An Inside Look at Child of the Parish and their Debut Album
FAULT Magazine sits down with Child of the Parish, the dynamic duo making waves with their debut album, Sweet Surrender. Known for their unique fusion of psychedelic disco and introspective lyrics, brothers Ben and Tom Vella are turning heads with their vibrant sound and innovative approach to music. We delve deep into their creative process, inspirations, and the challenges they’ve faced along the way. From their eclectic blend of genres to their fearless experimentation, Child of the Parish is here to disrupt the music scene with a refreshing twist on the familiar. Join us as we explore the world of Child of the Parish.
FAULT Magazine: Your music has been described as a blend of various eras and genres. How do you approach blending these diverse influences into a cohesive sound?
Child of the Parish: Ha, I’m not sure we do it in a very cohesive way! To be honest, we’re sort of magpies in that everything I hear that excites me, I want to bring to the table. But then I think the bands I’ve always found the most interesting—M83, Beck, LCD Soundsystem—have done this too. If you’ve fallen equally in love with guitar bands, electronic acts, and hip-hop, it’s hard not to have a bit of a melting pot. I listen to it and think it makes sense, but maybe other people would disagree!
FAULT Magazine: ‘Local Bragging Rights’ has a contrast between upbeat music and darker lyrics. Was balancing these opposing elements something you always set out to do, or did it happen by chance?
Child of the Parish: I find Local Bragging Rights very bittersweet. I’d rewatched the Richard Ayoade film Submarine, which is about first love and heartbreak in a small town, and that was the feeling I wanted to capture. I think there’s definitely a place in music for heartfelt, bittersweet songs delivered in a juxtaposed way with their music—I think of acts like Vampire Weekend who do that well, or even going back to acts like The Undertones and Squeeze.
FAULT Magazine: You’ve mentioned that your creative process became more fruitful when you allowed yourselves to explore unexpected directions. Do you ever fear you may veer too far away from what listeners have come to expect and love about your older releases?
Child of the Parish: Rick Rubin always said the listener is the last person you want in your mind when you’re writing, and I agree. An honest song is when you’ve focused only on making yourself happy; it should have all your idiosyncrasies and quirks baked into it. Then, it’s up to the listener to decide if they relate. As soon as you start thinking about other people, you compromise it.
FAULT Magazine: You’ve produced ‘Sweet Surrender’ yourselves. What was it like to take on the production role, and how did it shape the final sound of the album?
Child of the Parish: It was partly just because we’d gotten better at it—we’d spent some money on some better equipment, particularly speakers, so we could finally hear our productions at a pro level. In the past, we’ve worked with some brilliant producer/mixers, but part of their job was to fix our problems. With this, Shuta Shinoda was purely mixing, so although he could improve sounds, he wouldn’t rework them. That really forced us into long hard looks at our production choices. That experience has been really important.
FAULT Magazine: With two EPs already under your belt, what’s the biggest change you’ve seen in yourselves as artists from ‘Make It Better’ to ‘Sweet Surrender’?
Child of the Parish: I think the project has gotten a bit more honest and personal in the songwriting; we’re tackling themes we might not have in the past. This record was originally devised as more of a mixtape, so we revisited some old tracks we’d half-written and some new ideas, tracks where maybe we were worried they wouldn’t fit in with past material. As soon as the record started to come together, we realized there was a real flow and feel to it overall. It’s been a good lesson to trust our instincts and go with the flow.
FAULT Magazine: What are you most excited for the remainder of the year?
Child of the Parish: Just to have our first full record out is a dream come true. We grew up listening to all the same music, obsessing over the same albums, so to finally have our own one out that we’re proud of as brothers is amazing.
FAULT Magazine: What’s been the most challenging creative hurdle you’ve had to overcome?
Child of the Parish: Our biggest creative challenge has always been having too much material that’s quite varied. I never stop writing, so we always have a ton of music to go through and cut back. At points, we thought this record might be two albums—one that was a bit more guitar-based and one that was more electronic. But we ended up writing a lot of instrumentals that kind of crossed the bridge between them, had some tough moments where we cut a few songs out, and we’ve been left with something that feels really strong and represents the band well.
FAULT Magazine: What is your FAULT?
Child of the Parish: I’m very obsessed with music and the band, and spend a lot of time thinking about it—I’ve gotten out of bed at 4 am before to record ideas that have popped into my head while I’ve been drifting off to sleep. We went on holiday the other week and took some time off, and I do feel recharged and ready to go again—I think doing creative work, you do need to give yourself mental breaks as you can burn out sometimes.