Portland-based Parenthetical Girls are about to release their fourth album, entitled Privilege, Pt. 1: On Death and Endearments. They started off with original members Zac Pennington and Jeremy Cooper under the name Swastika Girls, taken from a Brian Eno song, and released their debut EP Christmas With Swastika Girls in 2002. Photo Credit: Sarah Meadows Since then they've worked with members of The Dead Science and Xiu Xiu to create and release music that's been described as baroque pop, starting with the 2004 vinyl-only debut LP (((GRRRLS))). Their ever-evolving sound led them to work with 25 classically trained musicians for their 2008 album Entanglements that is rich with orchestral arrangements. Here we've had the opportunity to hear from Pennington about the new album, future projects and Christmas albums. EM: Who are you? What do you do in the band? Have you seen Avatar and how much has it influenced your process for creating music? My name is Zac Pennington, and I am the vocalist and artistic director for the group Parenthetical Girls. I have seen Avatar. I have seen every terrible movie--it's essentially all I do. I don't really care for James Cameron all that much, to be honest. EM: What were your creative influences growing up? Anything surprising or embarrassing that might have worked their way into your body of work? My early adolescence was largely spent consumed by a general misunderstanding of punk rock, and at the time embarrassing affection for some of the darker corners of adult contemporary. This was followed by and intermingled with a slightly more nuanced appreciation of British pop music, and an interest in the American underground. I am easily embarrassed in most things, but never musical things. EM: How do you see Privilege compared to the last three albums? Thus far, Privilege is shaping up to be a considerably more eclectic affair than at least the last couple of records. We've done away almost entirely with the orchestra, a move which has had the organic effect of streamlining both the sound and the content of a lot of our songs--a lot more direct and immediate on the whole. Due mostly to circumstance, we've essentially had to recontextualize what "Parenthetical Girls" means every time we begin to make a record. We're basically a completely different band from record to record, every time. EM: On Death & Endearments is just the first of five parts. What can we expect in the next 15 months with the remaining four parts? Your guess is as good as mine, really--which is part of what really excites us about this project. Because of the means by which we are recording these EPs--sequentially, and largely from scratch each time—the tone and color of each session thus far has been markedly different from the last. We're hoping that by the end of it all there will be some semblance of consistency to marry all of the pieces into their sum, but at present, it's all up in the air. I can only assure you that they will each have blood on them. EM: Blood? Each of the EPs will be graced with an illustration of one of the members of the group, and each will be numbered in the corresponding member's blood. I'm sure it would be best to justify this plan with some creative conceptual rhetoric, but the motivation is really as obvious as it seems: it's just hella tough. EM: What was the recording process like for Privilege? Privilege is still being recorded, actually--we are working on each of its individual parts as though they are something like stand-alone EPs—as such we are making time on them one by one in a variety of environments and circumstances. That said, it's not altogether that different from how we always end up working on our records: in living rooms, basements and closets, with producer/arranger-extraordinaire Jherek Bischoff at the helm. This time around, Jherek and I are collaborating a lot more closely on the songs than we ever have in the past, with Jherek contributing some nearly complete pieces to the project. Dude is beyond reproach. EM: Are you planning on working with anyone else outside of the immediate Parenthetical Girls circle for future Privilege EPs? So far we've worked pretty much within the extended family—EP No. 2 features some familiar faces from Parenthetical Girls past like Sam Mickens, Matt Carlson and Jonathan Sielaff. Beyond that, it's anybody's guess. EM: The artwork concept is very interesting, can you please elaborate on it? I've been a big fan of Jenny Mortsell's work for a few years, and knew that I wanted to work with her on this project immediately after we finished Entanglements--luckily, she was willing to oblige. As I've essentially paid out-of-pocket for nearly all of the production and manufacturing of our music, I've always erred on the side of cut corners and conservative budgets, but this time around I decided not to compromise on my desires--which for some reason includes making a box set for my own band. EM: Is "Jackie's Strength" going to make it onto the set list for any upcoming shows? We're terrible at playing that song. Besides, I'm the only one who likes Tori Amos. EM: What's with the Christmas albums? I love crass Christmas singles. But not so much the Crass Christmas single. It's a cheap bid for perennial seasonal relevance. EM: How's Slender Means Society (Ed. Zac's record label founded in 2004) going? Slender Means Society has for all intents come to something of a halt outside of the occasional Parenthetical Girls release. The contemporary business of releasing music has become a fool's errand, and I don't have enough disposable income anymore to justify it. EM: Any harrowing tales from the road? The most lastingly painful tour tale is a couple of years old now, but the scars are still felt everyday. It's hard to talk about. The US tour that was meant to follow the release of Entanglements was capsized by the obscenely gross negligence of a supposedly certified mechanic, whose simple oil change somehow managed to completely destroy the engine of our modest tour vehicle. We missed a run of very exciting shows with Sunset Rubdown, and all spent roughly two weeks in a depressive drunken haze from which none of us has ever truly recovered. EM: What can we expect from Parenthetical Girls in the future? We're presently at work with Seattle-based experimental theater company Implied Violence, with whom we are collaborating on a dramatic piece that will premiere in Austria in April. Also: more EPs. Endless, endless. *** For more info check out: http://www.parentheticalgirls.com http://www.myspace.com/parentheticalgirlsband http://www.slendermeanssociety.com