Sparks

Review

Sparks

Sparks is an American rock and pop band formed in Los Angeles in 1971 by brothers Ron (keyboards; born August 12, 1945) and Russell Mael (vocals; born October 5, 1948 in Santa Monica, California), renamed from Halfnelson. Best known for their quirky approach to songwriting, Sparks' music is often accompanied by intelligent, sophisticated, and acerbic lyrics, and an idiosyncratic, theatrical stage presence, typified in the contrast between Russell's wide-eyed hyperactive frontman antics and Ron's sedentary scowling. Starting with "Lil' Beethoven" in 2001, the band began performing their albums in their entirety. 2008 saw the band perform all 21 of their albums in successive nights at the Islington Academy and Shepherd's Bush Empire in London.

Though the band's long career has seen them successfully pioneer many different musical genres; including glam rock, power pop, electronic dance music, mainstream pop and most recently chamber pop, Sparks have arguably created their own unique musical universe. While achieving chart success in various countries around the world including United Kingdom, Germany, France, and the United States, they have enjoyed a cult following since their first releases. Sparks have been highly influential on the development of popular music.

Sparks are best known for the songs "This Town Ain't Big Enough for Both of Us", which reached number 2 in the British charts in 1974, "When I'm With You" which topped the French Charts in 1980, and "When Do I Get To Sing 'My Way'" which topped the German and European charts in 1994/95 and was the top airplay record in Germany for 1994. They are also noted for Russell Mael's falsetto voice and Ron Mael's keyboard style as well as their stage presence.

Discography

Average album rating 1972 Halfnelson  
Average album rating 1973 A Woofer in Tweeter's Clothing  
Average album rating 1974 Kimono My House  
Average album rating 1974 Propaganda  
Average album rating 1975 Indiscreet  
Average album rating 1976 Big Beat  
Average album rating 1977 Introducing Sparks  
Average album rating 1979 No. 1 in Heaven  
Average album rating 1979 Terminal Jive  
Average album rating 1981 Whomp That Sucker  
Average album rating 1982 Angst in My Pants  
Average album rating 1983 In Outer Space  
Average album rating 1984 Pulling Rabbits out of a Hat  
Average album rating 1986 Music That You Can Dance to  
Average album rating 1988 Interior Design  
Average album rating 1994 Gratuitous Sax & Senseless Violins  
Average album rating 1997 Plagiarism  
Average album rating 2000 Balls  
Average album rating 2002 Lil' Beethoven  
Average album rating 2006 Hello Young Lovers  
Average album rating 2008 Exotic Creatures of the Deep  
Average album rating 2009 The Seduction of Ingmar Bergman  

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