Utah-based quartet The National Parks will be releasing their album Wild Spirit on August 23rd, a quick follow-up to 2023’s 8th Wonder. It will arrive while they are underway on their first tour of the UK and Ireland, and has already been heralded by several singles that hint at the themes and sounds for this collection. Featuring Brady Parks (vocals, guitar), Sydney Macfarlane (vocals, keys), Cam Brannelly (drums), and Megan Parks (violin), they’ve always been a fiercely independent and outdoors-loving bunch, but as the new album title suggests, they are reaffirming their commitment to the benefits of heading into the unknown.
The album’s title track helps spell out the more nuanced aspects of that affirmation, taking in the very real moments we face in life where there seems to be no trail ahead, and yet we must keep going. Other tracks like “Where You Are” pause before life’s looming challenges but do not retreat, and their latest release, “Whatever Comes” takes an even more daring look at a troubled world but maintains forward motion. Wild Spirit as a whole continues to hover between the meditative and the anthemic, finding an accessible middle ground. I spoke with Brady Parks about their upcoming tour and the songs we’ve encountered so far from Wild Spirit.
I noticed that you all post about individual songs as they are released and discuss them with your fans, which is very direct, rather than just speaking through a press release.
Brady Parks: I love it when bands do that, give insight. You never know who is even reading it or listening, but it’s nice to know that there are some people out there who can connect with it and appreciate it.
Songs are personal to the bands who make them, but I think when you do that, it adds an extra dimension of saying, “These are our songs, and we’re sharing them with you.” It’s not just a product that’s tossed out there.
Absolutely. I completely agree!
I’m excited to see that you’re going to the UK and Ireland coming up.
Yes! I’m very excited, too. It’s always been a dream of mine and ours. We had plans in the works before covid hit, and the fact that it’s becoming a reality is so exciting for us. To be able to kick off our album release out there, then bring is home, is so great. This is going to be such a party every time.
Do you have a sense of what international fans think of your music?
That’s not something I’ve really experienced, but it is so cool to think about how the music can be bigger than here and be a global thing with different worldviews and different perspectives. It’s so cool.
You’ve got several singles out and coming out before the tour and release. Does that consistent roll-out work best for you?
Very early on, we said, “Let’s be the band that tries to give fans stuff and not ask for stuff.” Being able to constantly provide cool things and create as much as we can is a lot of fun for us.
It keeps the conversations moving with fans. It must also be nice not to have to wait so long to reveal things that you’ve been working on.
You’re right. In this world, you can write a song and kind of put it out whenever you want. The strategies keep changing, and you’re always trying to figure out what feels right for a project and the timing.
Were there some general ideas behind what songs you decided to release ahead of time, and in what order?
I think we base everything on feeling. We went back and forth on some songs that we all thought could’ve been singles, so there were some testing things out. We want people to get a good grasp of what the album will be like, so it’s based on songs that we feel passionate about while being able to keep some of our favorites as surprises.
All of the songs that have come out so far would also be great in a live setting, so this way people can get to know the songs first, before seeing your shows.
That’s a big part of it for us, being able to play these songs live. All of these singles are ones that we will be playing live, and there are also a couple that we’ll play from the album. That makes it so much more fun for us when people sing along to the new songs. On our last tour, we played our song “Wild Spirit” and it didn’t come out until six months after the tour ended. It was a great way to road-test it and get people comfortable with it. We also got to see what the live reaction would be.
It’s a really cool song. I think there’s a lot of reason to think it’s a kind of statement of who you are as a band right now and what your goals are. I have to ask: Where in the set would you play that song, usually?
We don’t usually play an encore, so on the last tour, we would put it right there, second to last in the set. We’d be able to talk about it, explain the meaning of the song, and hype people up for the new album. We’re still figuring out our full setlist for the tour, but it does feel like a good song to end sets with, a stomp-clap sing-along song.
It’s an interesting song for having that combination of a meditative feeling and the energy of a participation song. It’s not a soft ballad, but it has a meditative quality to it. Also, because the lyrics are relatively spare, I can see people singing along.
Totally. It’s an interesting song because it’s really catchy, and melodically, it’s pretty hook-y, but there’s also the meaning of it. I think we can all relate to being a wild spirit and branching out, whatever stage of life you’re in. I think that kind of combination resonated with people. It was fun to see that before we even released it.
I think almost anyone could relate to that because of the way that we live in society; if we do feel that way about ourselves like we might be outsiders, we tend to conceal it. But at some point in life, we all worry that we aren’t adapted enough or have to suppress ourselves.
That is awesome to hear because that is spot-on what it’s about. This was a song that, I think, sparked a lot of the album, too. It was a big catalyst for what we wanted the album to feel like and be about. This was very much a song about feeling lost and navigating that, and not really having an answer other than, “This is who I am.” The album took on that life of being lost in a forest at night and navigating your way through something terrifying and scary. Then the sun rises, and you’re able to hike up and see vantage points that you didn’t see before. In that whole process, you find yourself and discover who you are. I think that’s the theme of the song as well: discovering yourself even more now that you’re lost.
It reminds me of this social conversation that waiting around for someone else to save you in life, kind of a heroic rescue, is less valuable than realizing that you’re the one that can save yourself. It’s scary to realize that there’s no footprints on the path, as the song says!
Right, you’re on that path, and you’re the one that has to navigate it. Maybe no one’s been there before. Since it’s your life, maybe no one’s been there before. It’s new, and it can be really scary.
The single “Where You Are” is also pretty open about the idea that there are conflicts that have to be overcome in ourselves and in life.
“Where You Are” is kind of in the same lane, but feeling like you’re in-between places in life. You know where you want to go, but you’re not there yet, so you have to step back. A lot of times in life, we’re kind of antsy, but “Where You Are” is about being okay with where you are in life, and taking a second to breathe before you take the next step.
There’s a feeling, too, of knowing that there are bigger challenges ahead but acceptance that you won’t always be ready for everything right away.
Yes, you know that there’s something out there looming that you’ll have to conquer, but it’s okay to take a second. That’s definitely a huge part of the song.
I think that song would be interesting, even if it stopped about halfway through, but in the second part, we get a duet vocal, and it kind of builds up to an anthem. I think it’s cool that you all took it that far to another level.
I feel like that was its natural progression. While writing it, the first three-quarters of the song felt very much like a pep-talk, saying, “You’re going to be okay.” But when it starts to build and gets more anthemic, it’s like taking the first step and saying, “Let’s go.” It felt like it had that motion of saying, “I’m stuck, I’m stuck, I’m stuck. Okay, I’m ready!”
I can see how that one would be really cool live, too. “Scenic Route” also came out recently, and it’s a little different from the other two. It’s got more lyrics, the beat feels a little different, it’s faster, but it’s also very much a love song.
“Scenic Route” is one of the first songs that I wrote for the album, and it’s definitely a love song. I wrote it about my wife, Megan, who’s in the band and plays the violin. We’re married and have two kids now. We’ve been on a journey together the last few years, and we’ve been on a spiritual journey, too. That became a factor on this album, like “the long, dark night of the soul”, where you’re figuring out where you stand, what you believe in, and what matters. This song is about realizing that all that matters right now is the people that you have. It’s very much a song about slowing it down and setting aside all the chaos that’s been in your mind. It’s about taking the long drive, and sitting by the lake, enjoying life, and soaking it all in.
That’s so much what a modern person needs to think about.
[Laughs] There’s a lot going on.
“Whatever Comes” is your latest release, and that song has a relationship to what we’ve been talking about, but there’s an overview feel to it. There’s a relationship aspect in the song, but it’s even bigger than that, really.
Yes, definitely. “Whatever Comes” was one of those songs that felt like there was weight to it. There was a beautiful heaviness to it, and the idea of being able to leave behind something you’ve known. Or it’s the idea that a bomb has gone off, and yes, your world got turned upside down, but now you need to look up at the stars and realize that you’re getting through it and seeing new things. It definitely captures a big theme of the album but does it in a way that may be more on the nose than with the other songs.
It has a very resolute feeling, but that’s a good thing. It’s a positive resolution. The vantage point in the song is that a person is not going to be defined by outward events. They’ve stated their position and are facing things. It has a strong feeling to it.
One of the strongest messages in that song may be when it talks about burning your boats and that you can’t go back to places that you’ve been running from. It’s a “no turning back” kind of song. Musically, it’s driving the whole time and is very much a journey. Life is crazy, and that’s okay, we’re going for it.
It’s this idea that we can only live forwards. All the circumstances might not be ideal, but we’re here right now.
Right, you are here right now. What are you going to do? Are you going to be looking backward the whole time? Or are you going to move forward, no matter what the circumstances? It’s the only way to live. Who knows what you’ll find?
