Introduce yourself briefly, what kind of music do you make and what you do in the band?  

My name is Parker and I play rock/metal/doom in a band called Windhand. I think I still play in a band called Cough as well.

If Windhand was an animal, which would it be and why?

Cassowary – basically a dinosaur that nobody sees anymore. A fascinating and ridiculous creature.

How did the band originally come together?

I think it came together pretty organically – a couple friends latched onto a sound and people jumped in (or filtered out) as things became more serious. Dorthia found the band through a Craigslist ad but we were all participating in the local music scene already. I was the last to join, in 2012.

The band is from Richmond, Virginia. How have the surroundings shaped the sound of the band?

It’s a relatively small city in a good location. There’s a big art university here that brings in a steady stream of creative types and we’re located just off a major highway. It’s just about midway down the eastern coast, so it’s a convenient place to stop; at least it was when we had venues.

What drives you to make the art that you do?

Nowadays I feel like this is the life I made and, whether I like it or not, it’s the most affordable way for me to see the world and the friends I’ve found around it.

How do you balance between the recording process and live performing? Does either play a bigger part for the band?

Live performing is probably 90% of what we do but there’s no other way for bands to exist these days – I mean, unless you want to play shit music.

What is going on in the Windhand camp at the moment / do you have some future plans?

Currently we’re gearing up to play a handful of shows here in the states but we still hope to make it to some other shores later this year. It’s probably time for us to start working on some new material too.

What would you name as the biggest highlights or hardships in the band's history?

I try not to dwell on the hardships because I would have to convince myself that I’m actually crazy or stupid in order to keep going.  To be fair, that may actually be the case but the only friends I have left are a part of this “lifestyle”, and seeing my fellow makers of poor decisions is about all I’ve got to look forward to anymore.

How do the visual aspects of the band come together and what kind of a role does it have in Windhand?

I think we’ve all had this mutual interest in the macabre for our entire lives. Our musical influences vary from person to person but our desire to channel that negativity and darkness into music is what brought us together initially. Gallows humor is important to us.

If you could collaborate with any past or present artist/band which would it be?

For years I’ve wanted to collaborate with an Italian band called Father Murphy. They’ve since disbanded (or “rebranded”?) but they were a more experimental/avant-garde group. I have a deep appreciation for them as artists and people and I think their more creepy/ambient style would pair well with whatever I end up doing.

Recommend three artists everyone should know? (bands or anything you wish to mention)

Ola Belle Reed
Dïat
Judas Priest

Last words of wisdom?

If you still think you wanna do this music shit, set the bar low and enjoy the ride.