Photo Credit: Joseph Robert Krauss
Slark Moan, the project of New York via Nashville musician Mark Sloan (they/them) announced a new EP entitled “The Return of Guitar Music” being released on October 25. As with past Slark Moan releases, Sloan, a gifted musician who also routinely plays pedal steel for S.G. Goodman, performs nearly every instrument on the project and recorded it themself. “The Return of Guitar Music” also features production from Gordon Raphael (The Strokes, Regina Spektor, Hinds.)
“The Return of Guitar Music” is the first release from Slark Moan since their 2022 album “Four Horses,” and includes “Green Grass,” a collaboration with up-and-coming New York band OK Cowgirl that was released this May.
On Wednesday, Slark Moan shared a video directed by Diego Molina for new single “Dollhouse Heart.” The atmospheric and contemplative cut showcases Sloan’s impressive guitar prowess, as well as honeyed harmonies from guest vocalist Meg Elsier.
Of this new single, Sloan says, “‘Dollhouse Heart’ is about feeling small amidst the enormity of life, and the overwhelming sadness and beauty of living an ephemeral existence within an infinite universe. For the first time, I’ve been feeling like I’m not necessarily young anymore, and side-by-side with that feeling I recognize that I’ve gained an unabashed realism, creative empowerment, and gratitude that my younger self just couldn’t access. Being in love now feels like tapping into something so much bigger than me, something I can’t possibly contain, and that will outlive my finite body or perception of self.
“I like the image of my heart being a dollhouse, because sometimes my emotions feel like miniaturized versions of the cosmic consciousness, and only in moments of altered perception can I see the magnitude of being a soul entangled with another soul. In those moments, I don’t feel like I have the right-sized infrastructure to house my emotions, but rather I’m a life-sized human trying to fit into a dollhouse.”
“The Return of Guitar Music” Tracklisting
1. Nervous Breakdown feat. Torres
2. Dollhouse Heart feat. Meg Elsier
3. Stinger feat. Liz Cooper
4. Demon Brain
5. Green Grass feat. OK Cowgirl
