The Tragedy of Sparklehorse

Sparklehorse was a Carolina/Virginia/Tennessee-based band who made really odd, and absolutely depressing music. They're labelled alternative rock... but I feel like that can give people the wrong impression.

They defy all description. They bow to no genre.

But here's the big Fuckin' deal. Sparklehorse's founder, Mark Linkous,(while on tour with Radiohead in 1996) "overdosed on alcohol, Valium and antidepressants and possibly other substances in his London hotel room. Rendered unconscious by the drugs, he collapsed with his legs pinned beneath him, and remained in that position for almost fourteen hours. Subsequent surgeries saved both legs but left him wheelchair-bound for six months; his legs never fully regained their original strength." 

In 2010 he committed suicide by shooting himself in the heart. However, this was not before collaborating with some of the best artists on the planet.

Here's a short list of his collaborations:

David Lynch

Danger Mouse

Tom Waits

Radiohead

Sage Francis

Fennesz

Here's one of the saddest songs ever recorded.

I can only post a few videos, so do yourself a huge favor and listen to every single one of Sparklehorse's albums. They're all very good.

P.s. His wife died this year, in March, just ten days before Ryo Fukui.