Pop band Parachute recently released their fourth studio album, “Wide Awake.” In anticipation of their Charlottesville concert, the show kicking off their upcoming tour, Arts & Entertainment spoke with founder and lead singer Will Anderson to discuss his time at the University, musical influences and the new album.
Arts & Entertainment: You guys are from Charlottesville — you went to U.Va.!
Will Anderson: Yeah, we grew up there, and then I went to U.Va., then graduated in 2008. The other guys were all from there — went to various schools — but we all basically hung out.
A&E: What from your college experience would you say helps you out now with your music or might still linger with you from your time here?
WA: I think when we got to U.Va. that was when we decided we wanted to do it for real — like do the music as a job thing. I think college is a microcosm of the larger world of life in terms of trying to hustle and market yourself and get people to listen to your music. It’s so funny looking back, a lot of lessons we learned just trying to get our college buddies to come out to the show are exactly the kinds of things we’re doing just on a bigger scale with fans now. … The [Virginia Gentlemen] were my main thing I was doing in college besides the band. And again I got a lot of stuff I learned with the VGs just through singing a lot, I literally use [that] every day. It’s a lot easier in the world of music because it’s so straightforward what you’re doing, but you can see the line from U.Va. directly to where I am now.
A&E: What would you say has changed the most or what is new about this album, “Wide Awake”?
WA: I mean, for us the main change was two of the guys decided to get off the band, didn’t want to tour anymore. In the end, I think it has some of everything we’ve been trying to do. It just felt like this album more than any, it was like, this is what we’re trying to capture, this sound, so to the average listener it probably sounds very similar to other ones, but to us it was the sum of all these years of trying to make this sound.
A&E: Since this album really compiles what you’ve wanted for your sound, what is your favorite song or what would be the most representative song of Parachute on it?
WA: The last song I wrote for it was a song called “Jennie.” That’s kinda my favorite song, probably that I’ve ever written, honestly, because I ripped off a bunch of other songs to make it so it’s just a mix of all my favorite songs. And that would be the one that we as a band, we’re really excited about playing and that’s the one also that the fans responded to the best.
A&E: Which artists would you save have influenced the band most, maybe over the long run?
WA: Peter Gabriel is one that we all really like — he’s the biggest one. Honestly, Dave Matthews Band, obviously growing up in Charlottesville. As cliché as it sounds to be there, they really were always kind of the reason that we were a band and even to this day those records still very much influence it. I’m just a huge Billy Joel fan, big, big pop song guy. I love pop songs — it’s like literally all I think about. It’s a lot of that kind of thing, even modern pop stuff. Like, anything on top 40 radio these days I absolutely love to sit down and try to break apart.
A&E: What would you put at this point as the biggest accomplishment for Parachute’s career? Would it be this album maybe?
WA: Oh for sure, no doubt about it. If you told us, “Pick one thing that you could show everybody for the rest of your life,” it’d be this … like listening to it, making it. I think [this album is] just as valid as any sort of critically acclaimed whatever. To me as a person, this is the kind of music I absolutely love so when they’re like, “Oh you’re just doing the same thing because you want this train to keep going,” it’s like, no, genuinely this is what I like making. This is the kind of music I want to make, and I’m fascinated by it. Maybe yeah, stylistically we can change and for sure things come and go, but in the end I think the accessible pop music is exactly what I want to keep doing forever.
A&E: Do you have anything else you want to say?
WA: Go Hoos! Go Hoos, all the way to the top — we’re freaking out here in Nashville!
Parachute will perform at the Jefferson Theater this Saturday.
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