Mark Mallman is a singer/songwriter originally from Milwaukee, Wisconsin who now hails from Minneapolis, Minnesota. He’s probably best known, at least locally, as the genius behind the aptly titled song Marathon, which lasted for twenty-six hours. Mallman sang the entire time, supported by a rotating cast of fellow musicians.
He plays the keyboard like a madman. His backing band is called The Heat and consists of Ryan Smith on guitar, Kat Hixon on bass, and Peter Anderson on drums. They remind me a little of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. While not as well-established or, I must admit, as skilled (yet) as Nick Cave, Mallman exhibits some of the same characteristics that make Cave such a great musician and live performer. He’s got the same channelled, frenetic onstage energy. The hint of insanity gleaming beneath the showman’s air. The darkly clever lyricism. Oh, and the kick-ass band.
Discography
The Tourist -- 1998
How I Lost My Life and Lived to Tell About It -- 2001
Mark Mallman and Vermont -- 2001
The Red Bedroom -- 2002
Who’s Gonna Save You Now? EP -- 2002
Live from First Avenue, Minneapolis -- 2003
Sources
Discography double-checked at Mallman's official website: http://www.mallman.com.
Band members' names found in this article by David de Young: http://www.howwastheshow.com/reviews-2002/mark_mallman-11-22-02.html.