Popular South African pop rock band, The Parlotones, plan to release a series of EPs that document their evolution as artists.
The band comprises Kahn Morbee, brothers Glen and Paul Hodgson, Neil Pauw, Rob Davidson and newcomer Trevor Rebello.
After taking a two-year hiatus before returning to the music scene last year, they recently dropped their first EP titled “Early Recordings”.
Their six song offering includes tracks like “Shine”, “Stare at the Sun”, “Ghosts” and “Superstars”, which has never been available on digital platforms.
Meanwhile, “Butterfly” and “For Heaven’s Sake” were recorded back in 2002.
The idea of releasing a series of EPs came about after Paul found numerous songs backed up on an old hard drive.
This saw the group delve into their rich history as they unveiled a collection of early recordings, covers, demo songs, previously unreleased music and new recordings, offering an intimate look into their journey.
“I found all these songs on hard drives. So some of the songs are very old, they were released in 2002, and then there was stuff we recorded and were on CD, but then CDs ran their course, and it was never put on online.
“There was stuff we recorded but never used and we never looked at it again. And then during Covid-19, we recorded two new songs which were also put on hold, so it’s kind of like a mixed bag of unreleased content,” Paul explained.
The band, which started in 1998, took a two-year break during the pandemic.
During that time, Morbee, emigrated to the Netherlands along with Glen.
“Three years ago, I emigrated to the Netherlands and it took a while to get settled in. Then last year we started playing live again.
“In that process, we got to talking and said that there is a lot of stuff that we recorded which never really got released digitally, so we decided to put them out there so that our fans can get a sense of our journey,” shared Morbee.
He added that this EP is set to “whet fans’ appetites” while they work on a completely new album set to release in 2025.
The Parlotones, which was originally a five-member band, has now welcomed musician Trevor Rebello.
“We’re now a six-piece band. Trevor is our new member and he is kind of like Glen 2.0. Glen can’t always make the shows, so Trevor fills in, and when Glen is around, then Trevor plays an additional guitar and he is a really good vocalist as well,” explained Morbee.
Speaking about the band’s hiatus and getting back to making music, Paul said that for 20 years, the band was a full-time job for its members.
After the pandemic, it was challenging to find new directions in life.
“It’s been like a mid-life turning point. The band was our life for 20 years and we all had to find new directions.
“Ever since leaving university, The Parlotones was our full-time job, so there wasn’t much to fall back on. Music was our thing, but I think it’s actually been good for us.
“I now work full-time and give guitar lessons. The band is a nice new hobby that comes around every two or three months.
“We’ll be writing new songs and rehearsing and try and find different ways of keeping the brand alive without playing shows every week.”
Paul added that after the country started reopening after Covid, they did not want to force The Parlotones back into life.
“It just didn’t make sense, so kind of like let things roll along naturally and gradually things started to happen at their own time again.”
Morbee said that this new EP is not their comeback, but rather their journey and evolution as a band.
“A lot of people only know us from ‘Radio Controlled Robots’, our breakthrough album or ‘A World Next Door to Yours’, so what we are trying to show people is the journey and evolution of this young, optimistic and raw band.
“Hopefully people can see we’ve improved over the years and I think it would be cool for up-and-coming artists that are trying to release music independently, which is mostly what we’ve done our entire career, to show that there is an evolution.
“Sometimes you hear bands that are perfect from the get-go, and this will show that we weren’t, there was a progression, we stuck it out and we were consistent in releasing music and over time we honed our skills and craft of songwriting.
“It’s not a comeback release, it’s more to document our journey and to say that there is still more to come, our journey isn’t over.
“It’s the next phase of the band. We’ve gone through a few, this is the latest one,” said Morbee.
∎ The Parlotones will also be performing two shows in Durban and Johannesburg and, at the end of the year, they are planning to embark on a summer tour.