Low

slowcore

Low is a slowcore band formed in Duluth, Minnesota, United States in 1993, by Alan Sparhawk (guitar and vocals), Mimi Parker (drums and vocals) and original bassist John Nichols (bass guitar). Zak Sally replaced Nichols after Low's first album and tour. In 2005, Sally quit the band; Matt Livingston replaced him shortly thereafter. In 2008 Steve Garrington took over on bass creating the lineup of Sparhawk, Parker and Garrington. In november 2022, Mimi Parker passed away. Their music is commonly described as slowcore, a subgenre characterised by slow tempos and minimalist arrangements. They are one of the earlier bands to adopt and popularize the style, making them considerable contributors to the slowcore movement. (It is worth noting that the band dislikes this label. In an interview Alan Sparhawk says of descriptions of their music: What's the cheesiest? Slow-core. I hate that word. The most appropriate is anything that uses the word minimal in it, but I don't think anybody's made one up for that) Parker and Sparhawk's striking vocal harmonies represent perhaps the group's most distinctive element. History The band formed in the spring of 1993. Sparhawk had been playing in the Duluth, Minnesota, band Zen Identity. That band needed a new bassist, and Nichols was recruited. At that time, Nichols was a senior at Superior Senior High School in nearby Superior, Wisconsin, and bassist in the band Lorenzo's Tractor. Sparhawk was called upon to teach Zen Identity songs to Nichols...