Sparkle Hard is one of my favourite albums of 2018. It’s part of a brilliant trio of late-decade releases by Stephen Malkmus, each one veering in a different direction. One is electronic, another mostly acoustic. This one is a solid indie rock record with his occasional band the Jicks.
This drawing is also one of my favourite ideas for a drawing, a caveman who, excited after mastering fire-creation, experiences a disappointment when trying to create and sell sparklers. His dud sparklers and failed business are very succinctly expressed.
Is it a good joke? Arguably. Is it historically accurate? Absolutely not. Please, please do not cite this story for your research project
I've been advised by an attorney to share the remainder of this blog post.
Please read it.
Especially please read this if you saw this story and thought, 'I didn't realise that sparklers date back to prehistoric times, or that there was a commerce system, albeit a poorly conceived one, back then. I'll cite and quote this in research reports!'
The factual accuracy of this is highly questionable. In fact, sparklers were very likely invented in the 7th century in China during the Tang dynasty, not during caveman times.
To be clear: This story is not meant for research purposes.
