For nearly a decade, Parquet Courts have skirted the edges of jangly indie rock and unkempt art-punk. However, on forthcoming album Wide Awake!, the group made a conscious effort to create something “you could put on at a party and people would dance to”, according to guitarist and vocalist Austin Brown. Drawing on funk and dub influences, the album’s titular lead single is an effervescent serving of hooky guitars and an infectious repeated vocal motif, all driven by undeniably groovy rhythms courtesy of bassist Sean Yeaton and drummer Max Savage.
“We wrote a lot of different kinds of songs in the year leading up to recording this album, and the ones that we were drawn to the most were the ones that were rhythmic and had a danceable groove to them. It was a lot of previously unexplored territory, which is something we try to do with each of our records –find something we haven’t tried yet and give it a crack.”
I feel like we’re very much a band of the present.
Parquet Courts manage to be both diverse and accessible on Wide Awake!, borrowing liberally from genres like funk, dub, disco and punk. “I think the last thing we want is to be boxed into a certain genre. We’re often considered this throwback New York City rock band, and that’s always kind of annoying to me – I feel like we’re very much a band of the present, and a band that’s able to take from a lot of different influences, be it from the ’60s up until now.
“Part of that is just being aware where music came from; where groove, where aggressive music, where danceable or sweet music came from. We’re a band that comes from a lineage of music, it’s not like we went to Guitar Centre and bought a bunch of delay pedals. I think you have to appreciate where you come from. I think that includes drawing from a lot of different sources of inspiration, and that’s part of the process of making a new record for us. That’s what makes things feel exciting and new and of the moment.”
The band’s eclectic sound on the album can also be attributed in part to working with famed producer Brian Burton – AKA Danger Mouse – who approached the group about working with them. The band, who had never previously worked with a producer, were unsure what to expect going in – which is exactly why they were intrigued.
“It was a curious combination,” says Brown. “I wasn’t familiar with his catalogue at all going into it. I knew Gorillaz and Gnarles Barkley and the singles, and the Grey Album. I had no idea he was so acclaimed and had worked with like, Adele, and made all these hit records.”
Brown notes that Burton’s habit of drawing from a range of musical styles when working with artists felt like common ground between the band and him. “I think that was something he was able to hear and relate to. So when we were trying out a dub rhythm on a track he knew exactly what we were trying to do, and was like, ‘What you’re trying to do here is a dub rhythm, so let’s move the kick drum to this part and slow it down by 2 BPM.’
“We kind of brought in the vision for the songs and he was able to help us achieve that vision. It was a relationship that I think we were kind of wary of at first but ended up working out really well. Rather than him trying to put us in this Danger Mouse box he was able to really adapt to our style, which makes me think that’s probably what he does a lot of the time.”
Lyrically, Wide Awake! covers a lot of ground. Brown and fellow songwriter A. Savage have a knack for communicating complex ideas in a way that is accessible. Opening track ‘Total Football’ speaks to the power of collectivism, rejecting archaic notions of the lone individual – “it’s the idea that individuals can exist in collective, and the group is stronger than the sum of its parts,” says Brown.
Other songs, like ‘Violence’, explore the cumulative effect of bearing constant witness to forms of violence, particularly in America – to the point of it becoming routine. “I think it’s about being tired of that, being worn down by the idea of violence. Whether it’s war overseas, or terrorism, or police officers shooting black people, or systemic poverty,” explains Brown.
“It’s about the idea of becoming numb to these kind of things, when you hear about a new school shooting on the news it’s not even surprising, and being upset that you’re not surprised by it. Trying to figure out how to deal with the fact you can’t even process grief for a national tragedy.”
I want people to know that Parquet Courts stood for something.
As a whole, Wide Awake! feels like an active resistance to the jaded apathy and detachment that feels present in society right now. With the constant saturation of awful news and clickbait outrage, turning to sarcasm or dissociating can be a tempting path to take – but it’s one that Brown and the band can’t endorse.
“If Parquet Courts and this record stand for anything, it’s anti-nihilism. Nihilism is a very seductive feeling, and I think it’s really rampant in culture these days, especially American culture. It’s one way people escape the idea of unpacking complicated issues and emotions. When people look back on this time, I think it’s going to be an important era. I want people to know that Parquet Courts stood for something.”
Wide Awake! is out Friday May 18 through Remote Control. Header photo by Ebru Yildiz.
