The National Parks – Places

By starrymag | September 15, 2019

By: Jamie Steinberg

 

 

 

Q) How would you describe your sound?

A) Everyone always says it’s hard to classify yourself into a genre and the closest we’ve found is “indie folk/pop.” I love songwriting and telling stories through our music so at times we have a singer/songwriter feel coupled with upbeat and energetic pop influences and natural instruments with male/female vocals. It’s a blend and we love getting creative with it all!

 

Q) Who are some of your musical influences?

A) I personally love bands like Bon Iver, Coldplay, Arcade Fire, Mumford & Sons and The Killers to name a few.

 

Q) Talk about the story behind your new song “Lights In the City.”

A) “Lights in the City” was a single off our last album “Places.” It’s a song that came during a time of big transition for me. I had just graduated college, moved to a new city and was in the beginning stages of a new relationship. It was a crazy, chaotic and beautiful time for me and this song was written while I was trying to find my footing through all of it.

 

Q) What do you think it is about the song that fans connect to?

A) I feel like everyone can relate to times in their lives that have felt uncertain but exciting and I think that is something that people connect to when they hear the song. It’s a song we love to play live and I think it has an energy that crowds and fans can attach to. One of the lyrics in the bridge says “Do you feel anything? What do you feel?” and in a way it’s like we are talking to the crowd and asking what they feel in that exact moment. Right after that the song builds to a dance-y climax and it becomes a big party. We love being able to feed off of that energy when we play it live.

 

Q) How does the video for the track play into the message behind it?

A) One of our favorite things to do as a band is play live. We tried to capture the joy we feel every time we step on stage and when we can connect with the crowd.

 

Q) What is your song writing process? Do you need music before you can create lyrics? 

A) The process seems to be different with every song, but typically it all kind of happens at the same time for me. It usually starts with an emotion or an idea that I want to write about. I then sit down with my guitar or at a piano and start singing nonsense words and messing around with melodies until something sticks out. Usually in that process a lyric will stand out and the song will start to form. From there I like to go back and forth between writing lyrics in my notebook and singing with the guitar. I’ll then start a demo of the song to try and find a production direction. Sometimes it takes about two hours to write and other times it takes a month. Every song is different and I love that it’s never the same process.

 

Q) How much of a hand do you have in the production of your music? 

A) We like to be very involved. I usually make fully produced demos at my home where I can throw a bunch of ideas at the song and find what direction to take it. We’ll then take that demo to the studio and work with Scott Wiley (June Audio) where the song really comes to life. We love being involved in every aspect of the creation of the song.

 

Q) What songs off your Places album are you looking forward to performing live?

A) We love performing all of them live, but one that sticks out always is “Lights in the City” because of how fun it is to play live. We also love playing “Esperança,” “Currents” and “1953. “

 

Q) What do you hope listeners take away from listening to your album as a whole?

A) We hope that listeners can feel uplifted and inspired. This album was written about all of the experiences, places, people, etc. that have shaped me into who I am today. I hope that people can listen to this and think about their own lives and reflect on everything that makes them who they are.

 

Q) You’re headed on tour soon with WILD. What can fans expect from a live The National Parks performance?

A) We are so excited! We love playing with WILD. They’re some of our BFFs and they are insanely talented. People can expect a high energy show from us. We love getting people to sing and clap and dance with us. It’s going to be a blast.

 

Q) Where are some of your favorite places to perform and what makes those locations so significant to you? 

A) Outside of Provo/Salt Lake City, we love playing in Chicago, NYC, DC and Seattle to name a few. These are cities that have always been so supportive of us. Chicago has one of our most energetic fan bases and we love it. We love the energy of these big cities and we love coming back.

 

Q) Who would you most like to collaborate with on a song in the future?

A) We’d love to collaborate with Chris Martin or Justin Vernon. They’re both geniuses.

 

Q) What album/band are you currently listening to and why do you dig them? 

A) I’ve been listening to Delta by Mumford and Sons. It’s such a beautiful, heart-filled album and I can’t get enough of it. Also, Taylor Swift’s new record is a jam.

 

Q) You are a part of social media. Why is that such an important way for you to connect with your fans?

A) We love being able to connect with our fans on any level and social media is another way for us to do that. We like being able to let them know when we are touring and when something new is coming out and just being able to converse with them all the time. We love our fans and we love letting them know that.

 

Q) What would you like to say to everyone who is a fan and supporter of you and your work?

A) We would just like to say thank you. We are so grateful for our fans and are blown away by all of the support we’ve been given. It’s so great to be able to play in a new city every night and have crowds singing our songs. There is nothing like it and we would be nowhere without the amazing fans that we have. THANK YOU!!!

 

 

 

All Questions Answered By Vocalist/Guitarist Brady Parks