solo single entitled Can You Hear. The following album – White Roses, My God – is an emotional, electronic exorcism. The sound of a man still in thrall to the possibilities of art, music and creation. It really is remarkable. A lot has happened in the interim, but it’s good to know that Alan Sparhawk will soon be back on stage at the Brudenell.
We’re eased into the night with a set from Game Program. One of numerous projects to come from prolific Leeds’ legend, Jonathan Nash. Perhaps best known for his part in the Devo-loving rock trio Cowtown, his output as Game Program is an entirely electronic affair. Nash proceeds to take his place behind a table of wires, boxes and various bits of electronic kit. Considering the direction Sparhawk’s new material has taken, it feels like an apt choice of opener.
Each piece gradually evolves, moving from trancey soundscapes and head-nodding beats to washes of neon synths. At times it feels like you’re hearing a club night filtered through a bedroom wall (but far more enjoyable than that would actually be). There’s an ambient, somewhat hypnotic quality to the sound. As the venue begins to fill up, Nash tells us that he isn’t quite prepared but it’s a fun set and a solid start to the evening. What’s more, he finishes with an absolute banger.
Tonight, the Brudenell welcomes Alan Sparhawk back with open arms. Dressed in a plain white hoodie, the singer holds a microphone and is accompanied by his son Cyrus. Backed by electronic effects, samples and Cyrus’ fuzzy bass, Sparhawk sets about reintroducing himself to the crowd. Get Still kicks in and the singer is immediately bouncing around and pouring himself into every inch of the performance. He’s soon down to his overalls, energy radiating from every pore. The sampled harmonies sound remarkably like Parker and make the hair on the back of my neck stand on end. There’s a sense that this music simply has to come out.
Sparhawk’s vocals have always been undeniably powerful yet the new material sees that beloved voice utterly drenched in pitch-shifted, autotune-style effects. It shouldn’t work but it really does. You can hear him fighting his way through the darkness, masking his voice as he tries to work through his emotions. Channelling the pain, hope and disorientation into his art. “I wanna make my noise!” he shouts through an effects-heavy microphone. There’s a real intensity here. You can hear that angry, tired yet defiant human spirit breaking through the electronic interference. The man really is nothing but heart.
I Made This Beat feels like the singer psyching himself up, as Cyrus’ propulsive bass pulls us along for the ride. The music takes advantage of the technology at hand, Sparhawk even appearing to make adjustments via his phone during the brilliant Station. The music is strange and explicitly experimental yet never cold or detached; these songs simply crackle with catharsis. Project 4 Ever fills the room with big, soul-shaking beats and a wall of warm drone. It wraps around me like a blanket as it rattles the ceiling tiles above.
About halfway into the night, there’s a sizable shift when Sparhawk downs his effects-laden mic and straps on a guitar. He proceeds to play a stripped-back rendition of Heaven from the new LP. The shift away from electronics means everything suddenly feels so exposed. “When you flew out the window and went into the sunset, I thought I would never stop screaming” he sings on the heart-wrenching Screaming Song. When the song bursts into feedback towards the end, it feels like a dam bursting its banks. This is the sound of a man processing his grief. It’s as vulnerable, honest and raw as any performance I think I’ve ever seen.
We get a couple of Retribution Gospel Choir songs, including JCMF which includes the immortal line, “When Jesus comes back, all you motherfuckers gonna pay.” The instrumentation is often quiet and purposefully restrained yet the tension is tangible. Of course, this is something Sparhawk has always excelled at. A couple of Derecho Rhythm Section songs – a band Sparhawk formed with Cyrus and his daughter – provide some unexpectedly chilled and funky relief while Don’t Take Your Light Out Of Me feels like a man singing for his soul.
Sparhawk asks the assembled crowd if they have any questions and someone tells him that they’ve been thinking of him and his family. A heartfelt sentiment I’m sure is shared by the whole crowd. Sparhawk talks about how comfortable he is at the Brudenell and even mentions that his kids grew up in their t-shirts. Music really is a beautiful thing. At another point, someone asks how he is and he explains that – for a time – he hated that question. “Things were rough for a while…” he tells us before adding, “but you’ve gotta keep asking your friends how they are.”
Not Broken is introduced as a song he started writing with Parker and the words are quietly devastating. “It’s not broken/ I’m not angry,” he repeatedly pines as I start falling apart. It feels so incredibly personal yet relatable like all great songs do.
The night ends with a rendition of the Low song, White Horses. The first track on the very last album by the band. My heart melts into a puddle as we raise our voices to sing, “Still, white horses take us home.” What a truly phenomenal show. Having given us his all, Sparhawk leaves us with one more little piece of advice, “Get some therapy, this is therapy, it’s easier than you think.”
~
Live photos by Wes Foster. You can find him on Instagram and his website.
You can find Alan Sparhawk on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter/ X and Bandcamp.
You can find Game Program on Facebook, Twitter/ X, Instagram and Bandcamp.
All words by Andy Brown. You can visit his author profile and read more of his reviews for Louder Than War here.
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