Through the Trees (1998) Carrot Top Records / Loose.Invisible Hands (1997) Carrot Top Records / Scout Releases (Vinyl only EP release).Milk and Scissors (1996) Carrot Top Records / Scout Releases.Odessa (1994) Carrot Top Records / Scout Releases.The title of Last Days of Wonder is a reference to Puritan scientist and witch-hunter Cotton Mather's 1693 book Wonders of the Invisible World, which Rennie found intriguing because of what she called its "madness brimming under the surface of things." Discography Albums the Dancing Bear", on Milk and Scissors), Emily Shore ("Emily Shore 1819–1839", on Milk and Scissors), Robert Wadlow ("The Giant of Illinois", on Through the Trees), Natalie Wood ("Natalie Wood", an outtake from Twilight, which appears on Smothered and Covered), and Nikola Tesla ("Tesla's Hotel Room", on Last Days of Wonder). Some songs are also based on actual historical figures or events, including the lives and deaths of Amelia Earhart ("Amelia Earhart vs. Rennie's lyrics have a strong storytelling component, drawing on themes from Gothic fiction, as well as American folk music, and often involving macabre subjects as murders, suicides and ghosts. Club reviewer Christopher Bahn described their music as "rootsy, literary country-rock that’s a little like a collaboration between Hank Williams and Edgar Allan Poe." The duo's penchant for a tongue-in-cheek, macabre approach to alt-country has been noted by many critics Andy Fyfe of Mojo called them "Americana's ghostly Sonny & Cher." A.V. Early recordings have rock elements, but these were less evident from 1996's Milk and Scissors onwards. The Handsome Family's style is a blend of traditional country, bluegrass, and murder ballads. Their songs have been covered repeatedly by musician Andrew Bird, including a full-length album of covers released in 2014, Things Are Really Great Here, Sort Of… Musical style The Sydney Morning Herald included season one's opening sequence in their list of the "Ten of the Best" title sequences on television. The track "Far from Any Road," from the album Singing Bones, was used as the main title theme song for HBO's 2014 crime drama True Detective by the show's music director, T Bone Burnett. Their latest album, Unseen was released in September 2016. They have subsequently released the albums Singing Bones (2003), Last Days of Wonder (2006), Honey Moon (2009), and Wilderness (2013) as well as the collections Smothered and Covered (2003) and Scattered (2010). The duo appeared in the 2003 documentary Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus, as well as the soundtrack album released two years later. In 2002, they released a live album, Live at Schuba's Tavern, a recording from the In the Air tour from Chicago in December 2000. In 2001, they moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico, and released Twilight, with Allmusic opining that the album leads "the listener down a lovely yet dark trail few would dare tread twice". That year, Rennie's book of short stories, Evil, was released by Chicago publisher Black Hole Press. They toured America and Europe again in support of the 2000 album In the Air. Ī growing following and raised profile allowed Brett and Rennie to give up their day jobs and work on the band full-time.
UNCUT named it the "Best New Country Album of the Year". They recorded the album in 1998, using Jeff Tweedy's mobile studio, and brought the band to a wider audience.
They wrote their third full-length album, Through the Trees, in the aftermath of these events, and included a song inspired by Brett's experiences in the psychiatric unit.
During that time, Brett suffered an emotional breakdown, resulting in his hospitalization and diagnosis of bipolar disorder. The band toured extensively throughout both America and Europe in support of early releases Odessa (1994) and Milk and Scissors (1996). We thought it was a good name." īrett is originally from Odessa, Texas and Rennie from Long Island. And he wanted to call it the Handsome Family. We used to have this really obnoxious drummer, and he used to call me 'Handsome', that was his nickname for me, I think for sarcastic reasons. Regarding the band name, Brett said in an interview: "It's just kind of a stupid name. Guest musicians complete the band line-up for recordings and live work. The band would later revolve around Rennie, who writes the lyrics, and Brett, who writes the music. Husband-and-wife duo Brett Sparks (vocals, guitar, keyboards) and Rennie Sparks (bass, banjo, vocals) formed the band in 1993, along with drummer Mike Werner.