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Low's Alan Sparhawk turns to joy of music in his grief

Mimi Parker and Alan Sparhawk sit on a driftwood log on a beach on Lake Superior.  The lake is wavy and a guitar is seen partly in the frame.
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Low
Mimi Parker, left, and Alan Sparhawk pose for a photo together on a Lake Superior beach in Duluth.

In an interview with KAXE Music Director Kari Hedlund, Sparhawk said it's a relief to be playing with a band without being its leader — particularly at this moment in time, just months after the death of his wife and Low bandmate Mimi Parker.

Alan Sparhawk has been a huge part of the Minnesota music scene since Low first arrived in the early '90s.

A force of creativity, the Duluth-based guitarist and vocalist has continually pushed his own musical limits and experiences through multiple side projects, diving in to various sounds.

He’ll be playing in one of those side projects, DAMIEN, Saturday, March 25, at the Ripple Center in Aitkin alongside longtime friend, HALEY. Tickets are available through the Ripple Center.

Low's Mimi Parker (left) and Alan Sparhawk backstage at Merriweather Post Pavilion in 2007.
Catherine P. Lewis for NPR
Low's Mimi Parker (left) and Alan Sparhawk backstage at Merriweather Post Pavilion in 2007.

In an interview with KAXE Music Director Kari Hedlund, Sparhawk said it's a relief to be playing with a band without being its leader — particularly at this moment in time, just months after the death of his wife and Low bandmate Mimi Parker.

"I have to admit, at least right now in my life, it's nice to be able to engage music without it necessarily being ... me on the spot," Sparhawk said. " ... Music's been a little weird for me right now, and I feel really lucky that I have people to play with."

"There's definitely strength that lingers on from her and from what we were able to do."
Alan Sparhawk on his wife and bandmate, Mimi Parker

Although Sparhawk said he's stepped away from the spotlight for the moment, the joy of music remains for him. But performing without Parker is an adjustment.

"There's definitely strength that lingers on from her and from what we were able to do," Sparhawk said. "It's strange. Music is really beautiful. It's a really timeless way to connect with people.

"And it's also, because of that, it's very close to our soul, very close to our core, and very much in touch with things that are joyful and things that are sad, things that are painful. It very much interacts with how we process life."

Sparhawk is now playing alongside another close family member — his 18-year-old son Cyrus. The duo are part of two side projects, including DAMIEN. Sparhawk said when his son approached him about playing together, he could hardly contain his excitement.

"There will be little moments where you'll be going and it will hit, and you'll feel it — 'There it is, there it is.' And it's funny because there's this tendency to sort of lift your head a little bit and kind of look out of the corner of your eye and see if anybody else in the band felt it," Sparhawk said.

" ... To experience that with anybody is really beautiful, and it happens all the time in music. But, you know, to share that moment with someone that's in your family ... that creates a pretty undeniable depth in your relationship."

Listen the Hedlund's full conversation with Sparhawk above.

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