Sun Kil Moon
| Sun Kil Moon | |
|---|---|
 Mark Kozelek is Sun Kil Moon. |
|
| Background information | |
| Origin | San Francisco, California |
| Genres | Folk rock |
| Years active | 2002–present |
| Labels | Caldo Verde Records |
| Associated acts | Red House Painters |
| Website | www.sunkilmoon.com |
| Members | Mark Kozelek Anthony Koutsos Geoff Stanfield Jerry Vessel (live) Phil Carney (live)[1] |
| Past members | Tim Mooney |
Sun Kil Moon is a music project of singer-songwriter Mark Kozelek, best known for his previous band Red House Painters. The band is named after Korean lightweight boxer Sung-Kil Moon.[2]
Contents |
History [edit]
Following the dissolution of Red House Painters after the tumultuous release of their last album Old Ramon, Kozelek released a handful of solo recordings before forming Sun Kil Moon in 2002. The band's debut album, Ghosts of the Great Highway, was released in November 2003 by Jetset Records. It contains several songs concerned with true-life stories of deceased boxers, such as Mexican featherweight champion Salvador Sánchez, Filipino flyweight champion Pancho Villa, and also Korean boxer Duk Koo Kim, all three boxers died at the age of 23. The album was well received by critics, garnering an overall rating of 84/100 on Metacritic.com.[3]
The band's follow-up Tiny Cities was released in November 2005 on Kozelek's own label Caldo Verde Records. The album covers eleven songs by the indie/alternative group Modest Mouse. Ghosts of the Great Highway was re-issued as a double CD in February 2007 on Caldo Verde. The second disc features six bonus tracks, including a cover of "Somewhere" written by Leonard Bernstein.
Sun Kil Moon's third studio album April was released in April 2008[4] and features guest vocals from Will Oldham and Ben Gibbard. The album was issued as a double CD, featuring a bonus disc of alternate recordings of album tracks. The album was met with further critical acclaim, including a 4.5/5-star rating from Allmusic[5] and 4-star reviews from Billboard, Mojo, The Boston Globe, and Drowned in Sound.[6]
Admiral Fell Promises was released on July 13, 2010,[4][7] and whilst credited to Sun Kil Moon, only Kozelek plays on the record, on nylon stringed guitar, and vocals.[8]
Kozelek is fascinated with the sport of boxing, which was the inspiration for the Sun Kil Moon moniker as well as several of their songs including the song Duk Koo Kim. [9] According to Kozelek, "Their backgrounds are extremely harsh and they work very hard to move up in their careers. I was in attendance at the Manny Pacquiao-Agapito Sanchez fight in San Francisco in 2001. When I heard Sanchez was murdered shortly after, it had a profound effect on me. It hurts when anyone dies young, but when you see the backgrounds of these guys and the path they've taken to try to find some light in their lives, it hurts to see them die young."[9] Duk Koo Kim was a Korean boxer who died after a nationally televised bout with Ray Mancini on November 13, 1982. Mancini is from Youngstown, Ohio, which is very close to Kozelek's hometown of Massillon. The triumph of the local hero soon turned into a tragedy that included the suicide death of both Kim's mother and the bout's referee, Richard Green.[10]
Among The Leaves, Sun Kil Moon's fifth studio album, was released on May 29, 2012.
Tim Mooney, the band's drummer, died in June 2012.[11]
Discography [edit]
- Ghosts of the Great Highway (November 4, 2003)
- Tiny Cities (November 1, 2005)
- Ghosts of the Great Highway 2CD re-issue (February 6, 2007)
- April (April 1, 2008)
- Tonight the Sky EP (January 2009)
- Admiral Fell Promises (July 13, 2010)
- I'll Be There EP (July 13, 2010)
- Among The Leaves (May 29, 2012)
Soundtracks / songs in films or television [edit]
- "Kentucky Woman" (in Elizabethtown)
- "The Arrival" (in The Girl Next Door)
- "Carry Me Ohio" and "Lily and Parrots" (in Shopgirl)
- "Gentle Moon" (in Friday Night Lights)
- "Heron Blue" (in Crash season 1, episode "F-36, Sprint Left, T-4" during closing credits and in Gears of War 3 "Ashes to Ashes" trailer)
- "Lost Verses" (in Californication season 2, episode 12: "La petite mort")
- "Like the River" (in Sons of Anarchy season 1: pilot)
- "Tonight the Sky" (in Brothers & Sisters season 3)
- "Ålesund" (in Sons of Anarchy season 3, episode 11: Bainne)
- "Glenn Tipton" (in Sons of Anarchy season 4, episode 12: Burnt and Purged Away)
- "Third and Seneca" (in Sons Of Anarchy season 5, episode 3: Laying Pipe)
- "Among The Leaves" (in The Big C season 4, episode 2: Hereafter: You Can't Take It With You)
References [edit]
- ^ O'Connor, Rob (April 2010). "An Interview with Mark Kozelek of Sun Kil Moon". Caldo Verde Records. Retrieved April 1, 2012.
- ^ Bussel, Andrea, "Mark Kozelek", Rockpile, archived from the original on February 19, 2005
- ^ "Ghosts Of The Great Highway Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More". Metacritic. CBS Interactive Inc.
- ^ a b "Sun Kil Moon: The Official Website for Sun Kil Moon".
- ^ Jurek, Thom. "April - Sun Kil Moon: Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Rovi Corp.
- ^ "April Reviews, Ratings, and Credits and More". Metacritic. CBS Interactive Inc.
- ^ Dombal, Ryan (April 26, 2010). "Sun Kil Moon Announce New Album". Pitchfork. Pitchfork Media Inc.
- ^ Deusner, Stephen M. (13 July 2010). "Pitchfork: Album Reviews: Sun Kil Moon: Admiral Fell Promises". Retrieved 13 July 2010.
- ^ a b Ortega, Mark (February 11, 2012). "Famous Fight Fan: Mark Kozelek". The Queensberry Rules.
- ^ "25 Years Later: The Death Of Duk Koo Kim", Las Vegas Review-Journal, November 13, 2007
- ^ Minsker, Evan (June 16, 2012). "R.I.P. Sun Kil Moon, American Music Club Drummer Tim Mooney". Pitchfork. Pitchfork Media Inc.
External links [edit]
- The official Sun Kil Moon/Mark Kozelek/Red House Painters website
- The official Mark Kozelek website
- The official Caldo Verde Records website
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