SHREDnews

By: Steph Mirsky

When I sat down with the guys from Parachute at the World Café in Philadelphia, PA I had the opportunity to talk to them about their past musical endeavors, their new found success, and what is up for the band in the future.  I must say that they were some of the most laid back and generally fun musicians I have the pleasure of interviewing thus far.  When introducing himself, lead vocalist Will Anderson took the opportunity to make a sarcastic pun on Shred News stating, “I’m Will Anderson and I shred on vocals as well as guitar and keyboard.”  The rest of the band didn’t waste a moment on picking up on the joke and introduced themselves as Kit French (shredding on keyboard and saxophone), Johnny Stubblefield (shredding on drums), Alex Hargrave (shredding the bass), and Nate McFarland (shredding on guitar and some back up vocals).  As the interview progressed, the personalities of each individual began to show through.

What was the idea behind the name Parachute?

Anderson and McFarland to the lead on this question, commenting on how difficult it is for five guys to unanimously agree on one name and that Parachute seemed to flow between all the members of the quintet.  The band originally played under the name Sparky’s Flaw, but changed to Parachute in 2008.  Anderson stated, “It wasn’t a musical transition at all; we are the same band with the same songs, just with a new name and level of maturity,” when asked if the name adjustment was a musical or simply diction related change.

To some it would seem as if you guys have had almost instant success with Losing Sleep, what was it like to achieve so much so fast?

This question had the entire band smiling; the answer that followed was evidence that no band achieves success over night.  Anderson took the point on this question commenting, “Oh we’ve had our fair share of hard work and playing at grungy venues in front of next to no one.”  It would seem that Parachute is not taking any of their success lightly that they are holding onto their roots and remembering the tough road to the headlining tours.  The band even took a few moments during the show to thank their fans graciously; acknowledging that their first time playing in Philadelphia was, “literally in front of one person.”

So you just got off a tour with Kelly Clarkson, what was that experience like?  What differences do you see in playing the huge arenas in comparison to the smaller venues?

All the band mates were in agreement on the difference between playing arenas versus smaller venues.  Commenting that opening for a major headliner such as Kelly Clarkson is amazing in the sense that there is no greater experience than playing your music in an arena in front of 25,000+ people.  However, there is the trade off that being an opener in that situation is mostly about simply trying to get the audience to pay attention to you and attempting to build a fan base.  On the other hand, headlining a smaller venue to true fans and having a personal experience is a great way to come off a huge tour and reconnect with the band’s original fan base.  Regardless, touring is not always about size or headlining; sometimes it is just about playing the music you love to the fans you love.

To wrap the interview up, the guys and I spoke about the future for Parachute.  It would seem that they plan to continue to tour on the success of Losing Sleep, while simultaneously writing new material.  Anderson wrapped up the topic stating that the next full-length album would be, “completely different than the first one; just a very distinct and different sound.”  In the end, all of these guys are hard working, down to earth, and ambitious.  They will absolutely achieve a great level of success and kindly finished the interview thanking their fans, everyone who had ever given their music a listen, and even Shred News.  So now it is my time to return the favor, thank you Parachute for being a musical inspiration.

To Check Out Steph’s Pictures Please Go Here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/39330086@N04/sets/72157623206636990/