THE HANDSOME FAMILY

The Handsome Family today announce a UK and Irish tour to mark the re-release of their classic album “Singing Bones”. The album was the 6th album from the husband and wife outfit of Brett & Rennie Sparks and was the first record from the band since moving away from the midwestern alternative country scene of Chicago, Illinois to the desert southwest of Albuquerque, New Mexico. Here their songs became infused with the desert sun and crawling reptiles. Mariachi and Morricone - Western Gothic, if you will. The record was released in 2003. Ten years later, the desert mystery “Far From Any Road" was used as the theme for HBO’S “True Detective.” The song became a worldwide hit. Now for the first time, it will be released on Vinyl and Deluxe CD, with bonus material. The tour sees the band return for 2 nights at their London home-from-home The Union Chapel.

Rennie Sparks says of that time: “It was a hot July afternoon in 2001 when the fire ants attacked me. I walked right over an anthill on my way to trim the cacti. The ants quickly swarmed my leg and began biting viciously again and again. I spent the rest of the day on the couch moaning in pain. Deep within the agony I heard a high pitched sound. I heard the ant queen calling to me from out beneath the driveway. I got up and wrote the lyrics to “Far From Any Road." The ant queen’s magic is in every word of every song on this record. She is the hole, the ghost, the wild wind and the fallen peaches. How else can I explain that “Singing Bones” is still alive and well at 23.”

Since its release, “Far From Any Road” has accumulated more than 45 M YouTube views and 153 M Spotify streams, a clear testimony to its huge cultural reach and lasting impact.

Critical praise of Singing Bones (2003)

“they are the darlings of alt.country and their sixth album doesn’t disappoint”
The Daily Telegraph

“Faulkneresque gothic from the haunting but charming Brett & Rennie Sparks”
The Guardian ★★★★

“a mature, mercurial passion play from one of America’s best kept secrets”
The Big Issue ★★★★

“haunting, primal and strangely heroic”
The Times ★★★★

“Singing Bones is a masterpiece of modern American Gothic”
The Independent ★★★★

“Singing Bones is a ghosts’ convention set to music”
Mojo ★★★★

Singing Bones is re-released May 8th on Loose