Later this year, we’ll get to hear Bird Machine, a posthumous album from Mark Linkous of Sparklehorse. Before it’s out in full September 8th, a new single called “The Scull of Lucia” is available now, and it features guest vocals from Jason Lytle of slacker rockers Granddaddy.
Though Linkous was largely the main force behind Sparklehorse, Bird Machine was a group effort. Linkous was almost finished with his fifth album under the moniker before tragically taking his life in 2010; his brother Mark and sister-in-law Melissa, both of whom had been involved with Sparklehorse previously, pored over demo tapes and notes to bring the record to life.
“From the very first seconds of ‘The Scull of Lucia,’ I was transported to a different time,” the album’s producer Joel Hamilton said in a press release. “The recipe is unmistakably Sparklehorse: The pace, the sounds, the overall texture of the voice. Every sound seems to support the voice and the lyric, which was always at the core of Mark’s genius. The weight of the world, floated on a rickety raft, across a sea of melancholy.”
With sparse, whimsical instrumentation juxtaposing existential lyrics, “The Scull of Lucia” is classic Sparklehorse, indeed: “Some are born/ To sweet the light/ And some are born/ To endless night,” Linkous sings in his whispery vocals. Listen to the track below.
Pre-orders for Bird Machine are ongoing. The project features lead single “Evening Star Supercharger,” as well as December’s “It Will Never Stop.” Before that, the artist appeared alongside MF DOOM in “Ninjarous,” a song shared by Danger Mouse.
