RIP Mark Linkous

I remember the first time I heard Sparklehorse like it was yesterday. I was driving home on a Sunday night, listening to Jason Moon Wilkins show on Lightning 100, and he played "Someday I Will Treat You Good." It was one of those musical "oh shit" moments where you are just absolutely blown away. I'm pretty sure I went out and bought Vivadixiesubmarinetransmissionplot the next day. It was absolutely brilliant. Somehow he managed to be rocking, rootsy, and totally surreal all at once. It was like listening to a rock album produced by David Lynch (who would end up collaborating with Mark Linkous fourteen years later on Dark Night Of The Soul). It may have taken him four or five years to complete an album, but the wait was always worth it. Pretty much everything he touched was great.

Unfortunately, Mark Linkous was also the kind of brilliant that when I read that he committed suicide yesterday, I was saddened but not surprised. He had already famously overdosed once, and his lyrics were full of references that made you think he might not be long for this world. Regardless, yesterday the world lost an incredibly gifted artist.

So farewell Mr. Linkous. Here's to hoping you find the happiness in the next life that was obviously missing for you in this one.

Sparklehorse - "Happy Man (Memphis Version)" (mp3) from Distorted Ghost