Hailing from Chicago, pop outfit the parker story delivers electro-pop poignancy infused with emo sensibilities. There’s quite a cool story about how the duo came together, which also sheds a light on the many ways creatives find each other. After casually meeting at a local festival, Parker (guitar, multi-instrumentalist) and Anastasia (lead vocals) instantly connected, building a partnership which we are lucky enough to witness unfolding.
‘AIRPLANES GO’ is the project’s second single, and like its predecessor, it navigates punchy drums, synthesisers and guitars to create something that’s pop, but also sort of punk, emo, and everything in between. It’s a triumph of genres and references, and a glorious listen for us.
There’s a lot of talent here, and a lot of expectations. Intrigued by the project, we caught up with the parker story to find out more about their artistry and future goals… Interview below!
Hey guys, how is it going? some of our readers might not be familiar with your project, how would you describe yourself, in a few words?
It’s going so good. We really just like to write music we can dance and sing to when it’s all said and mastered. Dance/pop/synth does the trick.
Your current work is the result of a long journey; What first drew you to making music?
Parker: I saw the offspring play live when I was younger and instantaneously knew it’s what I wanted to do.
Anastasia: I watched Micheal Jackson perform “Billy Jean” and he first debuted his famous moonwalk. I’ve been hooked on pop music ever since.
If you had the opportunity to pick any artists in the world for a collaboration, who would be your first choice? (and second choice, perhaps?)
Robert Smith #1 and Katy Perry #2
Your latest single ‘AIRPLANES GO’ showcases refined songwriting and an edgy electro-pop style – was there a particular musical reference you were drawing inspiration from?
We heard a doubled lengthier chorus in a song a few months before we started writing it and thought it’d be cool to try that. But that’s really the only thing that we kept in mind throughout the writing.
The layering of your vocals works very well – what’s your songwriting process like? and how do you decide who is gonna sing a particular section?
The process for us is different every time. Although this is the 2nd time the beginning demos sound like a garage band just having fun, but then we strategically start transforming it piece by piece until it pops. Instruments get assigned and multiple arrangements get ruled out. Don’t get us started on kick patterns lmao As for singing, we take turns running different sections until we close our eyes and say “that’s it”.
So apparently you had 40 different demos of the single 🙂 how do you deal with satisfaction in the creative process? Was there a point when you thought you were overthinking it?
“AIRPLANES GO” consumed our lives. Every waking moment we spent studying the song, listening back, reworking and reworking. Most of the demos were very satisfying.
Artistically speaking, what challenges have the last two years presented you with?
Technically we officially launched the first parker story song this past March 2022. However, thoughts and feelings started swirling around over the last few years before the launch. We started taking pictures together posing and stuff but really didn’t know what it was for yet, other than just having fun. Honestly, nothing has been challenging. When you’re creating music with someone you’re in love with, it’s easygoing.
What are the next steps for your project? Anything exciting on the horizon?
We are pushing to release 2 more songs and 1 Christmas single by the year’s end. In spring of 2023 we are gonna get in a van and just drive and see where the music takes us. We’re already rehearsing for shows in our living room. Lol
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