Tragically Mark Linkous has died after shooting himself in the heart on March 6th in Knoxville, Tennessee, he was 47.
Most notably recognized for his work as the protagonist in haunting psych-folk band Sparklehorse he will be sadly missed by music enthusiasts. This band’s 1995 debut album Vivadixiesubmarinetransmissionplot won them the admiration of their peers that resulted in invites to tour with Radiohead and REM.
It was on one of these tours that Linkous fell unconscious after ingesting a cocktail of Valium and various antidepressants. In this 14-hour inoperative state his legs had pinned themselves beneath him, consequentially loosing circulation. When paramedics tried to straighten his limbs he suffered a heart attack. From the ordeal he was left partially paralyzed and spent several months in a wheelchair.
He chronicled his recovery in the 1998 album Good Morning Spider. Linkous has left a fine body of personal work and some fantastic artistic collaboration. Of particular note are the production of troubled singer/songwriter Daniel Johnston’s 2003 album Fear Yourself and the work with his hero Tom Waits.
Later this year another such collaboration is set to be released, Dark Night of the Soul, a multi-media project which involves Danger Mouse and David Lynch. He is survived by his wife, three brothers and his mother and father.
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Posted 10th March by Livemusic Team
