Concert Experience: A Night With Parachute

I don’t want to fall asleep without you, / I don’t want to take one breath without you.

Even before Will Anderson, the lead singer of Parachute, sang these words, the crowd was magic: clapping, stomping along to the beat, screaming the backing “oos” before Will even had a chance to open his mouth. Lights flashed, and the night began.

———————

A couple hours prior to the start of the concert, I was standing alone, shaking slightly, nerves written plainly across my face. I was waiting to take a couple steps and walk towards a band whose music I had listened to daily for at least six years. I have their lyrics plastered above my bed.

Even before I set foot into the venue, I met two kind girls and their mother: Meriel and Tessa. They were sweet enough to let me spend the entire night with them, since I had come alone, which made the night all the more enjoyable.

We were led into a small room upstairs, where the three members of Parachute walked in: Will Anderson, Kit French, and Johnny Stubblefield. Instantly, they put the crowd to ease, performing an acoustic version of “Ghost,” a track off their first album to kick off the meet and greet. Incidentally, Ghost is one of my favorites off their debut album.

There was something so overwhelming in it all; it was such an intimate setting. During a huge concert, there’s often a detachment between the performer and audience. In a sense, there’s some safety in that. It’s easy to say that an artist made eye contact with you in a crowd of 30,000 people, but there’s also so much uncertainty hidden in that single statement. Standing in front of my favorite band was nothing like that; there wasn’t a big enough crowd for me to cling onto, nowhere to hide in anonymity.

The band was completely aware of that, introducing themselves with a hug to everyone in line. Will remarked that he’d recognize our faces in the audience, which I was surprised by, since I had never thought that a singer would be able to discern faces in a crowd. When it was my turn to meet them, I took a picture with my new friends, and Parachute expressed their appreciation for us coming out to the show. They asked how Meriel, Tessa, and I knew each other, and were pleasantly surprised at our sudden newfound friendship. Before I left, I barely managed to stammer out, “You guys have been my favorite band since middle school…and I’m halfway through college right now.” Will and Johnny immediately gave me high fives saying, “We just have to make it graduation then!”, while Kit looked at me directly and said, “Thank you, that means a lot.”

From left to right: Kit French, Tessa, Meriel, Will Anderson, me, and Johnny Stubblefield

I know how inconsequential that seems, particularly because of the slim chances of Parachute remembering me or my words. In light of that fact, it seems almost useless to express how much those words meant to me. But in that second, strangers were connected by a shared love of music, and to me, that is its own magic.

From left to right: Kit, me, Will, and Johnny

———————

Voices echoed across the venue, bouncing off the walls, while red and blue lights blended together in the fog. In all of the concerts I’ve been to, I’d never seen an energy like this. The crowd was the most respectful I’ve ever seen; even though I was up front, I was not once pushed or shoved forward.

Throughout the majority of the concert, you would hear the audience passionately screaming the lyrics louder than the band themselves, almost as if everyone strained to truly display how much these songs meant to them.

The vocals were identical to the recordings, made even better by Will echoing his own voice. He engaged the crowd between songs, sharing personal anecdotes of how the tour had been going and the cost of the Snapchat filter they had purchased for themselves. On a completely unrelated note, it was a sight in itself to see Kit on stage enthusiastically playing the saxophone, harmonica, and keys.

My favorite moments of their performance were almost too many to count. The first was Forever and Always, a song with a deceivingly happy beat, which in reality details the marriage of a dying couple. Will performed an acoustic rendition, with Kit and Johnny flanking him on either side of the microphone. Kit and Johnny harmonized together for the backing vocals, while Johnny provided a beat with a shaker and Kit added a new layer to the track with a harmonica. Despite the quiet nature of the performance, you could hear loud sobs coming from the back of the crowd.

To combat the sad nature of the song, Parachute quickly followed with a song from their newest album, titled “Lonely With Me.” Will’s energy was magnetic, as he chanted the names of the many cities the song includes, and the audience followed along without a moment’s hesitation.

Immediately following that, the stage went pitch black, only to soon be illuminated by spotlights with ever-changing colors. Will’s acoustic guitar rang through the crowd, playing the opening notes of one of my favorite tracks, “What I Know.” I completely lost myself in the music, just like much of the audience, as they clapped along. Suddenly, right before the chorus, it was as if the world stilled. There was a singular beat of Johnny’s drum, and Kit’s voice echoed in the background. The spotlights blazed, the drum kicked in, and the song took me to another world.

I think in that moment, it truly hit me that if you ever need your faith restored in humanity, simply go to a concert. Music has an undeniable power of bringing people together. Strangers willingly gather in one place to dance and sing, everyone’s hearts pounding to the beat of the song.

Parachute truly made the night unforgettable, a stellar performance coupled with an enchanting stage presence that made their entire act unparalleled to a concert I had ever seen before.

It's only been a moment, it's true, / But I could never live this life without you.