Biography
Smog was the recording name of the American singer-songwriter Bill Callahan, who released music under that name from the late 1980s until 2007, when he began recording under his own name with Woke on a Whaleheart.[1]
Across roughly eleven studio albums as Smog, nearly all on Drag City, Callahan moved from home-recorded four-track and drum-machine minimalism toward fuller band arrangements.[1] Knock Knock (1999), made with producer Jim O'Rourke, is often seen as the bridge between those phases.[1][2]
Callahan wrote much of Knock Knock while driving from South Carolina to Chicago after the end of his relationship with the musician Chan Marshall (Cat Power).[2] The record drew wide critical praise, and its song Cold Blooded Old Times reached a larger audience through the 2000 film High Fidelity.[2]
In April 2000 Smog released Dongs of Sevotion, recorded with Tortoise drummer John McEntire, which Pitchfork ranked among the ten best albums of the year.[3] Its songs deal largely with sex and death, and the second track, Dress Sexy at My Funeral, is among his most beloved.[4]
References
- Beginner's Guide: Bill Callahan (Treble) — Career overview and the end of the Smog name.
- Knock Knock (Smog album) - Wikipedia — Album context, recording and reception.
- Dongs of Sevotion - Wikipedia — Release, personnel and critical scores.
- Smog's Dongs Of Sevotion Turns 20 (Stereogum) — Album themes and commentary on its best loved songs.