“What am I to build, if my hands are broken, if I’m not the chosen one?” sings Steven McKellar of Civil Twilight on “Story of An Immigrant”, over a lush, dynamic beat that evokes the sounds of his native South Africa while steeped in the band’s everevolving present. The foursome (Steven, his brother and guitarist Andrew, drummer Richard Wouters and Kevin Dailey on keys and guitar) are living proof of what happens when you stop worrying about being the chosen one and make music built on both the roots that grew you and the love that keeps you thriving every day. Civil Twilight’s songs embrace every corner of human emotion, balancing delicate, poetic lyrics with sweeping arrangements that touch all the senses: a phrase to make you think; a rolling drumbeat you can feel in your bones; a guitar vamp as illustrative as a picture; a shimmer of keys whose light can nearly be seen and heard. Produced by Ben H. Allen (Gnarls Barkley, Bombay Bicycle Club, Cut Copy), their third record on Wind-Up is built on this vibrancy, on the permanent dust of a Cape Town youth; on the connection that unites them all as brothers beyond blood and on their new home in America where they pull from the innate, thriving musicianship of Nashville, where they live. When you listen to Civil Twilight, from their self-titled debut, to 2012’s widely lauded Holy Weather to now, it’s easy to understand why the band has topped five million YouTube views and reached historic success with film and television syncs – because it’s music you can’t shake, that translates experience into moments and creates melodies that become imbedded deep under the skin. We’re all immigrants, in some way, and Civil Twilight’s singing our national anthem.

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Will Anderson: Lead Vocals, Guitars, Piano
Kit French: Saxophone, Keyboards, Vocals
Alex Hargrave: Bass
Johnny Stubblefield: Drums
Nate McFarland: Lead Guitar, Vocals

For the members of Mercury Records group Parachute, the name of their third album, Overnight, could well be a sly commentary on the hard work and commitment it’s taken for them to experience the success that’s been building over the last four years and first two albums. Their 2009 debut Losing Sleep featured the Top 15 single, “She is Love” (boasting more than 6.5 million views), while 2011’s The Way It Was included the #1 iTunes Rock Song “Kiss Me Slowly” (co-written with Lady Antebellum) and the Top 15 hit “Something to Believe In.”

Or it could refer to the late evenings put in by chief songwriter Will Anderson, burning the midnight oil, writing in his new Nashville base, after moving from the band’s hometown of Charlottesville, VA (where they were discovered and signed to Dave Matthews Band’s Red Light Management out of college). Anderson composed more than 50 songs for the album with a variety of collaborators, including Ryan Tedder (the first single, “Can’t Help”), as well as Grammy winner Chris DeStefano [Kelly Clarkson] and Ashley Gorley [Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban] on the title track.

“Even though there’s plenty of pressure to break through on your third album, the actual recording process was much less stressful,” says Will about the band’s sessions at Ocean Way in Nashville with producer Oren Yoel, a young contemporary who has worked with hip-hop phenom Asher Roth as well as Miley Cyrus, among others. “All of us were on the same wavelength. We all kind of knew exactly what we wanted without having to say it out loud. There was a weird sense of peace that we knew where we were going and where we needed to be.”

From the pop fervor of “Can’t Help” and the powerful simplicity of “Hurricane,” composed on acoustic guitar by Will after a long frustrating day, to the ‘80s Phil Collins-meets-U2 flair of “Waiting for that Call” and the slow Peter Gabriel/John Mayer jam of “The Other Side,” Parachute prove adept at combining guitarist Nate McFarland’s Edge-influenced arena-rock guitar licks with Will’s melodic sense of what will resonate with their passionate fan base. 

It’s no surprise for anyone who has followed the band’s history. Will has been playing with drummer Johnny Stubblefield, bassist Alex Hargrave and saxophone/keyboardist Kit French since they were high school classmates in Charlottesville almost 10 years ago. Anderson met Nate while attending University of Virginia together, and the guitarist joined the band six years ago.

“We’re just now getting to know one another as musicians as well as we know each other as people,” says Will. “We wanted to capture a sound in the studio that reflected us as a band. And we all know which parts each of us had to play to get that sound.”


The band’s stylistic palette can run the range from old-school legends like Stevie Wonder, Elton John, Paul Simon and Bruce Springsteen to newer acts like U2, Coldplay, Weezer, Ben Folds, Maroon 5 and John Mayer.

With producer Yoel, the band has even begun to stretch the boundaries, with Will’s spoken word vocals adding almost a hip-hop flavor to a new song called “Didn’t See It Coming,” about an actress friend of theirs in Hollywood excited to land a gig, only to discover it was an X-rated feature.

“That’s probably the catchiest song I’ve ever written,” he says. “I just laid down this spoken-word track, thinking we’d replace it later, but everyone loved it so much, we kept it on.”

Anderson is most proud of “Hurricane,” a song he wrote before going to sleep by strumming an acoustic guitar.

“It’s like the feeling you get when you think you’re never going to be able to write another song,” explains Will. “Once I started, it all came spilling out.”

Anderson credits guitarist Nate with creating parts that were “just perfect” for each song. “He really nailed it, with a unique spin to every song that made them epic, but at the same time, within a pop framework. That’s something we’ve always tried to do, melding his rock guitar to my sensibilities, making it work both for the arena and within the melodic sense of strong hooks. I think we really nailed it this time.”

Having played more than 400 shows over the last few years, touring around the country with everyone from NeedtoBreathe to Andy Grammer, Parachute’s live show continues to grow and impress. They’ve also played before several million at a New Year’s Eve celebration in Times Square, as well as appearing on NBC’s The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, ABC’s Good Morning America and Jimmy Kimmel Live and CBS’ The Early Show. The band’s songs have been featured on MTV’s The City along with CW’s One Tree Hill, Vampire Diaries and 90210.

“It’s so nice to have three albums’ worth of material to choose from in concert,” says Will, while the band has always played an eclectic variety of covers, from Spencer Davis Group’s “Gimme Some Loving” to vintage tracks from Elton John, Billy Joel, Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder, the Commodores and Motown. “We’re just now hitting our stride as a live band. We’re better musicians who have come to trust one another. We all have our pocket and fill it. But we still have a long way to go.”

Overnight has a little something for everyone. Longtime fans will recognize their favorite band, with a fresh sound bound to intrigue newcomers.

“The last album was like taking a brand-new car straight off the lot,” says Will. “This album is just as fun to drive, but it’s like a vintage Mustang, a little more muscle and grittier, built to last.”

On their third Mercury Records album, Parachute is firmly in the driver’s seat.


Jake Stoody is following