1. Tell me all about the reason that you are a band. Why play music, and more to the point, what are you trying to do lyrically both for yourself and for your listeners / adherents / fellow hardcore cultists?

Hardcore/punk had a deep impact on me from a very early age. As cliche' as it may sound, I honestly feel that I would be in a really dark place right now if it were not for hardcore. I have always felt that when hardcore is at its best, it is a progressive medium where anyone can freely express their emotions and ideas, a medium that is threatening and challenging to our everyday lives, something that inspires us to change ourselves and the world around us. I still believe that hardcore/punk can be very relevant. I am in a band to share the things that I love, the things that frustrate me, the things that overwhelm me, and the things that inspire me. Lyrically, I try and deal with issues that are very hard for me to deal with in my everyday life, but the issues are always underlying that everyday existence. Topics such as alienation, failure, suicide, fear, hope, homophobia, patriarchy, power struggles etc. Things that we all deal with. My intentions are to make some kind of connection, even if it is extremely fleeting. I scream not for some kind of stylish motive but because I feel that the words I write must be screamed.


2. Tell me about the most important songs to you on your new record, why they mean so much to you, and about the record overall?

Although our new record is not entirely a conceptual record, I feel that the first track "Momentum" is a good intro song for the entire record. The song deals with the idea that although we are up against so many things that make us feel ineffectual, insignificant and overwhelmed, we can create momentum against what makes us feel powerless. There can be a way of relating with one another beyond the dominate or be dominated system. This idea is central because a good part of the new record deals with those imposed "dominate or be dominated" relations, and I feel that ultimately in order to deal with that issue, we must feel empowered. Another song that I feel is important on the new record is "Nameless". In the 1960's and 1970's (apparently this still goes on, but is in no way an official policy) Brigham Young University's students who were suspected of having homosexual tendencies were coerced with the threat of expulsion, or having their parents notified unless the students agreed to undergo aversion sex therapy that would "cure" them from being homosexuals (some Clockwork Orange type shit!). "Nameless" is an attempt to tell the story of four students who underwent these treatments and collectively committed suicide in the Art building at BYU, a story that virtually no one in this culture knows about or is willing to deal with. Another song that means a lot to me on the new record is "Temple Shadows" which deals with the fact that nearly fifteen people from my past have died from drug overdose locally in the small mountain college town that Parallax is from and the culture's inability to even come close to admitting that there is a serious problem going on. With both "Nameless" and "Temple Shadows" I feel as though I am telling the stories of ghosts who never had the chance to tell their own stories.


3. Describe your favorite Parallax show and tell us why it was your favorite. Maybe tell us a bit too about your perceptions and feelings about your relationship with your audiences when you play live.

There are way too many favorite shows! But one that comes to mind is a very recent local show that we just played. About 65 kids crammed into a house, sweaty and intimate, the way we like it. What makes that show stand out for me was not just the kids singing along, feeling the music and listening to what I had to say, but the reciprocation that the band had with most people that were there. Not only was I saying things between songs, but people had the chance and felt comfortable enough to engage in dialogue and share their opinion as well. Ultimately my favorite shows are the ones where the atmosphere is intimate, where there is little or no separation between the band and audience. Where there are no fights! And where everyone can feel comfortable enough to sing along regardless of race, age, gender, or whether or not some one is wearing a Slipknot shirt. Parallax has tried, and in some ways succeeded, in creating that kind of atmosphere locally.

Check out the memorial page to Blake on the Counterintelligence Recordings website. Be in touch anytime with thoughts about Blake at greg (at) wordsasweapons (dot) com.