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Will Cullen Hart, Olivia Tremor Control Guitarist/Singer, Elephant 6 Collective Co-Founder Dies at 53

Will Cullen Hart, co-founder of beloved psychedelic band Olivia Tremor Control and the trippy Elephant 6 Collective has died of natural causes at 53.

“Will was a genius experimental and psychedelic pop musician, and a brilliant and prolific visual artist who sketched and made collage art every second of every day, on every object within reach,” wrote Schneider in an expansive, loving Facebook tribute announcing the his friend and collaborator’s passing. Born in Ruston on June 14, 1971, Hart met his future collaborators Doss, Neutral Milk Hotel’s Magnum and Schneider as teenagers at a time when they bonded over the psychedelic and garage rock of the 1960s and 70s and spacey krautrock sounds of bands such as Neu!, Can and Tangerine Dream. After briefly organizing under the name Synthetic Flying Machine, that mash-up of experimental sounds and influences morphed into his first band, Olivia Tremor Control, which released its six-song debut EP, California Demise, in 1994; the group featured Hart on guitar, Doss on bass and Mangum on drums, though the latter would soon take leave to focus on Neutral Milk Hotel.

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