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WT: How did you first come into contact with chiptune, and what was your
first experience with it?
Parallelis: I actually first discovered chipmusic through a Nintendo
Power article covering the chip-hop group Supercommuter. I just thought it
sounded like a really cool idea, with like, modern music being interpreted
through old hardware. So I got the album, and that basically opened to door for
me to the wonderful online world of chipmusic.
WT: Who has been an influence for you inside of the scene?
P: Oh
jeez, everyone. I think I kind of subconsciously take away something from
everything I hear, and that kind of forms my style. I've been especially
influenced by Henry Homesweet's minimal-house stuff, Cooshinator, Kedromelon,
PopSTAR, and uhhhh probably WMD. But as I said, really anything can inspire me,
and everything I hear makes me want to step up my game and try new stuff with
LSDJ.
WT: What caused you to utilise the programs which you have chosen to use?
P: I
use LSDJ just because it's the most accessible I guess. When I first started
getting into chipmusic, I was listening to Stenobot, Bit Shifter, Random,
Nullsleep, all great Game Boy artists. So when I had a spare $40 after I was
unable to go to Blip Fest 2011 (my ride crapped out on me), it seemed logical
to buy my own cart. Personally, I just love the sounds the Game Boy can make,
the DMG gets such a heavy bass sound and just that aesthetic is awesome. I can
definitely get into C64, NES, YM and Amiga music. But I don't think I'd ever
make it. Maybe someday.
WT: Could you tell us a bit about your recent release, Animalia, please?
P: Animalia
was the culmination of several month of sporadic chipmusicing. Each of the
tracks has a totally different origin, and was something that was very long
term in writing and developing. I was just writing songs to have new material
for ClipStream, not really with a set goal or theme. The idea of having all of
the tracks be scientific animal names was something I've always wanted to do as
a concept album, and I though these tracked worked well, what with the big
range of styles. It unifies a set of otherwise un-unifiable songs. Overall, I'm
proud of how it turned out though; it's a fun grab bag.
WT: What went into creating ‘Lazor Dragon Pizzeria’?
P: I actually though of the main riff of the track when I was in
the shower one day and I thought it was cool, so I jumped out and grabbed my
Gameboy. That snappy pitched pulse sound is something I've recently been
exploring; it's a really rhythmic way of using the pulse channel. After getting
my initial ideas down, I came back to it over the course of a couple of weeks
and fleshed in out, just adding new ideas and chains. The name comes courtesy
of Art Gibbons (aka MyLifeIsPixels). I played an early version of the track
during my March ClipStream set, and he said I should name it "Lazer
Dragons". I added the Pizzeria part. Thought it fit the funky feel of the
track well.
WT: What is the story behind your name?
P: When
I first started chipmusic, I was initially doing this Starscream-esque
LSDJ+drums combo project thing with my friend Jesse Lessner. Unfortunately we
only did like 2 songs before he went of the college in the fall, which is when
I just went solo with the project. However, before I hijacked it, we were
deciding on a name, and JessLess suggested "Parallel", but since it
was already taken on Soundcloud, I just changed it to "Parallelis".
It just kind of popped into my head. I don't know, I like it, I think I fits my
musical style and personality. Not to mention my love for parallel structure.
WT: Any current plans for the future?
P: For
the future? Like with jetpacks? Anything's possible. I'm hoping to play live
more now that I'm graduating high school. BRKfest is coming up this summer
(WOOT) so I'm super excited for that. I'll definitely just keep on chipping
into my college years, spreading the chip love to whatever campus I end up on.
It's awesome to see people’s reactions to the music. I'm also hoping to do more
chipmusic + instrument combinations. Right now I'm working on a Concert Band +
LSDJ piece, which is turning out really cool. Look for that around June
probably. Man, chipscene is the best scene, I'm just super happy to be a part
of it.
