"Neither Brett nor I are the Yellow King." Handsome Family interviewed on KPCC.

The Handsome Family Go Cruising with Barenaked Ladies

From the vaults ca. January 2008:

TOUR DIARY... THE HANDSOME FAMILY & BARENAKED LADIES SEA CRUISE 
by Rennie Sparks

Photo by http://www.flickr.com/photos/peterj1977/2245375024/

 My husband and I have a band called The Handsome Family. Over the years we've played our share of far-flung venues: a lesbian death metal bar in Oslo, the Sydney Opera House, a Belgian festival where everyone dressed in medieval garb (tights, pointed slippers, daggers), a funeral full of sobbing people... But still even we were surprised to be invited to play Ships And Dip III: The Barenaked Ladies Cruise.

Handsome Family "Wilderness" Release Party 5/4/13

See the full set here: Handsome Family "Wilderness" Release Party 5/4/13, a set on Flickr.

at Low Spirits BBQ

Brett and Rennie and band were great, with the mandolin and pedal steel work of David Gutierrez a particular stand out. We found it interesting that they chose to alternate old songs with new ones, which means that you're never in for a 20 minutes stretch of songs you don't really know. I know them, but in most cases the audience usually doesn't, so this keeps you interested.

One of the most captivating moments was when Brett sang the new song, "Glowworm," which follows the singer's path boating through Hades to steal the light from the center of the world, or something like that. Brett sings this song in a baritone so low that I expected a herd of elephants and whales to be waiting for us outside the club

I had wedged myself back behind everybody just in front of the sound booth so I could get some whole stage shots. I had gotten those shots and had put my camera down and was just sort of digging the band when I saw Brett point out at the glowworm in the darkness. I said, "OH SHIT!" audibly, and quickly fumbled for my camera and just hit the button. I am so glad that it came in at any kind of focus. I also love Rennie's smile here.

Paste Magazine: Rennie Sparks Shares Her Paintings

Paste Magazine asks 24 musicians about their love of painting and to share some of their work. Rennie Sparks of The Handsome Family does an interesting little Q&A (below) about her love of dog food cans and the difference between painting & writing music. See profiles of more musicians, including Mindy Smith, Robyn Hitchcock, Joseph Arthur, Ani DiFranco, and more by reading the article in Paste. 

Rennie Sparks of Handsome Family
Rennie Sparks sings and plays banjo and bass in Handsome Family, alongside her husband Brett. The Chicago band has released nine albums since 1994, including Uncut magazine's Country Album of the Year, Through the Trees in 1998.

When did you first start painting?
About five years ago, long after I started playing music.

Are you inspired by a particular painter or artistic movement?
I was actually inspired to start painting by dog food. I used to wander around gas station mini-marts while on tour looking for something to cheer me up. I noticed that whenever I looked at dog food cans, that inevitably have very eager looking dogs depicted on them, I would feel much happier. I started collecting dog food cans then, and I now have a collection of them from all over the world. One day at home I decided to try to paint a really happy dog face. After that I couldn't stop trying to paint animal utopias.

How does painting differ from music as a creative outlet for you?
My paintings are always insanely joyful, but my music is usually somber and mournful. I can paint from an animal's point of view, but can only play music from a human pov.

Where can we see your work in person?
Every painting I've done has been sold. I have a few portraits of my own dead pets hanging at my home in Albuquerque. You can see tons of sold work on my website, handsomefamily.com then follow link to paintings.

A Song Saved My Life Tonight

Posted this on the CTR News page as well but thought it was so cool/important that it needs repeating...

This quote from Rennie Sparks of The Handsome Family that ran in the huge, amazing cover story in the Minneapolis City Pages really hit home. It's why songwriters write, musicians play, fans buy their albums and go to shows, and music business people work 12 hour days.

"There's something about songs that lets them do things we can't do for each other," says Rennie Sparks in the story. "It's a different language, almost a dream language. It can make you feel alive again, aware of beauty again. You feel like suddenly you're in a magical place. A song can feel like it's saving your life. It's important. Art has a purpose. Feeling alive is very hard to do sometimes. It's easy to be numb."