Listen to their new EP + Interview.
The Canadian surfadelic rock band has just released their second EP, called She’s Still Here, and the music video for the homonymous song which we’re proud to premiere. I talked to the band’s frontman Cody Parnell about the new album and some of its tracks, hope you all enjoy it.
Wow, you’re fast! Less than one year on the road and two EPs released. How was the creative process for the new EP? Any favourite songs from it?
Haha, yeah I didn’t wait very long to start working on another EP after I put out the first one. Within 2 weeks of ‘Wherever You’re Going, Take Me There’ was released, I began recording and writing for the 2nd EP. With the first EP, the recording and writing process was spread across a few months because my inspiration would come and leave when it pleased. That’s why that EP is diverse, I feel personally at least. Stylistically, it’s a little all over the place. With that being said, the process was entirely different for ‘She’s Still Here’. I was super stoked after releasing the first EP on my own, that I was ready to start the next. I went back home to my mom’s house where I had an entire basement to myself and went to work. I recorded, and wrote all of the guitar and bass parts in 5 days. I then took a week to record the drums because I’m not very good at them, and then a weekend to write and record the vocals. As for favourites off the EP, I really like ‘She Won’t‘ but the recording doesn’t do it justice. It’s just really fun to play live and people have been receiving that song pretty well.
So, the first single off it is ‘It’s Alright’, what’s the song about? Arm-wrestling?
The music video for ‘It’s Alright‘ is outrageous. My bandmates and I decided to have our friends over for a party on Canada Day. And that party may have included the plan to get drunk and film an arm-wrestling music video. Haha. The song is actually about how people receive me and my music these days. I know some people I went to high-school with are wondering what the hell I’m doing. So really it’s just me letting others know that you can either like or dislike me. Because it’s funny either way.
Following the video for ‘It’s Alright’, the new video for ‘She’s Still Here’ is also hilarious. Your music videos are all full of sense of humour and look like parodies of your own songs, who has the ideas for them?
The music videos are super silly and hilariously fun to make. Literally all of the ideas have came from me either having a bath and dreaming up with the stupidity, or laying in bed and I have to whip out my phone and jot the idea down before I forget it in my sleepy state. But yeah, they’re fun. My older brother Jesse has always helped me direct the videos except for ‘It’s Alright’ where that was the band.
Watch the video of ‘She’s Still Here':
‘Brown Leather Jacket’ is one of my favourite tracks, it offers a very 60s surf music style and is a good sample of your surfadelic rock. What were the main musical influences for it? Also, is the song based on a true story?
‘Brown Leather Jacket’ was actually inspired by the song ‘South‘ off the old EP, haha. And the reason for that is that I wanted to top that last surfadelic riff with an even cooler one. I thought at least. It’s another sweet song to play live. It also is indeed a true story, lyrically. It’s about the first time I met my girlfriend Zoe at this extremely greasy bar back home. I was the creepy dude watching people dance on the dance-floor.
Although ‘Where Am I Now’ and ‘Thinking About’ are wrapped in a relaxed atmosphere, they contain some philosophical questioning, are they musing about the future of the band?
Totally. Both ‘Where Am I‘ & ‘Thinking About‘ reflect on where I’m at in my life right now. The summary of both those songs and pretty much the entire EP is that I want to get away from Ottawa and continue my musical journey elsewhere. You can only take so much of the Capital City of Canada. Everyone I’ve met so far industry wise in this city are super nice, but they’re all stuck here too. I’ve only been here for a year but I don’t want to become just another Ottawa musician.
The new EP is available on Soundcloud. You can also connect with the band on Facebook.
