Retribution Gospel Choir

"Life is short, art is long," said Hippocrates (presumably with a sigh). I ponder this quotation each time I get frustrated thinking of all the art museums I can't fit into my London jaunt this May; likewise, I could spend a lifetime reading nothing but the classics and still never be done; and I'm often positively intimidated by the wealth of music both new and old to get into.

In fact, when it comes to older music acts, I will, with rare exception, restrict myself to Greatest Hits collections--not because I'm a casual music fan, no, far from it--but rather, going too far in depth with one artist takes precious time and money away from encountering other worthy artists, and I have jobs and responsibilities and a social life.

All that's a round-about way of saying that I never get into artist's side-projects--there simply isn't time, you see. Hence, when I learned that Alan Sparhawk of Low had a side-project called Retribution Gospel Choir, I didn't go exploring--at least initially.

Now, I love Low, I spent most of last year on a huge Low kick, and that was just it--why dive into side-projects when I still had so much Low left to explore? Besides, RGC was billed as "Alan Sparhawk turns up the volume" and "rocks out," and one most definitely does not get into Low to rock-out--Low is minimalistic, hushed, moody, dreamy, sublime. You get into Low to calm down, get introspective, give full expression to your melancholy. When I want to rock out I turn to Led Zeppelin, not Alan Sparhawk.

But that changed when (in an admittedly shrewd marketing move) RGC proffered their latest EP, the revolution, for free on-line. The price was right, so away I downloaded. Turns out the descriptions of RGC were correct--it is indeed Alan Sparhawk rocking out, backed by an actual drumset, his guitar turned all the way up, channeling his inner-80s-"rock-god" (I put "rock-god" in quotes because everything about this EP's rock-star posturing seems to be in gleeful self-aware quotes, as shown by this cheeky video where Sparhawk rocks out on a flute).

Nevertheless, no matter the quotes, it was impossible to deny that the ever-morose Alan Sparhawk was actually having fun! And because he was having fun, I was too (funny how that works). No, RGC isn't Low, but what is? Here, at last, was a man who in his middle-age remembered what too many kids these days have forgotten--that rock music is supposed to be fun. Intrigued, I checked Amazon and found RGC's two albums on-sale for under a buck. Again, the price was right, so I dove in.

So how is Retribution Gospel Choir's total oeuvre? Their first album, quite frankly, sounds a lot like Low, just minus Mimi Parker. Shoot, two of the songs there also appear in remixed form on Low's Drums and Guns. The standard Sparhawk moodiness, minimalism, and harmonies are all here on full display, un-tweaked.

Are the guitars turned up? They were turned up on Low's own "Great Destroyer" CD, too (and that often louder). In fact, if I didn't know better, I'd wonder if RGC was a sign of a break-down in Alan and Mimi's marriage, as he attempted to carry on "Great Destroyer"-era Low without her. (Given Sparhawks infamous mental breakdown during the Great Destroyer tour that drove away their bassist, such a speculation of strained relations would not be a stretch).

Now, this isn't to imply that RGC's first album is in any way bad--any Sparhawk is better than no Sparhawk, and Retribution Gospel Choir features Sparhawk in his typical-top form. Nonetheless, one could wonder from their first album if RGC is just a delivery system for merely-average Low throw-aways.

It's on the second album, then, that RGC finally fully justifies their existence. The drummer lets loose his inner-Keith-Moon and goes wild. Sparhawk once and for all demonstrates that his minimalism in Low was a deliberate choice, and not an expediency enforced from any lack of guitar-chops--the man can frickin' wail when he wants to, and does just that on Retribution Gospel Choir 2. There are slow-build-up songs in Low's catalog, but not like the sheer, ecstatic jams performed here by RGC. These guys know how to rock in a way that Low simply can't.

The moodiness is still there, though, and RGC 2 still has songs that would not sound out of place on a Low CD, or with Mimi Parker's gorgeous vocals. So, the revolution is an outlier; Sparhawk has only very recently learned how to have fun with his guitar.

Actually, that's not quite fair--I've been to a couple Low shows, and so I know from first-hand observation that Alan Sparhawk is experiencing full-on, balls-out, passionate joy when he plays music--even (maybe especially) in his more morose songs. My goodness, I once watched the man belt-out a distortion-heavy rendition of "Little Drummer Boy" (my least favorite Christmas song) with such conviction that it near brought tears to my eyes. He merely calls attention to that joyous conviction in Retribution Gospel Choir.