Purple Mountains (RIP David Berman, August 2019)

GODDAMN.

We couldn't be more sorry to tell you this. David Berman passed away earlier today. A great friend and one of the most inspiring individuals we've ever known is gone. Rest easy, David. pic.twitter.com/5n5bctcu4j

— 𝕯𝖗𝖆𝖌 𝕮𝖎𝖙𝖞 (@dragcityrecords) August 7, 2019

fuck, awful news

oh no.... goddamn it. what a talent

Fucking hell. RIP

what the fucking goddamn fuck

Aw man

:(

oh fuck

Oh no

Rest in peace, few as great as him. Felt something so friendly and warm in his voice and words.

I was just introducing a friend to his work and life story yesterday. He'll be spoken of long, long after many of his contemporaries are forgotten.

Damn.

wasn't a huge fan but this is such a punch in the stomach after reading a fair amount of the press about this album and the last few years of his life

Just.... man.

“Nights That Won’t Happen,” christ

Actual Air is a legit great collection of poetry, and it unlocked Berman's catalog for me -- the only artist in my personal history who's ever done so.

terrible news

life is brutal

Thinking now of his friends, family, bandmates, and how they must be coping or trying to process this.

ugh been thinking so much about him the last few months as well, this is awful awful news

Wow

This is a total fucking crusher

Dammit.

Awful news. RIP DCB

ughyh

Horrifying
I have no words.

oof

wasn't a huge fan but this is such a punch in the stomach after reading a fair amount of the press about this album and the last few years of his life

― call all destroyer, Wednesday, August 7, 2019 7:51 PM (fifty-six minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

Me too.
Not many songs better than "Random Rules"

yes

horrible

fucking hell man. RIP.

with touring scheduled to start next week, it almost feels like he wanted to prove once more that he could still do it before he decided to travel on

I want to post lyrics but there’s just too many

If it is a suicide, I don’t think I’m strong enough to re-listen to his records.

SM posted this a few hours before the news broke:

I’m not up on astrology/cosmic slop —is there something up ??

cuz a lot of xxxtra bad stuff is happening to friends and also in the 🌎 #hippytwitter

— Stephen malkmus (@dronecoma) August 7, 2019

Xp yeah same. The new record seemed, if not hopeful, at least comforting in a way. I was looking forward to spending the rest of the summer with it, gradually finding its hidden doors and exploring its secret rooms. Unbelievably sad.

this AMA was just a few weeks ago:

https://www.reddit.com/r/indieheads/comments/cdjakw/purple_mountains_ama/

Wow. This is so sad. :( I’d really only become familiar with him over the past few months due to this recent release and the surrounding press. He seemed like a very special person. RIP.

This fucking sucks

man this is sad. honestly I haven't listened to silver jews in years and years and years and hadn't even gotten around to hearing the new album. Despair is a real thing.

"HEADSTONE:

HE WAS CRESTFALLEN UNTIL HE WAS ABLE TO RATIONALIZE IT AS A GREAT MISTAKE"

too horrible to even deal with

The new album seemed to be about getting old. And this seems vulgar, but they’d just added a date in LA. So right now it’s just a shock for me. Fuuuuuuuck.

"On the last day of your life, don’t forget to die..."

made me take the record off the turntable. I'm not sure I can listen to these records for a while.

"...something's added to the air, forever"

idk

the ringer interview linked above basically suggested that he was living in absolute hell

in an interview a few months ago he said about the album (paraphrasing here) "it's not a cry for help, but something more like my way of offering what help I can."

I understood.

i just dug out my old CD of American Water, i couldn't make it through the album and had to turn it off.

this is very sad. actual air is the only book of poetry i've ever given as a gift. Loved this man's words amd music.

it's hard for me to imagine how deeply people must experience depression

Reading that reddit thread and imagining the depth of pain that can’t be eased by such an outpouring of gratitude and affirmation and love.

Some darknesses for some people are just indelible, and exhausting.