"Like the aftermath of a confidently intoxicated evening, there is still an optimism, an excitement in the air but something is shifting and there is a certain vulnerable intimacy appearing alongside…"
Patrick Hetherington, Noah Hill, Louie Swain, Jules Crommelin, and Anatole Serret make up the Australian five-piece, who relocated to Berlin, a musical hub of electronica. Signing to the ultra cool Parisian label Kitsune was huge for the guys, and it's so clear they fit right in perfectly. With countless shows under their belt, opening for Two Door Cinema Club, and playing Glastonbury this coming June, Parcels are on an absolute roll. I got the chance to catch up with them, right on the helm of finishing Dot to Dot Festival in the UK.
First off, let's talk about Berlin, and moving from Australia to Europe. You get to Berlin. Is it your first time? Name something that surprised you as being different than back home, like a culture shock sort of thing.
Jules had been before, and had told us how cool it had been. The rest of us had no idea what it was really like, Noah hadn’t even been out of Australia at the time, God bless him. The biggest thing that hits you in Berlin when you first arrive is the freedom of the joint. It’s a 24 hour city, where drinking and pissing on the streets is totally acceptable. We were used to the strict police and rules of Australia, so that was probably the biggest cultural shock in those first few weeks.
What do you miss from Australia? Could be absolutely anything.
Sitting in the sun with a perfectly brewed double flat white post surf/swim.
Sweating so much that your hands begin to resemble the reptiles which inhabit and rule the land.
When I heard you guys for the first time, I thought you sounded like if Phoenix and Daft Punk decided to travel back in time and do a tour together in the late 70s. What do you think about that? What are some of your major influences? Past and present.
We often get compared in this way, which is a huge honour in many respects. But our influences are much more far reaching than the 70’s disco scene. We get inspired by folk artists like The Country Gentlemen, metal bands like Megadeth, low-fi indie pop songwriters like Ariel Pink. We’re very easily influenced, anything we hear and like we soak up. And it has resulted in our sound being a whole mesh of different ideas.
David Goltz photography
If you could describe your sound in one sentence it would be…?
Like the aftermath of a confidently intoxicated evening (with high contrast colour scheme). There is still an optimism, an excitement in the air but something is shifting and there is a certain vulnerable intimacy appearing alongside…
Thats two sentences, is that ok?
That was insanely poetic. Perfect. What's your favourite film soundtrack?
The Virgin Suicides. Oh Brother Where Art Thou.
I noticed on Facebook you wrote that when you moved to Berlin. among finding a flat, buying instruments, and playing Glastonbury, you also wanted to make grocery money. What was the one food (or drink) you would all directly beeline for at the store.
We were pretty basic bitches when it came to cooking back then. We’d head straight to the pasta section, cook up a big pot for everybody to eat out of. If we got inspired, we’d make a stir fry, chicken, vegetables. C’est bon!
Speaking of playing Glastonbury, congratulations! That's such a huge deal. What other acts are you super excited to be sharing the stage with and hearing.
Our guilty pleasure as a collective is Katy Perry. No doubt. The girl rocks it. We can’t wait to get little bit tipsy, get emotional and sing along to Last Friday Night.
How was touring with Two Door Cinema Club?
The Two Door tour was a super great experience for us. We couldn’t have asked for a better time as a support band. People were receptive, came early and gave us the time of day, which is rare for support bands. We played to the biggest crowds we had ever played to, and gained a whole bunch of experience about what is takes to be a successful touring band.
So you're on the road. You're in your van for countless hours. What are you listening to?
We’ve been listening to a lot of podcasts recently. Nothing passes the time better than the raspy voices of people like Ira Glass from This American Life. The most recent one that blew us away was one called S-Town. What a man, what a journey, what a story. Go check it out podcast lovers. Music wise, when the drone of voices gets tiring, or our German compatriots get over the American drawl, we listen to the soothing sounds of people like JJ Cale or Todd Terje.
The Disco Helmet V2. Who's idea was that? Please tell me that comes out in your live shows sometimes.
The idea came from the entrepreneur Dr Anatole Serret, one of the key workers here at Parcels Music GBRHQ. And he’s not done, many more groundbreaking ideas are on the way from the brilliant mind of Mr Serret.
Can we anticipate a full-length music video from you any time soon?
Anticipate all you like…
We are so so inspired by visual mediums and particularly by film so it’s a world we are very eager to dive into.
If you were to host the ultimate dance party, what music would be playing and who would be there. Dead or alive.
Among the thousands that would be there on the dance floor, Erlend Oye and Shakira would be having belly dance off in the centre. What a combo that would be. And our good friend @jxlom always knows how to get people moving if you give him a few beverages.
Philippe Jarrigeon photography
No plans as of yet. Time shall tell. But hopefully soon. Canada is well and truly in our sights, we’ve heard very good things...
And plans for the rest of 2017?
Absolute chaos. We’re going to be playing shows every week now that summer has hit. Some of the shows we’re playing are really exciting because we get to travel to more crazy and different places, in January we had a wild time in Tokyo and we’re planning some more fun trips like that. Then in between we’re always writing, always recording and always anticipating the next move here at Parcels HQ...
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Obviously can't get enough of Parcels? Check them out below.
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I love how these guys describe their music. And being Aussies too, I definitely need to check them out.
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