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Dylan Carlson (musician)

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Dylan Carlson
Carlson playing guitar on stage in 2018
Dylan Carlson in 2009
Background information
Born (1968-03-12) March 12, 1968 (age 56)
Seattle, Washington
Genres
InstrumentGuitar
Years active1985–present
Websitewww.thronesanddominions.com

Dylan Carlson (born March 12, 1968) is an American musician, best known as the guitarist and founder of the drone metal/post-rock group Earth, and the main contributor to his solo project Drcarlsonalbion.

Early life and education

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Carlson was born in Seattle, Washington, United States. His father worked for the Department of Defense, and as a result, moving quite frequently. Living in Philadelphia, Texas, New Mexico, and New Jersey, before coming back to live in Washington state.[3]

Career

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He had first become interested in being a rock musician at age 15, inspired by bands such as Molly Hatchet, AC/DC, and Black Sabbath.[3] He also cites the Melvins, and composers La Monte Young and Terry Riley as major influences on his music. It was in Olympia, Washington that he met Slim Moon, Greg Babior, Dave Harwell and Joe Preston, with whom he would later form Earth.[3] During this time, he would often make "sonic collages" with his then-roommate Kurt Cobain.[4] From 1991 to 1996, Earth had an ever-changing lineup. Carlson attributes a lack of (full-length) studio album recordings from 1997 to 2005 to "legal and drug problems".[5]

Personal life

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Carlson was a good friend of Kurt Cobain of Nirvana and, like Cobain, has struggled with heroin addiction, particularly so after Cobain's death.[6] Dylan was the one who purchased the gun that ended Kurt's life, which he bought at Cobain's request six days before his death.[7] He was actually with investigator Tom Grant when he searched Kurt's home, but they failed to search the greenhouse above the garage where his body lay.

In his biography of Cobain, Heavier Than Heaven, Charles R. Cross asserted that "In Bloom" was a "thinly disguised portrait" of Carlson.[8] He now lives in recovery of heroin addiction. He has survived a rare form of hepatitis B and liver failure.[9][10] Carlson was married to fellow Earth member, drummer Adrienne Davies for a time.[11] Davies still remains in the band despite their split.

Solo discography

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Dylan Carlson at Aarhus Festival, Denmark 2018
  • Gold (as Drcarlsonalbion) (2014)
  • Falling with a 1000 Stars and other wonders from the House of Albion (with Coleman Grey) (2016)
  • Conquistador (2018)

References

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  1. ^ Bekki Bemrose. Dylan Carlson at AllMusic. Retrieved 22 April 2020.
  2. ^ Bekki Bemrose. "Dylan Carlson - Conquistador". AllMusic. Retrieved 22 April 2020. Dylan Carlson has gathered a reputation as an innovator of drone rock [...] Carlson has become one of the most prolific and consistently rewarding artists currently operating within experimental music
  3. ^ a b c robwrong (October 14, 2002). "An Interview with Dylan Carlson of Earth..." CosmicDoom.com. Archived from the original on 2009-01-13.
  4. ^ Edwin Pouncey (November 2005). "Earth". The Wire. Archived from the original on 2007-09-27.
  5. ^ Doctor Rock (March 24, 2006). "Dr. Rock vs. Earth". Playlouder. Archived from the original on December 5, 2006.
  6. ^ Bennett, J. (September 14, 2014). "Earth's Dark Days Are Here Again". Vice.com.
  7. ^ G, Alexandre (2024-04-12). "Dylan Carlson Was Kurt Cobain's Ultimate Best Friend - Musiclipse". Retrieved 2024-12-14.
  8. ^ Heavier Than Heaven, Charles R. Cross, p. 149
  9. ^ "Dylan Carlson Forced to Cancel European Tour Following Hospitalization for Infection". Music.mxdwn.com. September 11, 2018.
  10. ^ Rocker back to music and life Seattle Times
  11. ^ Norton, Justin M. (April 29, 2011). "Interview: Adrienne Davies (Earth)". Invisible Oranges. Archived from the original on February 21, 2016. Retrieved February 7, 2023.
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