Alan Sparhawk & Trampled By Turtles Alan Sparhawk with Trampled by Turtles
Released May 30, 2025 Sub Pop Records
Consensus forming 3 professional reviews Updated Mar 13, 2026
Broadly positive consensus
Consensus is still forming across 3 professional reviews. Alan Sparhawk's Alan Sparhawk with Trampled by Turtles trades the slow-burn of his past work for a lean bluegrass collaboration that channels grief and family memory with surprising clarity.
How ChoruScore worksCritics' Top Tracks
The songs critics returned to most
Screaming Song
1 critic mention
“Screaming Song‘ is perhaps the centrepiece of the album” — God Is In The TV Zine
Not Broken
1 critic mention
“Another highlight is ‘Not Broken,’ which features vocals from Hollis, Parker and Sparhawk’s daughter.” — God Is In The TV Zine
Get Still
1 critic mention
“The reworking of ‘Get Still‘ is soothing after this - yet it all flows together wonderfully.” — God Is In The TV Zine
Full critic consensus
Alan Sparhawk's Alan Sparhawk with Trampled by Turtles trades the slow-burn of his past work for a lean bluegrass collaboration that channels grief and family memory with surprising clarity. Across its concise running time critics note a raw emotional center anchored by the wrenching centerpiece “Screaming Song” and the intimate family harmonies on “Not Broken”.
The critical consensus acknowledges the record's strengths and limits: it earned a 76.67/100 consensus score across 3 professional reviews, with reviewers consistently praising the project as a thoughtful reinterpretation of Sparhawk's material through Trampled by Turtles' acoustic lens. Critics highlighted how bluegrass instrumentation reframes themes of grief and legacy, and they singled out reworked pieces like “Get Still” for their soothing counterbalance to more immediate, cathartic moments. Reviewers consistently cite collaboration and familial echoes as the album's emotional through-line.
While some reviews point to the album's brevity and spare arrangements as constraining its scope, the overall tone is one of measured admiration: the record feels like a focused, personal conversation rather than a full-scale reinvention. For listeners searching for an honest, bluegrass-tinged take on Sparhawk's songs, and for those wondering what the best songs on Alan Sparhawk with Trampled by Turtles are, “Screaming Song”, “Not Broken” and “Get Still” emerge as the standout tracks. The following reviews unpack how collaboration, grief, and family shape this distinctive entry in Sparhawk's catalog.
Track Ratings
How critics rated each track, relative to this album (0-100). Only tracks that made critics feel something are rated.
Stranger
Too High
Heaven
Not Broken
Screaming Song
Get Still
Princess Road Surgery
Don't Take Your Light
Torn & in Ashes
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What Critics Are Saying
Deep insights from 3 critics who reviewed this album
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Critic's Take
Alan Sparhawk arrives with Alan Sparhawk with Trampled by Turtles and leans into bluegrass while carrying the weight of personal loss. The reviewer singles out “Screaming Song” as the album's centerpiece, a heartbreaking, cathartic track that feels intrusive in its immediacy. Reworked tracks like “Get Still” soothe after that peak, and “Not Broken” stands out for its family vocals, echoing Mimi Parker. For listeners asking what the best songs on Alan Sparhawk with Trampled by Turtles are, these three emerge as the clearest highlights in a concise, thirty-two minute record.
Key Points
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“Screaming Song” is the album’s emotional centerpiece because it handles grief with immediate, intrusive intensity.
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The album’s core strengths are Sparhawk’s songwriting and the successful bluegrass collaboration that reframes earlier songs.