Losing Sleep

Parachute

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 19, 2009)
• Original Release Date: May 5, 2009
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Mercury Records
• ASIN: B0020H46LK
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (57 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,372 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Track Listings

1. All That I Am

2. Back Again

3. She (For Liz)

4. Mess I Made

5. She Is Love

6. Ghost

7. Under Control

8. Blame It on Me

9. Words Meet Heartbeats

10. New Year

11. She Is Love [Full Band Version][*]

Editorial Reviews

About the Artist

"With you I still have hope/That this could be my year." "The New Year"

Mixing full-throttle rock with dollops of blue-eyed soul, vintage R&B and melodic pop radio anthems in-the-making, Parachute has arrived.

The band's debut Mercury/Island Def Jam Music Group album takes off from the individual members' shared histories, from "She Is Love," the ballad torch song and first single, with its Van Morrison-like scatting by lead singer/songwriter/guitarist and piano player Will Anderson, to Nate McFarland's chiming, The Edge-styled chunks of guitar laced through "Back Again," "Under Control," "Ghost," "Words Meet Heartbeats" and "All That I Am."

Will has been playing with drummer Johnny Stubblefield, bassist Alex Hargrave and saxophone/keyboardist Kit French since they were high school classmates in Charlottesville almost five years ago. Will met Nate while attending University of Virginia together, and the guitarist joined the band two years ago.

"I remember seeing them at Starr Hill, which is the big venue in town, and they came on to the `Mortal Kombat' theme," he remembers. "I never would've imagined myself playing with them, let alone becoming a member of the band."

"It's really gone downhill since then," teases Will.

With a diverse selection of influences ranging from old-school legends like Stevie Wonder, Elton John, Paul Simon and Journey to newer acts like U2, Coldplay, Weezer, Ben Folds, Maroon 5, John Mayer, Jay-Z, Kanye West, The Fray and the Arcade Fire, the group began to attract a rabid local following under the name Sparky's Flaw.

"It's a cool music scene," says Will about Charlottesville. "There are so many different types of bands. There's just such an incredibly eclectic group of people there."

"While we were still in high school, we used to see a lot of different groups at local venues that inspired us to want to play," adds Johnny.

That range is reflected in the songs on the band's debut album, largely produced by Grammy winner John Shanks (Bon Jovi, Liz Phair, Sheryl Crow, Jane's Addiction, Stevie Nicks). With songs like "Back Again," one of several tracks fueled by Anderson's chill-inducing falsetto, and the revved-up "The New Year," interspersed with more introspective numbers like the single "She Is Love" which was used as part of a national TV advertising campaign for Nivea.

With an eye towards creating music for the radio, Parachute is unapologetic about aiming for popular appeal.

"If no one's going to listen, why even play?" asks Will. "For us, melody is king."

Anderson's songs are unabashedly emotional affairs that try to work out the difference between romantic ideals and the frustration of reality ("Words Meet Heartbeats"), dealing with love lost ("For Liz (She)"), longing ("Under Control"), regret ("Mess I Made"), guilt ("Blame It on Me") and obsession (the creepy "Every Breath You Take" stalking of "Ghost"), questioning what went wrong ("All That I Am") and trying to put the pieces together for the future ("The New Year").

"I tend to write about things I know, that are happening to me," says Will. "If it's not really true to us, it doesn't make sense. We try to make music that people can relate to, that they're going to want to hear. We question things, try to get to the bottom of it all."

"Will's always been good at writing radio-friendly pop songs," adds Johnny, a self-proclaimed "pocket drummer" who adds his own industrial solo to "All That I Am," citing DMB's Carter Beauford, the Police's Stewart Copeland, The Roots' ?uestlove and session veteran Matt Chamberlain as his personal favorites.

"We want to create music people like" nods guitarist Nate, who counts U2's The Edge and Coldplay's Jonny Buckland among his own influences. "I'm a very compositional guitarist. I try to make every note count in the service of the song, with a bunch of suspendeds and seventh notes to give it a little edge. We call it Tele-rock because I play the Telecaster a lot."

For those who question the group's motives in licensing a song for commercial use, Will comments, "It's simply a new paradigm," he insists. "Everybody's doing what they can to get their music out there. We considered it an opportunity. We're not going to give our songs to just anybody. Nivea approached us with the spot, showed it to us, and we felt it was tasteful."

As part of the campaign, the band played before more than one million people New Year's Eve at Times Square in bone-chilling sub-zero temperatures at the Nivea Countdown Stage on 46th Street.

"I could barely hold on to my drumsticks," laughs Johnny. "The guys were struggling with their fingertips, but it was so worth it."

"By the end, I looked down and had three strings left on my guitar," says Will. "My fingers were bloody, but I was happy as happy can be. That night, we realized exactly why we do this in the first place."

"We're doing a lot of new things we've never done before," enthuses Kit, the band's sax player and keyboardist. "Every day we're checking new boxes. Yesterday, we did this amazing photo shoot, with a production so elaborate I had to keep pinching myself."

In fact, the band prides itself on its live show, having toured with the likes of Jon McLaughlin, O.A.R., Switchfoot, Duffy and Matt Nathanson. Parachute's fan base is starting to swell on their Facebook and MySpace pages, while the distance they've traveled, how far they've come and still have to go, is beginning to register.

"I feel really blessed being around these guys," says bassist Alex. "It all started out loading our equipment in the back of two pick-up trucks, playing to family and friends. This has definitely been a very surreal and humbling experience for all of us. We've had a lot of help along the way, and we appreciate everyone for what they've done for us."

"We have our goals and they're pretty lofty," chimes in Will. "We're an ambitious bunch. It's a lot of fun to get to do this full-time now, but we're always fighting to get to the next rung, grab the golden ring on the merry-go-round. When we were in high school, we just wanted to play better venues. Attending college, we tried to attract label interest. And now, we're at the next step, building a national fan base. The joy for us is in winning people over with our music by getting in front of them any way possible. And have them spread the word to their friends."

In fact, the only down note has been their old friend Sparky's disappointment, when the band decided it needed a more mature name to reflect their own growth as musicians.

"Unfortunately, he used to pick up girls by telling them he had a band named after him," reveals Will. "I had to break the news to him when we decided to change it to Parachute."

"The name just clicked," says Will. "I think it fits our style of music. It's like my only hope is sitting right there on my back."

Make no mistake about it. Parachute is headed for a happy landing.

Product Description

As the release date of their Mercury Records debut album LOSING SLEEP approaches on May 19th, Parachute moves into a final week of college dates and gear up for their spring tour with O.A.R. Parachute's tour schedule, kicked off the first at South By Southwest (SXSW) Music & Media Conference in Austin, Texas, where they were included in the IFC Channel's SXSW Behind the Badge half-hour special throughout April highlighting them as one of the best of 2009's showcases.

Parachute's first single is "She Is Love," bulleted at #28 on the Hot AC chart with 1.6 million audience. The track is now in its third month of digital release with sales nearing 40,000, and the video is confirmed for Screenvision's April reel.Also, Parachute was chosen "Adult Artist To Watch" at Clear Channel's New! site in March.Fans first heard "She Is Love" when Parachute kicked off the annual six-hour New Year's Eve celebration at Times Square in New York City with a live performance. On TV next month, their song "Back Again" has been confirmed for the May 19th episode of 90210's season finally on the CW, while "She Is Love" will be featured on One Tree Hill, May 4th. And on May 30th, Parachute will perform "She Is Love" and "Under Control" on the CBS Early Show.

From the shade of the Blue Ridge Mountains comes Parachute: Will Anderson (guitars, piano, lead vocals), Kit French (saxophone, keyboards, vocals), Alex Hargrave (bass), Johnny Stubblefield (drums), and Nate McFarland (lead guitar, vocals). Formerly known as Sparky's Flaw, they began playing together in high school and later on as students at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. Signed to Charlottesville's Red Light Management, Parachute won a loyal grass roots following as they played over 200 shows along the east coast last year alone.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Suitable for Mass Consumption, July 31, 2009

By	Celeste "Vodka, Apple Pucker & Sweet 'n' Sour" (Louisiana) - See all my reviews

(What's this?)

Do you still get to consider yourself an "indie" band once you've signed with Mercury Records, agreed to tour with Kelly Clarkson and shared the stage with the Jonas Brothers? Don't answer that. We've always been told not to judge a book by its cover; does the same go for CD cases? When I first saw the back of the CD case, my first thought was that they sure are pretty. Well, sometimes first impressions are right on the money, here you have a CD of pretty boys making pretty music.

The opening song, "All That I Am" seemed very familiar to me, but I couldn't quite place if I'd heard it before, maybe as background music at the bar or maybe on the local college radio station. Of course, it could just be that the song has that generic sound that is so popular on mainstream radio the past several years, it seemed familiar without ever having heard it before.

"Losing Sleep" is not a bad CD. The guys in the band are good musicians, and this effort can certainly compete with most of what is being offered by mainstream radio. Will Anderson does a respectable job with lyrics, and every now and then there is a moment of musical brilliance. He has a great voice, but I don't think it will ever be one of those voices that you can recognize in an instant, there is nothing stand-out about him or his style. If you like Maroon 5, The Fray, Coldplay and all of the other bands that sound like Maroon 5, The Fray and Coldplay, you'll like this band. If you are looking for a CD that will surprise you and give you something you've never heard before, keep looking, because you won't find it here.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Bonus Tracks Sold Me, August 7, 2009

By	Lance G. Augustine (The Midwest, USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Losing Sleep (MP3 Download)

I have to admit that after listening to the original version of Parachute's "Losing Sleep" several times, the majority of songs were kind of just THERE...some decent pop background tracks to steal the silence away from doing chores at home or at work...but nothing to take too seriously.

One song did stand out from the rest for me, "The Mess I Made", and I figured that maybe some day I could download just that one. It was really the only song that sounded like it came from the heart and its melody was one that moved me. I liked the title/song topic. And while I don't quite get the connection that some people say this album has concerning another band I really like, The Fray, I do think comparisons to Maroon 5 are justified.

Its difficult to rate an album that doesn't have any certain flow to it...the songs bounce back and forth between various styles of pop and pop/rock, but I do think it's a bit unfair to label all the music as generic. If I remember correctly, I once heard an interview with these guys in which they explained that "She Is Love" wasn't originally intended to be on this album...it was written longer ago and played at some of their shows...but outside influence not only got it on the album, but made it the first single. This simple song is anything but generic (the acoustic version), and while not one that I'm necessarily in love with, it's a song that's not manufactured-sounding in any way.

The bonus tracks on the deluxe version really did end up being the catalyst to my purchase, because these three extra songs not only prove that there's some real music coming from Parachute, but IMO they are better than the rest of the songs combined. "Be Here" brings passion, beautiful melody, and an arrangement that builds in intensity from its solo piano/vocal beginning. "Losing Sleep" is centered around an electric piano, and its simplicity, a little something extra in Will's vocal performance and an exciting chorus make this another winner for me. Finally, the acoustic version of "All That I Am" has a looser vibe than the first version, and the combination of piano and acoustic guitar works perfectly. I wouldn't give up on this album without hearing these bonus tracks...they might just be what turns this from an average pop record into something you'll want for your permanent music collection.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Catchy but Dull With One Rocking Song. And no Bass!, September 4, 2009

By	Kevin Barrack (San Mateo, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

(What's this?)

Clean guitar, clean voice, happy piano, clean lyrics. All American cleanliness.

This album is catchy, with several songs that will stick in your head. The duo of guitar and piano is very symbiotic. They enhance and complement each other. Drums are average in execution and the bass is almost non-existant.

The happy mood of this album lends it pop appeal, along with the traditional songwriting. Overall though I find it lacking in originality. I like a few of the songs but even those sound very typical in rendition and arrangement. I wish they used some alternate rhythms maybe, or just experimented a little more. Their bass sound is hardly perceivable, and I had to check their website to find out if they even had a bassist. Drums are really blah, with nothing of interest happening the entire album. Not a single riff, delay, accent hit that stands out.

"Back Again" is a song you want to listen to while wearing leather pants and kicking down a hotel room door. It kicks *ss. Very high energy with an occasional horn section stabbing attitude into an already boisterous energy. The chuga-chuga-chuga guitar creates a powerful and memorable rock anthem. The lyrics speak of rejection and karma. This is the best song on the album and one that I genuinely like.

Some of the other songs I like alright are "She (for Liz)" and "Under Control".

The band's official website is WeAreParachute dot com. You can listen to full length versions of the songs there.