One of the brilliant minds of the indie underground David Berman of Silver Jews has passed away today at the age of 52. In addition to the six full-length albums that Berman has written and recorded with the Silver Jews, he has also released two books: Actual Air (1999) and The Portable February (2009). In early 2019, Berman returned to music under the new band name Purple Mountains, releasing an eponymous debut album in July 2019. Pavements Stephen Malkmus and Bob Nastanovich were frequent collaborators with Berman.
His label Drag City confirmed the news today (8/7/), “We couldn’t be more sorry to tell you this. David Berman passed away earlier today. A great friend and one of the most inspiring individuals we’ve ever known is gone. Rest easy, David.”
