testmeat photoblog

i've been on holiday for the last week and i only managed to get online for the last couple of days when i found a grotty bar with free wifi. i posted a picture, downloaded my emails and a few rss feeds, before departing for drinks in a better bar. later that night i was reading through pitchfork music news when i saw the headline R.I.P. Sparklehorse's Mark Linkous. i couldn't believe it, and i couldn't read or say anything else all night, i felt heartbroken.

i've been a fan of sparklehorse ever since i bought good morning spider on vinyl in a record shop in guildford before i went to uni. i hadn't heard of them before, but listened to a couple of tracks in the store before deciding to give it a go. i listened to it again and again, and his version of daniel johnston's hey joe quickly became the best song i had ever listened to. i got his first album shortly afterwards and that became a staple play during my first couple of years at uni. spirit ditch from that lp began to rival hey joe in terms of musical perfection. i got hold of his third album as soon as it was released, and shortly afterwards saw him live in leeds and manchester. then after about five years of silence i saw him again in leeds and manchester after he released his final album.

it's no exaggeration to say that sparklehorse is in my top five all time favourite bands/artists. i feel lucky that i saw him when i could, reassured that i'll always have his wonderful songs, but also incredibly sad that it's all now ended. he's up there with kurt and elliott as musical legends that burned too bright, but left the world a more beautiful place.

here's the original