When The Parrots first showed up in my musical hemisphere, they reminded me of The Strange Boys, with their contagious licks and jangly hooks and drawled lyrics. At that time, the Spanish trio had just crushed SXSW and almost immediately got picked up by indie label Heavenly Recordings (Night Beats, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard). “We signed the contracts on top of a pool table in a bar,” says Larry Balboa, the Parrots’ drummer. “It was fast and good, and that’s how we like it.”
Fast and good is the perfect description for these dudes, and their new single “Jame Gumb”, off their forthcoming debut Los Niños Sin Miedo, is just how I like it. Layered with a haunting psych vibe reminiscent of fellow label band Night Beats, “Jame Gumb” is a step forward from their loose-hipped garage swagger, with tighter arrangements and an explosive guitar solo from vocalist/guitarist Diego Garcia.
The album was produced by Spanish sound engineer Paco Loco, who encouraged The Parrots to embrace their wild ideas. “I get my guitar,” says Garcia. “I drink, I smoke, I start playing and Paco says, ‘Oh this is amazing!’ You think it’s too crazy but he says, ‘If you heard this from John Cale you’d think it was amazing!'” For a band unhinged in the throes of creative expression, The Parrots definitely have their sound locked down. Los Niños Sin Miedo drops August 26th on Heavenly Recordings, and I can’t wait to get my hands on it. –Maya Eslami
Watch our interview with The Parrots during the Brixton Broadcast Barcelona: