{{Short description|American musician (1971–2024)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=December 2022}} {{Infobox person | name = Will Cullen Hart | image = File:Will Guitar cropped.JPG | caption = Hart in 2005 | birth_date = {{birth date|1971|6|14}} | birth_place = [[Ruston, Louisiana]], U.S. | death_date = {{death date and age|2024|11|29|1971|6|14}} | death_place = [[Athens, Georgia]], U.S. | education = [[Ruston High School]] | occupation = {{hlist|Musician|singer|songwriter}} | years_active = 1987–2024 | module = {{Infobox musical artist | embed = yes | genre = {{flatlist| * [[Experimental music|Experimental]] * [[neo-psychedelia]] * [[psychedelic pop]] * [[indie rock]] * [[musique concrète]] }} | past_member_of = {{hlist|[[The Olivia Tremor Control]]|[[Circulatory System]]|[[Synthetic Flying Machine]]|[[The Always Red Society]]|[[Cranberry Lifecycle]]|[[Black Swan Network]]}} }} }}
'''William Cullen Hart''' (June 14, 1971 – November 29, 2024) was an American musician, singer, songwriter and visual artist.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Will Cullen Hart: The art of Will Cullen Hart |url=https://www.lunakafe.com/moon80/usga80.php |date=April 16, 2003 |access-date=2024-11-30 |website=Luna Kafé e-zine}}</ref> He was a co-founder of [[the Elephant 6 Recording Company]], as well as the rock band [[the Olivia Tremor Control]]. Following that band's breakup, Hart and several other former members regrouped to create [[Circulatory System (band)|Circulatory System]]. Hart's music was characterized by its blend of [[indie rock]], [[Beatlesque]] [[psychedelic pop]] and [[musique concrète]].
== Recording career ==
=== Early years === Will Cullen Hart was born on June 14, 1971 in [[Ruston, Louisiana]].<ref>{{cite tweet|user=applesinstereo|author=The Apples in stereo|number=345523326900371456|date=June 14, 2013|title=Happy Birthday to our pal Will Cullen Hart! May your day have "Warm Milk Chocolate"!}}</ref> His parents, both interior designers, divorced and moved around the country, leading Hart to spend parts of his childhood in [[Dauphin Island, Alabama|Alabama]], [[Aspen, Colorado|Colorado]], and [[Dallas|Texas]] before returning to Ruston in ninth grade.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Clair |first1=Adam |title=Endless Endless: A Lo-Fi History of the Elephant 6 Mystery |date=18 January 2022 |publisher=Hachette Books |isbn=978-0-306-92396-8 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w3wsEAAAQBAJ&dq=%22Will+Cullen+Hart%22+%22ruston%22&pg=PT27 |access-date=1 December 2024 |language=en}}</ref> Among his friends there were future Elephant 6 collaborators [[Bill Doss]], [[Jeff Mangum]] and [[Robert Schneider]]. The teenagers shared a passion and interest in home recording, influenced by [[John Cage]], [[punk rock]], [[krautrock]], and 1960s [[Psychedelic music|psychedelic]] bands like [[The Beatles]], [[The Beach Boys]] and [[The Zombies]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kot |first=Greg |date=2014-01-30 |title=Jeff Mangum: Myth, mystery and enduring songs |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2014/01/30/jeff-mangum-myth-mystery-and-enduring-songs/ |access-date=2024-11-30 |website=Chicago Tribune |language=en-US}}</ref> Some of his earliest musical projects were his solo recording moniker The Always Red Society, which released its sole tape ''Giant Chocolate Think Tank Blues'' in 1993 and reissued 2014, and Cranberry Lifecycle with [[Jeff Mangum|Mangum]], a "little [[4-track (multitrack)|4-track]] pop thing," which were spoken of very highly by [[Robert Schneider|Schneider]] and remained highly sought after by fans until finally leaked in 2023.<ref>{{cite web | title=Cranberry Mixdown | date=1991 | url=https://archive.org/details/cranberry-mixdown }}</ref> [[Jeff Mangum|Mangum]], [[Bill Doss|Doss]], and Hart then formed the group Synthetic Flying Machine, which evolved to become [[The Olivia Tremor Control]].
=== The Olivia Tremor Control === The Olivia Tremor Control's first release was the [[extended play]] (EP) ''[[California Demise]]'' in 1994, which presented many of the band's signature elements, like, for example, complex vocal harmonization. After the EP, the band briefly disbanded, with Hart moving to [[Denver|Denver, Colorado]], before returning to Athens to reunite with Doss and record the band's debut album, ''[[Music from the Unrealized Film Script: Dusk at Cubist Castle]]'' at Pet Sounds studio, with [[Robert Schneider]] as producer. His artistic difference to Doss became evident during recording for the album, with Doss leaning towards pop music and Hart writing more experimental material. In line with his experimental leanings, Hart was influenced by the 1969 [[White Noise (band)|White Noise]] album ''[[An Electric Storm]]'' which led to the splicing of his bandmates' songs with experimental electronic pieces in 1999's ''[[Black Foliage: Animation Music Volume One]]''.<ref name=Quietus>{{Cite web |last=Quietus |first=The |date=2019-03-26 |title=The Olivia Tremor Control's Black Foliage Revisited |url=https://thequietus.com/opinion-and-essays/anniversary/the-olivia-tremor-control-black-foliage/ |website=The Quietus |language=en-GB}}</ref> The album was as ambitious of an undertaking as ''Dusk'', and was met to positive reviews, with [[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]'s Paul Thompson describing it as "among the most satisfying psychedelic albums of any decade", going on to compare it to the Buddhist concept of [[Bardo]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Thompson |first=Paul |title=The Olivia Tremor Control: Music From the Unrealized Film Script: Dusk at Cubist Castle / Black Foliage: Animation Music Vol. 1 |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/16047-otc/ |access-date=2024-12-03 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US}}</ref>
=== Circulatory System, Olivia Tremor Control reunion and death === After the release of ''Black Foliage'', tensions grew between Doss and Hart. According to Doss, Hart wanted to take a hiatus from music, and was suffering from early symptoms of then-undiagnosed [[multiple sclerosis]]. The two had a falling out, and the Olivia Tremor Control broke up in 2000, releasing both an early singles compilation, [[Singles and Beyond]], and a [[John Peel]] session before moving off to other projects. [[Bill Doss|Doss]] would reactivate his solo recording project [[The Sunshine Fix]], and Hart formed his next project: [[Circulatory System (band)|Circulatory System]] with some [[Jeff Mangum|ex]][[John Fernandes (musician)|-]][[Pipes You See, Pipes You Don't|members]] of the Olivia Tremor Control, which released their [[Circulatory System (album)|self-titled]] debut album in 2001 on [[Cloud Recordings]]. A companion album of ambient noise and sound coloages known as ''[[Inside Views]]'' was released as well, in a similar vein to ''Cubist Castle'' companion album ''[[Explanation II: Instrumental Themes and Dream Sequences|Explanation II]]'' years prior. Hart also released two musique concrète albums under his own name that year, ''Circuits'' and ''Silver''.
The Olivia Tremor Control's gradual reunification process began when they were invited to play the UK music festival All Tomorrow's Parties in April 2005. This edition of the festival was curated by the actor Vincent Gallo<ref>{{Cite web |title=More ATP news! Gallo weekend takes shape... │ Drowned in Sound |url=https://drownedinsound.com/news/11150-more-atp-news-gallo-weekend-takes-shape |access-date=2025-03-14 |website=More ATP news! Gallo weekend takes shape... │ Drowned in Sound |date=January 25, 2005 |language=en |archive-date=June 19, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210619221902/https://drownedinsound.com/news/11150-more-atp-news-gallo-weekend-takes-shape |url-status=dead }}</ref> The band started working on a new album, the as-of-2025 unreleased ''The Same Place'', and released two new singles, although the recording process was slowed after Doss' death due to an aneurysm at the age of 43 in 2012. Hart, and the remaining members, decided to continue working on the album in his memory, with Hart saying in 2019 it would be the band's final album: "We have three sides worth of songs done, though they're not sequenced properly yet to run three sides."<ref name=Quietus/>
In 2009, [[Circulatory System (band)|Circulatory System]] released the album ''[[Signal Morning]]'' on [[Cloud Recordings]].<ref>{{cite web | last1=Hilton | first1=Robin | title=Exclusive First Listen: Circulatory System | work=NPR | date=August 25, 2009 | url=https://www.npr.org/2009/08/25/112060124/exclusive-first-listen-circulatory-system }}</ref> 2009 also saw the release of ''[[Side 3 (Circulatory System album)|Side 3]]'', an album of alternative mixes and b-sides from ''Signal Morning'', sequenced by ''Olivia'' and Circulatory System drummer [[Derek Almstead]].
In 2014, [[Circulatory System (band)|Circulatory System]] released their third album, double LP ''[[Mosaics Within Mosaics]]'', also on [[Cloud Recordings|Cloud]].
On November 29, 2024, the Olivia Tremor Control released the singles "Garden of Light" and "The Same Place", the band's first new music in 13 years, as part of the soundtrack for the documentary ''The Elephant 6 Recording Co.'' (2022). Hours later, E6 co-founder [[Robert Schneider]] announced Hart had died that morning.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Jones |first=Abby |date=2024-11-29 |title=Elephant 6 & Olivia Tremor Control co-founder Will Cullen Hart dead at 53 |url=https://www.stereogum.com/2289129/elephant-6-olivia-tremor-control-co-founder-will-cullen-hart-dead-at-53/news/ |access-date=2024-11-29 |website=Stereogum}}</ref> The status of the as-of-yet unreleased 3rd Olivia Tremor Control album ''The Same Place'' is unclear.
== Personal life and death == Will Cullen Hart was also a visual artist. He created most, if not all, of the artwork for the Olivia Tremor Control and Circulatory System (among other Elephant 6 bands), as well as individual pieces.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.elephant6.com/product/w-cullen-hart-collected-works-book |title=W. Cullen Hart Collected Works |access-date=2025-09-18 |website=www.elephant6.com}}</ref> In a 2008 online interview, [[John Fernandes (musician)|John Fernandes]] stated that Hart had been diagnosed with [[multiple sclerosis]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.synthesis.net/music/interview/item-7097/2008-07-08-john_fernandes |title=Synthesis : Music : The Olivia Tremor Control : Circulatory System : John Fernandes : From the Olivia Tremor Control to Circulatory System and Back |website=www.synthesis.net |access-date=January 17, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080907051500/http://www.synthesis.net/music/interview/item-7097/2008-07-08-john_fernandes |archive-date=September 7, 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Hart was married to his wife, Kelly Hart, since 2012.<ref name=":0" />
Hart died from a heart attack on November 29, 2024, at the age of 53.<ref name=":0"/><ref>{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/will-cullen-hart-elephant-6-co-founder-dies-at-53/ |title=Will Cullen Hart, Elephant 6 Co-Founder, Dies at 53 |website=Pitchfork |date=November 30, 2024 |access-date=December 3, 2024}}</ref>
== Discography == '''The Olivia Tremor Control'''
* ''[[Music from the Unrealized Film Script: Dusk at Cubist Castle]]'' (1996) * ''[[Explanation II: Instrumental Themes and Dream Sequences]]'' (1998) * ''[[Black Foliage: Animation Music Volume One]]'' (1999) * ''[[Singles and Beyond]]'' (2000) * ''John Peel Session'' (2000) * ''The Game You Play Is In Your Head, Pts. 1,2,& 3'' (2011) * ''Garden of Light / The Same Place'' (2024)
'''Circulatory System'''
* ''[[Circulatory System (album)|Circulatory System]]'' (2001) * ''[[Inside Views]]'' (2001) * ''[[Signal Morning]]'' (2009) * ''[[Side 3 (2010 album)|Side 3]]'' (2010) * ''[[Mosaics Within Mosaics]]'' (2014)
'''Solo''' * ''Giant Chocolate Think Tank Blues'' (as The Always Red Society) (1993, reissued 2014) * ''Circuits'' (2001) * ''Silver'' (2001)
==References== <references/>
==External links== * [http://www.cloudrecordings.com Cloud Recordings, the label founded by John Fernandes] * [https://www.lunakafe.com/moon80/usga80.php Review of Will's art book] * {{discogs artist|Will Cullen Hart}} * {{imdb name|11971369}}
{{The Olivia Tremor Control}} {{E6}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hart, Will Cullen}} [[Category:1971 births]] [[Category:2024 deaths]] [[Category:Elephant 6 artists]] [[Category:People with multiple sclerosis]] [[Category:Ruston High School alumni]] [[Category:21st-century American guitarists]] [[Category:The Olivia Tremor Control members]] [[Category:Musicians from Athens, Georgia]]