Curator — Volume Two, Drop 5
Contributed “Temple Towers”, then introduced Kenneth Gregory and Liz Draper.
“Temple Towers”
Written by George Alan Sparhawk (BMI); performed by Alan Sparhawk on vocals and guitar; assistant recording/mixing engineer Haley Fohr
“I'm trying to push my voice into new territory lately. Some things are found on the edge of the extremes, other discoveries are more subtle and close to the bone. It seems to both yearn for and expand a vision I've had for a few years now of a tall temple and the feeling of being at its core, looking up through layers of light and ether.”
Over decades as one half of the pioneering band Low, Alan Sparhawk and his wife and lifelong creative partner Mimi Parker explored the force of powerful, gentle places. Following Parker's passing in 2022, Sparhawk released his first solo album, “White Roses, My God,” in Fall 2024 — Pitchfork wondered how something so “blown out, staticky, inhuman” could simultaneously elicit “freedom” and “spiritual necessity.”
Every curator brings two more voices into the volume. These are theirs.
“I Can Hold It In My Hand”
Kenneth Gregory: antique music box, Yamaha VSS-30, Yamaha Reface CP
“It was created using only small, portable instruments: rough and grainy samples made by recording a few sparse notes from a music box into a very lo-fi sampling keyboard. The song title references the enjoyment I take in holding something with moving parts in my hands and feeling its realness.”
Kenneth Gregory is a musician and composer from northeastern Minnesota, fascinated by the sounds produced in nature and how they combine with the sounds of industry. His recent album, the ephemeral pool, celebrates the new life of spring and the fragility of natural wetlands.
“thaw”
Liz Draper: upright bass, vibraphone
““Thaw” emerged out of a meditative improvisation as a means for moments of calm during the abhorrent frozen occupation we experienced as a community this past winter in Minnesota.”
Upright bassist Liz Draper is known for her sidewoman work with everyone from Iris DeMent to Low. Her debut solo album, Meno, made UNCUT Magazine's Highest Rated Albums list of 2025.