Spring into June: Alumni band returns to city

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By MATT MEDVED

Meet June’s Arrival … reloaded.

Or so bassist and Northwestern alum Lucas Lin likes to jokingly call it.

The rock quartet is playing its biggest show, since its November 2004 resurrection on May 14 at The Metro, 3730 N. Clark St., with Blackout and the Lovehammers, which invited them to open last month.

“This is a huge deal for us,” says vocalist and guitarist Eric Bleile. “Its not like we’ve made it or anything like that, but it’s every band here’s original goal to make it to The Metro.”

The show will be the band’s third with the Lovehammers and the third since adding new drummer Anom Lane and guitarist Michael Young. Lin, Weinberg, ‘00, is eager to plug in his bass following a March acoustic show at Joe’s Sports Bar.

“They wanted us to play acoustic, not scare away the crowd or anything,” Lin says. “Our new song ‘Loverhead’ went over really well with the crowd. But with acoustic, everything sounds different. We’re looking forward to rocking out at The Metro.”

But one year ago today, the possibilities of June’s Arrival playing any gig seemed remote. Lin and Bleile were forced to pick up the pieces when lead guitarist Mark Alaimo and drummer Jake Hyzny left the band after a show in April of last year.

“It was tough,” Lin says. “We were set to play some cool outdoor festivals in the summer. We had pretty good momentum going until the show. It just came out of nowhere.”

Following what Lin and Bleile refer to as a sub-par performance in July 2004 with stand-in musicians for a charity show, the two began a seven-month search for permanent replacements for Alaimo and Hyzny.

“We spent a long time looking for new people,” Bleile says. “We were pretty picky about it because we knew what kind of sound we wanted. We knew we needed people energetic about the music, people that had stage presence and gear.”

Lin remembers the long cycle of e-mails and auditions that culminated in finding Lane and Young.

“The hardest thing was just being patient, because you know the other members that you’re looking for are out there,” Lin says. “(But) just how are you gonna find them?”

This isn’t the first time Lin’s patience has paid off. Lin started playing guitar after his 18th birthday and spent his four years at NU honing his skills before ever setting foot onstage.

“I had one really good roommate in Allison who played guitar, and I practiced religiously,” Lin says. “At that point I wasn’t ready to play in a band but I knew that once I got out of school it was something I really wanted to pursue and jammed with people here and there. Once I got out I felt it was time to find the right people and make something happen.”

June’s Arrival began to coalesce in February 2002, when Lin and Hyzny auditioned Bleile. The band officially formed in April 2002 with new guitarist Gene Scharf and Lin’s transition from guitar to bass.

“I’m still learning bass as we go, although I guess I’ve technically been playing for three years,” Lin says.

After Scharf’s departure in July 2002, the band added Alaimo and began playing numerous gigs throughout the Chicago scene. In December 2003, the members recorded their second demo EP, an upbeat offering of catchy hooks and modern rock.

Bleile credits the changes in lineup and songwriting approach with the evolution of the band’s sound, which he describes as “high-energy hard rock” and likens to bands like Foo Fighters and 3 Doors Down.

“I think we’re moving on from the ballad-y or bluesier stuff to more of an ‘in your face rock’ presence,” Bleile says. “I’d rather be really into it and running and jumping around and singing than standing there with an acoustic guitar and making out with a microphone and not moving.”

Power Chords: Fans come to aid of NU alum, helping her finance new album

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By MATT MEDVED

Fans of singer/songwriter Kat Parsons wanted her to record a new album so badly they financed it themselves.

More than 400 fans of the Northwestern alum (Communication ‘99) donated more than $18,000 toward the recording and production of her second full-length album, “No Will Power,” which was released in March. Parsons, who embarked on a 13-date tour to support the album’s release, arrives April 30 at Schubas, 3159 N. Southport Ave., for her final show of the tour.

“It’s incredible — it’s a win-win situation,” Parsons says. “Fans feel like they are part of the album. It’s a great synergy and partnership.”

It appears to have been a good investment.

On the album, Parsons’ lilting vocals and melodic guitar and piano work to document a story, self-described as the “unraveling of a romantic relationship at its every stage, but not necessarily in chronological order.”

The album opens with the seductive title track, punctuated by its energetic chorus, which Parsons describes as “mischievous” in its frustration while attempting to stay away from an ex-lover.

And on “Standing Still,” an infectious song she wrote as a college senior, her excitement and uncertainty at embarking on life after college meld in a polished rock package that exhibits her wide vocal range.

“It’s like going along a river which opens up into an ocean with no bank in sight,” Parsons says. “The possibilities are limitless, but you have no idea which would get you anywhere.”

Parsons says recording her sophomore album was a “much more involved process” than her first album, “Framing Caroline,” which she recorded in just one day during her senior year in 1999.

“They were the first songs I’d ever written,” Parsons says. “After playing so many shows, I wanted to get one written and recorded.”

Parsons is often pegged as a folk-rock singer, but she says she feels the label is inaccurate for her new music, which is more along the pop-rock vein.

“I think that it’s just grown as I’ve grown,” Parsons says of her music. “I have more of a message now. I’m not just sitting there singing, I’m sensibly telling a story.”

Just like her life now, the story of Parsons’ upbringing is full of music. Parsons was born in Vienna, Austria, where her father was an acclaimed opera singer and her mother was a singer/songwriter. Both her parents and her brother have accompanied her onstage, and she credits them as her greatest influences, beating out other favorites such as Patty Griffin and Bruce Springsteen.

“Growing up, there was always music playing, always someone singing,” Parsons says. “I’m lucky to have parents that can relate to how good it feels to have a good show and how bad it feels to have a crappy one.”

Before getting to the point where she could headline her own shows, Parsons was a theatre major at NU and a member of a cappella group Melodious Thunk. But she began to feel more comfortable expressing herself in a personal way.

“(Kat) had the heart of an artist, a performer, but not necessarily an actor,” says David Downs, Parsons’ former instructor and an associate professor in the Theatre Department. “I was thrilled when I found out about her love of writing and performing music.”

Parsons began exploring her own musical expression during her sophomore year with an impromptu show at Allison Hall’s “munchies,” where plans of a cover song set fell through when her co-musician cancelled. Unfazed, Parsons managed to distract students from their food long enough to make an impression.

“I barely knew how to play, only three chords, but I played my own songs,” Parsons says. “I’ve never been one to worry about being prepared. I’m not a shy person when it comes to giving it a shot.”

After her unexpected solo debut, Parsons began playing shows on campus, performing at events including Dance Marathon, Suitcase Party and Greek coffeehouses. She then branched out to venues like Unicorn Café and, as an upperclassman, even landed a few professional gigs in Chicago.

Parsons credits NU for providing a positive environment for her musical development.

“It was a very nurturing environment and was a small sphere for me to embark upon my career, as opposed to going straight to the city where I didn’t know people, and they didn’t know me,” Parsons says. “I knew it was instrumental in my growth.”

After graduating from NU, Parsons toured constantly and began receiving hundreds of requests from fans for a second album, a prospect that appealed to her creativity, but not her wallet.

Ever the innovator, Parsons set up a preordering system whereby fans could pledge money in exchange for bonus rewards. A $20 pledge got fans an autographed copy of the new album, $55 netted fans three autographed copies, $500 earned fans signed posters, tickets and a song dedication, and $1000 earned fans a lunch date with Parsons and an inclusion in the album’s liner notes. The strong response defied her expectations.

“The work she has done in the last several years suggests that music is what does this for her,” Downs says. “I can’t wait to see what she does next.”