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From The Desk Of Anders Parker: Rescue Animals

Looking back over the breadth of Anders Parker’s two-decade career, there is little he has yet to accomplish or prove. The stylistic range encompassed by his Varnaline work alone is evidence of Parker’s determination to explore, illuminate, absorb and transcend every musical influence he’s experienced, from alt-country and raw folk to pastoral Americana and baroque art rock. And Parker’s catalog under his own name has been equally diverse, be it the transitional familiarity of 2004’s Tell It To The Dust or the ambient instrumental guitar wash of 2010’s Cross Latitudes. There’s A Bluebird In My Heart, Parker’s latest contribution, is a welcome return to his Varnaline/early-solo sound, perhaps in reaction to his recent experimental streak. Parker will be guest editing magnetmagazine.com all week. Read our brand new review of There’s A Bluebird In My Heart.

Oly

Parker: When I lived in North Carolina I worked at a little saw mill outside of town. One day a little puppy showed up. She was a mutt of some sort — looked to be a mix of maybe German shepherd, pit, lab, akita. She was cute, and she was missing an eye. She hung around the mill for a few weeks, and I would feed her and horse around with her. One day, a local guy stopped by and offered to shoot her. I took her home that night. Her name was Oly, and she was a good dog. Sweet as could be to any and all humans. (Cats and squirrels were another story … ) She passed away last year. I think about her every day and still expect to see her behind me in the rear-view mirror when I’m driving in my car.