Exclusive Interview with Parker Jameson From Starkill

I want to begin to thank you for sitting down and answering a few questions for us.

Yeah, no problem. Thanks for the interest.

We need to talk about the most important topic and I think everyone would like to know. Is Spencer’s drum set still for sale on your Facebook page?

Heh, actually, yes. It's sitting dusty in a corner in the practice space. The current Pearl MCX Masters took its place a while ago.

October and November is going to be a busy month for you. First releasing an album and then heading out on tour. Which one is more exciting?

Touring. The album has been mixed and mastered for a while, but I haven't toured in what feels like forever, and haven't toured America in like 14 months. It's about time!

Before you head out on tour, your new album ‘Virus of the Mind’ will be releasing on October 14th by Century Media Records. Tell us a little about the album?

It's our second full length album, and explores a bit darker atmospheres and is a bit of a change for us. It's got a bit more Arch Enemy, Hate Crew Death Roll era Bodom, and Hypocrisy kind of flavor to it than our previous record, and also our first record featuring clean vocals.

For fans of your previous release ‘Fires of Life’. What can they except to find in the new album?

Well, we really didn't want to do Fires of Life II. I think a lot of bands release albums that are just rehashed things, and then fans can get bored, but we went in plenty of new musical places. We focused a lot on song structure and just writing good, solid, memorable songs and riffs and choruses. We dropped the battle motif from FOL, and went in a more real, introspective lyrical realm as well as musical. There's a definite connection we have to all of these tracks.

Your North American tour kicks off on October 23rd in Baltimore, MD. You will be traveling with two of the most influential bands in heavy metal, Arch Enemy and Kreator. What type of emotion comes with that experience?

This is our fifth tour and every time it's just pure excitement that I don't think will ever go away. These are bands that have majorly influenced all of us. I've had Arch Enemy posters on my walls for years, and before we even had ever played our first show, I used to watch their live DVDs and imagine being in their place. So it's a pretty big honor to say the least.

Why are you guys skipping over Salt Lake City, UT on your tour? (Throw under the bus here)

Ha, yeah, sorry. The details are a little murky and I wish I could say more, but we'll just leave at the fact that it can be difficult for some of these venues to accommodate a four band package. That's why we're doing a week of headliners in the middle of the tour, missing out mostly on just the central and western Canadian dates.

Starkill Tour Dates

Oct 23, Baltimore Soundstage, Baltimore, MD
Oct 25, Palladium, Worcester, MA
Oct 26, Upstate Concert Hall, Clifton Park, NY
Oct 27, Metropolis, Montreal, Canada
Oct 28, Imperial Theater, Quebec City, Canada
Oct 29, The Opera House, Toronto, Canada
Oct 30, The Wisco, Madison, WI
Oct 30, The Wisco, Madison, WI
Oct 31, Bubba's Bar and Grill, Sauk Rapids, MN
Nov 01, Live Wire, Chicago, IL
Nov 02, The Riot Room, Kansas City, MO
Nov 03, Rail Club, Fort Worth, TX
Nov 04, Aces North, Mcallen, TX
Nov 05, Dirty Dog Bar, Austin, TX
Nov 06, Jakes, Lubbock, TX
Nov 07, The Rock, Tucson, AZ
Nov 08, The Merrow, San Diego, CA
Nov 09, Mirror Image, Anaheim, CA
Nov 10, Regency Center, San Francisco, CA
Nov 11, House Of Blues, Hollywood, CA
Nov 12, House Of Blues, Anaheim, CA
Nov 14, Marquee Theatre, Tempe, AZ
Nov 16, Ogden Theater, Denver, CO
Nov 19, Mojoes, Joliet, IL
Nov 20, The Intersection, Grand Rapids, MI
Nov 21, MAJESTIC THEATER, Detroit, MI
Nov 22, Bogarts, Cincinnati, OH
Nov 23, House Of Blues, Cleveland, OH

What are your favorite song(s) to play live?

Currently, probably Winter Desolation. That's actually the only song from Virus of the Mind that we've played live, as we used it as a kind of trial song to see how it would go over with crowd before we finished recording all of the new album. We played it when we toured with Turisas and it was definitely a crowd favorite. That song will definitely be part of our set for this upcoming tour.

What are some bands that have influenced you/and your members?

Children of Bodom, Dimmu Borgir, Nightwish, Brendon Small, Amorphis, Arch Enemy, Wintersun... I could go on for a while.

What music/band have you been currently jamming?

I guess the newest additions to my regular playlists would be the new Insomnium and new Dirty Loops albums.

What is in store for Starkill after your busy fall season?

Hopefully it won't slow down. We've had this recurring thing where we coincidentally book our next tour in the middle of doing one, and I know there are some things we've been working on, so hopefully we'll just stay on the road and tour till we drop.

What is some advice that you would give up-and-coming musicians trying to make it?

Make sure you're all dedicated and 110% committed to the band, the sound, and eachother, be fully aware that there is zero money to be made, and also make sure none of you suck at your instruments.

Again we would like to take the time to thank Starkill for doing this with us.

Make sure you check out their new album 'Virus of the Mind' on October 14th and watch for them on their North American tour. You can also follow them on their [Facebook Page].