Photos by Angela Holtzen
I miss the days when I would hear about music through another band. I remember seeing shows where band members wore t-shirts of other bands they likes and supported, and generally I would end up liking them too. These days it’s all hype and selling yourself on all the networking sites, and unfortunately it is more gratuitous self-promotion then real talent. Every once in awhile though, the wheels turn and I find a treasure chest full of good music through one artist. Case in point here: Rick McDonough is a member of LS Underground and a respected solo artist in his own right as well. We have featured his photography on the back cover of most our issues as well. Rick is also the guitarist for the band Paravell, and as soon as I heard about them I purchased their first CD titled An Evening of Stars and Dreams.
A couple of months back Paravell released an e.p. named galactic. I was impressed immediately by the progression of the music, but also by the sound of galactic. The first record has a very “indie college rock” feel to it, while the e.p. has a “moodier, denser, emotionally charged” vibe to it. Paravell’s melodies soar and the music speaks volumes, I was glad to have a chance to catch up with vocalist and guitarist Eric Kennedy for a chat.
Can you tell me where the name Paravell came from?
One of the most difficulty processes when starting a band for me is finding a fitting name. Not only do I have to feel like it fits the vision for the project but so does everyone else who is starting the project with me. I think it took us a good month to come up with the name. I really wanted the name to reflect my desire to have the music transport the listener somewhere else, almost like visiting another country. I had just been to England and the castles and countryside were very inspiring to me, so I guess that’s what I was imagining I wanted the name to reflect visually. I also really wanted a name that promoters and clubs could remember and spell correctly. You don’t know how many times my old band August Moons was August Moon, a simple mistake but one that was very irritating since it happened so often. We went through a plethora of names, each coming up with our own lists. One name that seemed to end up on all of ours was Cair Paravel. It was the castle name from the Chronicles of Narnia books which we had all read as kids. It was a good name, I also liked the spiritual heritage it would hold for me from the books. It had that “imaginary castle otherly land” feel I wanted, but for a few reasons I didn’t want such a direct correlation with the books. So I thought about it for a while and then presented the idea of Paravell to the guys, they all really liked it. Also as you can see I decided to add another “L” to the name, hoping to avoid any of those irritating misspellings. I figured that’s how most people would spell it anyway and for some reason I think it looks a lot better on paper.
Who are the players in the band?
Well we let’s see, at the moment we’ve got Rick McDonough and Matthew Harber on guitars, Christopher Bright playing drums, and me, Eric Kennedy, singing. Kiran Kumar who has recorded the last two records, is no longer with us so we are in the midst of searching for a new bassist.
How did the band come to be, where are you based out of?
Well we are based in central Orange County, California. We were born from the ashes of my previous project August Moons which I had started while attending Vanguard University. Matthew Harber, a dynamic and creative guitarist came on board with August Moons in the last two years of its existence and continued on with me to create Paravell. After the demise of August Moons I wasn’t sure if I was going to continue with music, so much of my identity was wrapped up in my previous band it took me a few months to regain the vision God had put in my heart. That vision was to share the love, hope, mercy and creativity of God through writing songs and singing them to anyone who wanted to listen. To me, although not the easiest, the best way to do that was in the form of a band, so I decided to give it another try. With Matt on board with me we went to work on some new songs and decided on a new band name, Paravell.
Since then God has blessed us with Rick McDonough, another amazingly creative guitarist and all around musician, as well as Christopher Bright, a fantastically insightful and gifted drummer. Our great friend and talented bassist for the last few years Kiran Kumar is no longer with us, so we are currently searching for the missing piece to our creative machine. In the meantime we have had some great guys filling in so we can continue playing the music we love.
Musically what would you say are the primary differences between An Evening of Stars and Dreams and the latest galactic ep?
An Evening of Stars and Dreams is a work of blood sweat and tears and pure determination. The ten songs in that album were created over a span of five or so years, passed on by a couple different bassists, guitarists, and drummers. It was a long process taking over a year to finally get recorded. We were nearing completion on the album by the time Rick joined us so he was only able to make his mark on a couple of the tracks. I was playing a lot of rhythm guitar on that album giving the songs a more rhythmically structured vibe. On the other hand our Galactic EP was written and recorded over a much shorter time period with all the parts played by their original creators. The bass and drums carry the songs now giving the guitars a much larger canvas to paint on. Rick and Matt’s parts have a musical relationship that intertwine and grow off of each other causing the music to breath much more naturally and allowing for greater diversity and texture of sound to exist.
Do you write the majority of the music/lyrics, etc? What is the songwriting process for the band?
A typical song is birthed by a theme or concept that pops up in my mind randomly, sometimes I’ll get a lyric or two, or maybe a song title. Then I’ll let it incubate in the background of my mind until its ready to jump out of my creative toaster. At that point I’ll write down the lyrics I get, pull out my guitar or sit down at the piano to work on a melody. Once I figure out a basic song structure I’ll type it up and introduce it to one or all of the guys. I let them know what the song is about and actually try to explain the feelings and visual that I want people to see in their minds eye when they hear the music. From there it’s a purely collaborative project. Everyone expressing through their own musical instruments their interpretation of the lyrics. We try to allow our parts to grow and bend as we hear the inspirational flow coming from each other’s newly becoming parts. This can be a stressful and sensitive experience for us at times, but the benefits our music reaps from it make it well worth the struggle. It’s what I love about being in a band verses doing a solo project. For me there is no comparison.
Are there plans for Paravell to tour at any point in the future?
Unfortunately no, We would love to do a mini tour up and down California, but right now we are just focusing on building a local audience.
Do you think that the digital age of music helps or hurts bands these days, can you explain?
I think for small bands like us it can help when it comes to sharing the music freely with others over the internet through social networking sites, and by putting us on a more level playing field with larger bands in the promotion department, but it’s a double edged sword. At shows it seems harder and harder to sell CD’s. People love the music live but often put off a purchase of the music for a later time. They decide to wait till they get home to download it. Right there is a big problem, as soon as they leave the show we are no longer their focus, it’s going to bed and another day at the office. The music purchase is forgotten or one of those things they always “mean to get to.” You can give the music away at a show, and we have and we’re glad to, but again it costs money to put the CD’s out. No money makes it hard to keep that process going. Not giving up though that’s for sure, we’re keeping ourselves focused and creative. Something’s going to work out; God is our strength and hope through it all.
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