Interview: Parts Per Million talk their cover of ‘Me And Your Mama’
New England hard rock band drops blistering live cover of Childish Gambino’s 2016 modern classic
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BOSTON, MA. [June 18, 2021] -- Fresh off the release of their critically acclaimed single and video “Find The Light,” New England melodic hard rock band Parts Per Million are back with a rousing live cover of Childish Gambino’s 2016 modern classic classic “Me And Your Mama.”
Recorded and filmed at New Hampshire’s Revelry Studios, complete with a cellist and choir vocals from Boston’s Divas with a Twist, the latest aural and visual offering from Parts Per Million arrived in June across all streaming platforms and with a live performance video hosted on YouTube.
publi*sist caught up with Paul McSweeney, singer and guitarist of the Boston Music Awards-nominated band to discuss the making of “Me And Your Mama,” trying to match the talents of Donald Glover, and what’s next for Parts Per Million.
publi*sist: Right off the bat, why did Parts Per Million decide to cover “Me And Your Mama”?
Paul McSweeney: We were all sitting around talking music, different bands and musicians we were crushing on, and Alex [Marks, bassist] asked if we had heard this record, Awaken My Love. Both myself and Brian [Bailey, guitarist] never had, and with “Me and Your Mama” being the first track, I was instantly blown away. “How can this song not be on everyone's radar?” was all I kept thinking. I immediately made the suggestion we should cover it, thinking we could find a way to pull it off, and having an exceptional amount of time on our hands with Covid.
What was the process like in taking a Childish Gambino track and making it a Parts Per Million song?
Difficult… [laughs]. Part of what gave us some confidence in being able to do it was we had all recently abandoned our amps and heads, and moved into using Kemper Floor boards. We wanted to switch things up, midi-control our effect changes, mostly for the reason we all sing and play, and fumbling around on pedals was just an added nuisance. The amount of options on those pedals is virtually limitless, and Alex took it to the next level with some of his sounds and midi fade-ins and changes.
Most of the sounds on the song aren't even guitars. We spent a good few months mapping the song, and chasing some of the sounds that are on it. It took a while to figure out how to play the moving parts between the three of us.
What were some elements that were easily translated from Childish Gambino’s original, and what were some that were hard to pull off?
I'm not sure any of this was easy for us. The song deserves so much credit, it's really amazing. There's a tuning change in the middle of the song when the song transitions. It drops basically a half of a step, or to 432 hertz. We like to ponder why, but there's some neat fodder out there for anyone who wants to dive down that rabbit hole. We decided to drop an entire key to be able to not kill ourselves singing the choir parts. Some of the notes he hits himself are insane.
I spent a few months trying to learn whistle technique, but just couldn't quite get there. His register is nuts. There's that one note at the end of the first verse I still can't fathom how he hits it.
We came up with that Brian should tap the entire keyboard intro, and he as well had to practice singing the choir part over that. Alex's bass solo in the end took him some time, and figuring out how to pull this off and not butcher it was discouraging at times. We worked our asses off on this one, and walked away with something that was as good as we could have hoped.
Why did you decide to incorporate the choir and strings?
Every practice began with that damn choir part. It was tough for the three of us to sing, but we got to a confident spot. After recording it a few times, we just knew it would be better with actual professional choir singers, and a little bit of fill in with the cello. Again, the song has so much going on, we could only fill so much with a live playthrough.
Finding Divas with a Twist, the group that sang on it, was huge. We sent them the stems of us singing all the parts, and never ran through the song with them until that night. We had worked with Stephen Ambra, the cellist, before on another live session at Revelry called "South and Down" and just like the first time, we didn't even give him anything. We just asked him to listen and throw in his ideas the night of. He was amazing, and always exceeds expectations. Jake Wertman was our session drummer, and he was no different. Just showed up and slayed, just like he did in the studio.
Actually he had never previously heard most of the music we've released over the past year that he's playing on, and day-of he recorded all five songs in about six hours.
How was it working with Revelry Studios?
Best in the game. This is our fifth live session video with them, we made "Find the Light" with them, and I can't really say enough about them either. Matt, Tyler, Kyle add everything you want from a production and directorial standpoint. They were short handed that night, and we showed up with a four-piece choir and the cellist. It wasn't easy for them to set up logistically, but they pulled it off as usual. We have every intention of working with them for all our videos and plenty of these sessions. It's a fun environment, and I feel at home there. When you're surrounded by amazing people, amazing things happen.
How does this fit into the Parts Per Million timeline, or is this just a quick one-off detour?
I'm not sure. The next big project for a live video will take an equal amount of time, and is on the complete other end of the spectrum. We just like taking on songs that are scary. Previously we did "Cult of Personality" by Living Colour and "Gasoline" by Audioslave. We haven't really decided if we will play this one live just yet, it doesn't really fit the rest of what we do, but if the time is right, we'll definitely do it.
Direct all press inquiries to Parts Per Million at partspermillion106@gmail.com or Michael Marotta at michael@publisist.co.
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Parts Per Million is:
Paul McSweeney: Vocals and guitar
S. Brian Bailey: Guitar and vocals
Alex Marks: Bass and vocals
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Media praise for Parts Per Million:
“While hard to pinpoint in terms of genre, they are definitely a rock band – chock full of anthemic choruses, melodies, and guitar riffs.” _The New Fury
“Parts Per Million’s influences stem from ‘90s hard rock and grunge, which can be heard in their harmonies and scorching guitar solos.” _Don’t Forget To Rock
“Parts Per Million has its special magic around their music and their writing style. It stems from a genuine and gentle place and as they continue to grow as a band, we fall more in love with their magic and their presence.” _Keep Walking Music
“If there’s one thing that is certain in this time of uncertainty, it’s that these guys rock. With powerful vocals over pounding drums and riffs aplenty, ‘2020 Vision’ is as big as any rock track to come out this year… If you need something new to help the beers go down then give this a go. It’s sure to get you rocking. _Hard Beat UK
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Press contact: Paul McSweeney at partspermillion106@gmail.com or Michael Marotta at michael@publisist.co.
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