Low is an American indie rock[1] group from Duluth, Minnesota, formed in 1993.

As of 2010,
the group is composed of founding members Alan Sparhawk (guitar and vocals) and Mimi
Parker (drums and vocals), joined by Steve Garrington (bass guitar).[2] Previous bassists for
the band include John Nichols from 1993 to 1994; Zak Sally from 1994 to 2005 and Matt
Livingston from 2005 to 2008.
The music of Low is characterized by slow tempos and minimalist arrangements. Early
descriptions sometimes referred to it as a rock subgenre called "slowcore" often compared
to the band Bedhead, who played this style during the 1980s and early 1990s. However,
Low's members ultimately disapproved of the term.[3][4]
Parker and Sparhawk's striking vocal harmonies represent perhaps the group's most
distinctive element; critic Denise Sullivan writes that their shared vocals are "as chilling as
anything Gram and Emmylou ever conspired onthough that's not to say it's countrytinged, just straight from the heart."[5]
Contents
[hide]

1History

2Performance

3Commercial success

4Personal lives

5Side projects

6Discography
o

6.1Studio albums

6.2EPs

6.3Singles

6.4Live albums

6.5Miscellaneous

6.6Compilations

7References

8External links

History[edit]
The band formed in the spring of 1993. Sparhawk had been playing in the Superior,
Wisconsin band Zen Identity,[6] the core of which was formed by drummer Robb Berry and
vocalist Bill Walton. That band needed a new bassist and recruited future Low bassist John
Nichols. At that time, Nichols was a senior at Superior Senior High School, and bassist in
the band Lorenzo's Tractor. Sparhawk taught Zen Identity songs to Nichols and during
practices, the two started improvising with some very modest, quiet themes. As a joke, they
wondered what would happen if they played such quiet music in front of Duluth crowds,
which at that point focused around the loud, grunge, "post-punk" sound. Soon, the joke
became a serious thought. Sparhawk left Zen Identity, who continued to perform and record
without him, and he and Nichols recruited Sparhawk's wife Mimi Parker to play a very
modest drum kit composed of a single cymbal and a singlefloor tom. She was to use
brushes almost exclusively rather than drum sticks.

Low at Duluth's Electric Fetus

Low's debut album, I Could Live in Hope, was released on Virgin Records' Vernon Yard
imprint in 1994. It featured Nichols on bass, though he was replaced by Zak Sally, who
joined for the recording of the band's next album Long Division. Both I Could Live in
Hope and Long Division were produced and recorded by Kramer. Long Division and its
similar follow-up, 1996's The Curtain Hits the Cast, established the band as critical darlings;
extensive touring helped them to develop a highly devoted fan base. "Over the Ocean," a
single drawn from The Curtain Hits the Cast, also became something of a hit on college
radio.
By the time of their next full-length album (1999's Secret Name) Low had moved to the
independent label Kranky. In between, they released several singlesand EPs. In 1999, Low
joined forces with Dirty Three to record an In The Fishtank session for Konkurrent
records. Allmusic called the six-song disc "some of the best material either unit has

produced." Of particular note is the disc's lengthy cover of Neil Young's "Down by the
River." 2001 saw the release ofThings We Lost in the Fire.
The following year saw the release of the band's final full-length on Kranky, Trust. All three
of the band's full-length releases on Kranky featured superstarproducers: Secret
Name and Things We Lost in the Fire feature the work of recording engineer Steve Albini,
who proved sympathetic to capturing the band's strengths; while Trust was recorded by Tom
Herbers along with Duluth engineer Eric Swanson and mixed by Tchad Blake at Peter
Gabriel's Real World Studios.
In April 2003, Peter S. Scholtes of the Twin Cities weekly paper City Pages posted in
his weblog that Sally had left Low. The following month, the band posted an update to the
news on their website: "We have all had to work through some personal things recently ...
After sorting it out, the good news is that Zak is remaining in the band ..." In July 2003, they
toured Europe with Radiohead, Sally in tow. Following a successful tour in early 2004 that
vividly demonstrated the band's commitment to their fans (Parker was visibly pregnant
throughout), the band signaled their intent to continue making music by signing with
powerhouse indie label Sub Pop. To tie up the loose ends of the era, Low released a threedisc rarities compilation on its own Chairkickers label in 2004.
Beginning with Secret Name, the band have diversified their sound. The band use
subtle electronic music touches to augment their sound, reflective of their tenure
with Kranky and their exposure to the Midwest's post-rock scene. Adding a more overt rock
element to their aesthetic, the band has used fuzz bass from Things We Lost In the
Fire onward, and began using distorted lead guitar on Trust. The band's 2005 album, The
Great Destroyer, nods even further in the direction of rock. Recorded with producer Dave
Fridmann and released by Sub Pop in January 2005,The Great Destroyer has received
mostly positive reviews; the Village Voice described the record's "comparatively thunderous
verve."
Low canceled the second leg of their extensive tour in support of The Great Destroyer in
late spring of 2005. Sparhawk's statement, published on the band's website, addressed
directly to fans, detailing his personal problems with depression resulting in the cancellation
of the tour. In August 2005, Sparhawk announced his return to performance, embarking on
a US tour with formerRed House Painters frontman Mark Kozelek. In October 2005, Sally
announced he was leaving the band. Low replaced Sally with Matt Livingston, a bassist and
saxophonist from Duluth's musical scene. In addition to playing bass guitar, Livingston also
played an antique Navy chaplain's pump organ in the group.
After appearing on 2007's Drums and Guns and touring with the group, Matt Livingston left
Low in 2008, to be replaced by Steve Garrington.

Performance[edit]

Low live in the Barby club, Tel Aviv, Israel, September 11, 2008

Low are known for their impressive live performances. Rock club audiences sometimes
watch the band while seated on the floor. During their early career, the band often faced
unsympathetic and inattentive audiences in bars and clubs, to which they responded by
bucking rock protocol and turning their volumedown. The huge dynamic range of Low's
early music made it susceptible to background noise and chatter, since many of their songs
were very quiet. A performance in 1996 at the South by Southwest festival was
overpowered when a Scandinavian hardcore band was booked downstairs.
The Trust album marked a turning point, and Low's music has developed a more emphatic
sound.[citation needed]
Their shows often feature drastically reinterpreted cover versions of famous songs by the
likes of Joy Division and The Smiths, in addition to their own original material. In
performance, Low shows off a sense of humor not necessarily found on their recordings; a
tour in early 2004 featured a cover ofOutKast's hit song "Hey Ya!." At a gig in Los
Angeles on Halloween 1998, the band took the stage as a Misfits tribute act, complete
with corpse paint and black clothing.
At the 2008 End of the Road festival in Dorset, England, Sparhawk abruptly ended the
band's performance by ripping the strings and lead out of his guitar, throwing it to the
ground and then hurling it into the crowd before exiting the stage. He had earlier informed
the audience that it had been a "crappy day". In 2010 they performed the Great
Destroyer at Primavera Sound Festival[7] On Friday July 13, 2012 Low gave a candlelit
concert at Halifax Minster.
Low's performance at the 2013 Rock the Garden concert consisted of a slowed and
lengthened version of their drone rock song "Do You Know How to Waltz?" followed by Alan
saying, "Drone, not drones," a reference to an anti-drone sticker made by Minneapolis's
Luke Heiken;[8] the performance resulted in mass audience confusion and divisive online
discussion.[9] The performance lasted half an hour and was broadcast live on The
Current which had been playing cuts of their recent album. Low had performed a more
traditional show for The Current at the Fitzgerald earlier in the year.