PARCELS in “Live Vol 2”

Following the first volume of their “Live”, the Australians of PARCELS have taken a new step by recording their new album as part of a stage performance at the legendary Parisian club Le Palace with sound provided by Funktion-One.

The first volume was recorded at the Hansa Studios in Berlin (David Bowie, Iggy Pop,…). For this second performance, the group, which has notably collaborated with Daft Punk, had a very precise specification on their expectations in terms of sound system and rendering.

Parcels, originally from Byron Bay, found their calling in the exotic underground clubs of Berlin such as Tresor and Berghain. The band has thus developed a very special relationship with the electronic scene. They have brought their music closer to the feeling of clubbing, the real-time sensation of the movement of a crowd, a physical or even carnal relationship.

Over time, their performances have evolved around a binary concept, namely day and night. The first, organic, takes up the codes and expectations of a live performance by musicians, both in terms of lighting, playing, and format. The second breaks away from this with a clubbing approach, with dim lighting: the musicians follow the drumkit and develop harmonies around their tracks like a DJ would to make them more danceable, stretching them, restructuring them, and producing unique musical interpretations. They thus offer performances of rare precision and in total interaction with their audience.

For their “Live Vol 2” the group specified that they wanted a Funktion-One sound system. Solution One and Guillaume Combeuil answered their call, and the choice was made for a Funktion-One EVOLUTION X system composed of a pair of wide-dispersion mid/high speakers, four F124 bass speakers, complemented by F101.2s for filling and FOH monitoring.

Jules Crommelin, guitarist for Parcels, testifies: “We were really excited to have a Funktion-One set up. We wanted the sound to be as club-like as possible – and Funktion-One are the best at doing this, at kitting out amazing nightclubs. To have them on board was so cool, it looked immense and sounded so great that night too.”

The only downside for the band is that the live recording could not be done openly but rather in the context of private invitations. Imbued with this club culture, far from seeking the limelight, the members of PARCELS would have liked the audience’s attention to be focused on the music and not on them: “The concept was to break down the wall between a performance and a nightclub. This semi-failed, as many people were watching us while we played. We wanted it to be completely dark and for people to just dance, without focusing on us. Although I suppose that this is also a growing challenge for DJs.”