Parcels - A shipload of disco-pop

They're no longer just a promise, Parcels. Now settled permanently in Berlin, but still tied on the label side to Paris (many of us first discovered them thanks to the boost given by Daft Punk's production of the single “Overnight”) and emotionally to their sun-drenched Australia, the five young musicians faced the test of the second album without fear, doubling down on their ambitions instead. The result was “Day/Night”, an imposing, multifaceted album whose core explores the theme of duality, and which aims for a nu-disco sound more elegant and rigorous than what we heard on their self-titled debut, yet just as convincing and engaging. We took advantage of the usual round of promotional interviews to have a chat online with mustachioed guitarist Jules Crommelin, the band's tireless and imaginative disco engine.

Hi Jules, how's it going? Pretty hectic days, right?

Hi. I'm doing really great and, yes, these are definitely hectic days.

So, your second album is finally on its way to people's ears and record store shelves. We can agree it's been much more anticipated and talked about than your first. How does it feel facing all this hype?

To be totally honest, I'm a bit nervous. New records are always a huge exposure factor, and you're always there hoping people will like them. But yes, ultimately I'm really glad it's finally about to come out.

I read that this time you and the others went into the studio with something like 150 song sketches to work on! How did you approach such a huge amount of material? How did you organize the work?

Yes, we definitely had our hands full! Since we do almost everything ourselves, it really helped to break the work down into compartments and stages. First of all, we started from the idea of having two records, one dedicated to day and one to night. Then we moved on to writing, which eventually left us with around 150 songs on our hands! We listened to all of them, cut a huge number, until we were left with only about twenty or so. At that point we holed up in a rented house in Australia, where we jammed on the existing songs and wrote a few new tracks. That's where most of the demos for the tracks that would end up on the album were born. Back in Berlin, we rehearsed the chosen songs again along with the new ones we'd written in the meantime. By the time we went into La Frette studios in Paris, we had about forty tracks on our hands, which we recorded together with session musicians and producers. After another round of trimming, we got down to the 21 tracks that make up the two records. Still in Paris we recorded the vocal parts, then sent everything to Owen Pallett, so he could work on the string arrangements. After Owen's contribution, we worked on the mix with James Ford, all done via Zoom over a total of about two months of sessions. What can I say... it was an absolutely crazy process!

Double albums like “Day/Night” are always a gamble, especially in an era dominated by streaming. Why did you choose such an ambitious format?

Looking back on it now, it was certainly a choice out of step with what works today, especially in the digital world. But it's what we felt we had to do, we were simply following the muse. And I'm really proud of that.

Your new record isn't just a double album, but it also puts the theme of duality at the centre of its lyrical universe. Who we are versus how we're perceived. What we show versus what we keep inside. Day and night… and so on. Why did you explore this theme so deeply?

It was all the result of a vision that nature offered us, and the more we looked into it, the more we reflected on it. It was like opening Pandora's box. I believe we're all made up of two sides, because we inevitably look at life in a dualistic way. It's something you find everywhere you look, even when you look at it consciously: we are all subjects in an objective world. Everything begins and ends there. But nature teaches us to connect the two parts. To get to that point, I think it's all a matter of paying enough attention and noticing it. It's a growth process that never leaves us in the same place, we evolve, we move past stages.

Not just Covid-19, but also the bushfires in your native Australia cast their long dark shadow over some of your new songs. Yet listening to you, it seems you never lost hope. How did you experience this dark period?

We focused on the music. I'm truly grateful to have the privilege of being able to focus on art. Music was certainly the thing that allowed us to bear the weight of the chaos and insecurity brought on by this period. It wasn't always easy, though, sometimes it was really tough.

Anyone who thought you couldn't write a single as immediate and far-reaching as “Tieduprightnow” or “Overnight” has been proven wrong by “Somethinggreater”. A song as infectious and groovy as it is melancholic and moving… how did you write it?

Noah wrote it as a demo, and I remember being captivated the moment I heard it. The chords follow a really interesting cycle, as does the outro refrain “holding out for something greater, holding out for something else”. It immediately struck me as so powerful and able to spark real curiosity, the need to search for truth. That's just what I got out of it, anyway!

As you mentioned, for this record you worked with Owen Pallett, whose strings gave everything a very cinematic sound. What was it like working with him?

An absolute pleasure. We really wanted the record to have a cinematic sound and he helped us achieve that. He's a genius.

A geography question. You're Australian, you often record your songs in Paris, and you've moved to live in Berlin. These are three very different places, yet they all shape your music equally. What do they have in common? Aside from Parcels, obviously.

Really interesting question. They're places with a lot of opposing traits, that's true. Australia represents nature for us, our nest, our home, while the Europe we know is one of big, frenetic cities, and that's where we work. But something I've learned growing up is just how small the world is. Sometimes on the streets of Berlin I run into people from my hometown, just as I'm constantly moving around the globe myself. We're like ants being carried from anthill to anthill.

Not only do you live in Berlin, but you also recorded a superb live album at the legendary Hansa Tonstudio. What was it like playing in that temple of music? Is there an album recorded there that you particularly love?

It was lovely. I adore those studios, they're so beautiful, with all that wood, big spaces, colours and warm lights. Look, I grew up idolising David Bowie, so just knowing that's where “Heroes” was recorded was enough for me.

Disco music is undoubtedly a hugely important influence on your sound. Would you like to share your own personal disco music guitar heroes with us?

Disco music is just a form of dance music, and its core is the groove, and there's groove in every genre! Why set limits. Anyway, I love David Williams, the guitarist on Michael Jackson's "Thriller" (Michael Jackson). Of course I love Nile Rodgers, who I actually got to meet in person just yesterday! Moving on to other genres, my favorite guitarists are Chris Poland from early Megadeth, John McLaughlin from the Mahavishnu Orchestra, and Stevie Ray Vaughan.

How much did you miss playing live?

So much that I honestly can't find the words to express it.

Did you enjoy playing in Italy?

So much. And I'll tell you more: in another life, Italy will be my home!

Have you been listening to anything interesting lately, anything new you'd like to recommend to our readers?

I recommend King Stingray, Australians like us…

That's all, Jules, thank you so much and good day… or night!

Thank you, it was a pleasure.

Ride the wave of great music

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