Alan Sparhawk shakes arms against a sea of troubles in the music video for “Not Broken,” a single off his upcoming collaborative album, With Trampled by Turtles. In the black-and-white clip, directed by Alexa Viscius, Sparhawk paces a concrete walkway as waves crash around him, ostensibly depicting his continued anguish and grief following the death of his wife and Low bandmate, Mimi Parker. The album comes out May 30.
“One of these days I’m gonna learn, something I’ve probably already heard,” he sings, his fragile voice floating atop the folk ensemble Trampled by Turtles’ lush musical backdrop. Then a female voice comes in, singing, “It’s not broken, I’m not angry,” in an uplifting-yet-restrained melody. The voice belongs to Sparhawk and Parker’s daughter, Hollis Sparhawk, and it blends perfectly with her father’s. By the end of the clip, he’s almost dancing … almost.
“Not Broken” is one of three songs on the album that Sparhawk and Parker had been conceptualizing, possibly as Low songs, before her death. Along with the other two songs, “Princess Road Surgery” and “Too High,” Sparhawk aimed to commemorate her by completing them with Trampled by Turtles.
The group, Trampled by Turtles, also represent another connection to Sparhawk’s past since they’re also from Duluth, Minnesota, where Low started. “There’s a certain vibe that has to do with underdog syndrome, coming from a small town,” Sparhawk said in a statement. “Some of it is the weird grind and slackness that being at the mercy of Mother Nature puts in you. It humbles you.”
Alan Sparhawk With Trampled by Turtles Track List
1. “Stranger”
2. “Too High”
3. “Heaven”
4. “Not Broken”
5. “Screaming Song”
6. “Get Still”
7. “Princess Road Surgery”
8. “Don’t Take Your Light”
9. “Torn & in Ashes”
