Parkington Sisters

It’s a rainy, Sunday afternoon in Vancouver, and I’m waiting under the shelter of the Commodore Ballroom for my interview with drummer Joe Tomino of the genre-bending metal band Dub Trio. Across the street, the usual riff-raff that cloaks Granville Street holds my attention until Tomino appears, apologetic for being a few minutes late. I told him it was no worry; The bums were entertaining for the most part.

“Did you watch the guy in orange? He’s the best,” Tomino points out. Sure enough, a manic, Jesus-bearded vagrant in orange is squawking like a chicken and hopping around on one foot.

Vancouver’s colourful street-life may leave me chagrined, but it’s all rock n’ roll to Tomino. Soon we are joined by bassist Stu Brooks, casually cruising up to us on his low, black bike (“We’ve got our own bikes on the bus with us for this tour,” Tomino tells me excitedly) and we’re off to a crepe café for some food, espresso, and Q and A. The service is horrendously slow and a bit rude, but the guys are content and relaxed. With Brooks’ wry smile and piercing eyes and Tomino’s affable charm, they seem like a pair of cool dudes, not harried musicians in the midst of a demanding tour (they are both the openers and backing band for Matisyahu).

Dub Trio has certainly been on the rise since their debut album, Exploring the Dangers of, hit the scene in 2004, followed by the acclaimed New Heavy and Another Sound is Dying. Each release cemented them as the pioneers of the dub/metal genre and the musicians (including guitarist DP Holmes) soon had their hands in everything, from appearing with Mike Patton’s Peeping Tom (their song “We’re Not Alone” is among the best on the album), to doing studio sessions with Mos Def and 50 Cent (among others), to now, where they are currently working with Matisyahu, doing double duty on a seemingly never-ending tour.

When our food and drinks finally come, it was time to shoot the breeze with the Brooklyn band.

You’ve been the openers and the backing band many times, just like you are tonight with Matisyahu. Is it difficult doing two sets after each other? It must be exhausting…

Brooks: We kind of go without thinking about it, I guess. I mean, what happens is that we do soundcheck, and then we have ten minutes to do a Dub Trio check, and then doors are open. Then we scramble to get some food, and then it’s like, already 15 minutes till we play. Then we’re on stage, play our set, and then 20-minute break. Next thing you know, it’s three and a half hours later, and it’s over. I’d say with including the Dub Trio 40-minute set, I start getting tired towards the last half hour of the Matisyahu set.

Tomino: You learn how to preserve energy though. Like, for me, I know when to give it and when to not, but it does get us warmed up for the Matisyahu set, like…we’re hot and ready. But then when we come out on stage and people who don’t realize that we are also the backing band are like “Where’s Matisyahu?!”

Like, “Noooooooo?”

Tomino: And then we go, “Mwa ha ha.”

Brooks: There’s been a couple “Noooooos.” In Berlin, they were like “No, not you again!” Because we can be a little abrasive and they want their “King Without a Crown”.



So, a lot of people who are here to see Matisyahu groove might not know what to expect from Dub Trio. Do you see many confused people in the audience once the dub gives way to melt your face off metal?

Tomino: It’s funny because I feel like his fans are a little more receptive to us each time around. We’ve done so many opening sessions with him, and touring, and this is the third one, and people have opened up to it. People were actually clapping along to Dub Trio at this other show. Like clapping a beat, or something.

Brooks: A dancehall beat.

Tomino: I don’t think anyone has ever clapped along to Dub Trio before.

Brooks: Usually we get this (scratches head and looks confused) and then “You guys are awesome but you need a singer.”

So, was it a conscious decision when you first started to not have a singer?

Brooks: In a way. We were a rhythm section first, backing up different singers. We started Dub Trio as just doing it without a singer, just playing and improvising, any style of music, whatever we wanted to play. Doing small cafes around Manhattan and Brooklyn, and eventually a little buzz got around.

Tomino: It was just a creative outlet. We were in a band with a singer and we were like, “Let’s do what we want to do on top of this other thing that we really dig as well.” But with the other shit that we can’t do in the other gig. Because we hung out all the time, listening to the same music. You know, let’s make some music and play some fun shit that we like.

Brooks: It was more like a fun project, you know. That’s where the goodness in the music came from. There was not an intention to get a record deal or impress anybody.

Tomino: That was never the intent.

Brooks: I was just trying to impress Joe. Joe was trying - Consequence of Sound September 9, 2010 Katrina Halle

It’s a rainy, Sunday afternoon in Vancouver, and I’m waiting under the shelter of the Commodore Ballroom for my interview with drummer Joe Tomino of the genre-bending metal band Dub Trio. Across the street, the usual riff-raff that cloaks Granville Street holds my attention until Tomino appears, apologetic for being a few minutes late. I told him it was no worry; The bums were entertaining for the most part.

“Did you watch the guy in orange? He’s the best,” Tomino points out. Sure enough, a manic, Jesus-bearded vagrant in orange is squawking like a chicken and hopping around on one foot.

Vancouver’s colourful street-life may leave me chagrined, but it’s all rock n’ roll to Tomino. Soon we are joined by bassist Stu Brooks, casually cruising up to us on his low, black bike (“We’ve got our own bikes on the bus with us for this tour,” Tomino tells me excitedly) and we’re off to a crepe café for some food, espresso, and Q and A. The service is horrendously slow and a bit rude, but the guys are content and relaxed. With Brooks’ wry smile and piercing eyes and Tomino’s affable charm, they seem like a pair of cool dudes, not harried musicians in the midst of a demanding tour (they are both the openers and backing band for Matisyahu).

Dub Trio has certainly been on the rise since their debut album, Exploring the Dangers of, hit the scene in 2004, followed by the acclaimed New Heavy and Another Sound is Dying. Each release cemented them as the pioneers of the dub/metal genre and the musicians (including guitarist DP Holmes) soon had their hands in everything, from appearing with Mike Patton’s Peeping Tom (their song “We’re Not Alone” is among the best on the album), to doing studio sessions with Mos Def and 50 Cent (among others), to now, where they are currently working with Matisyahu, doing double duty on a seemingly never-ending tour.

When our food and drinks finally come, it was time to shoot the breeze with the Brooklyn band.

You’ve been the openers and the backing band many times, just like you are tonight with Matisyahu. Is it difficult doing two sets after each other? It must be exhausting…

Brooks: We kind of go without thinking about it, I guess. I mean, what happens is that we do soundcheck, and then we have ten minutes to do a Dub Trio check, and then doors are open. Then we scramble to get some food, and then it’s like, already 15 minutes till we play. Then we’re on stage, play our set, and then 20-minute break. Next thing you know, it’s three and a half hours later, and it’s over. I’d say with including the Dub Trio 40-minute set, I start getting tired towards the last half hour of the Matisyahu set.

Tomino: You learn how to preserve energy though. Like, for me, I know when to give it and when to not, but it does get us warmed up for the Matisyahu set, like…we’re hot and ready. But then when we come out on stage and people who don’t realize that we are also the backing band are like “Where’s Matisyahu?!”

Like, “Noooooooo?”

Tomino: And then we go, “Mwa ha ha.”

Brooks: There’s been a couple “Noooooos.” In Berlin, they were like “No, not you again!” Because we can be a little abrasive and they want their “King Without a Crown”.



So, a lot of people who are here to see Matisyahu groove might not know what to expect from Dub Trio. Do you see many confused people in the audience once the dub gives way to melt your face off metal?

Tomino: It’s funny because I feel like his fans are a little more receptive to us each time around. We’ve done so many opening sessions with him, and touring, and this is the third one, and people have opened up to it. People were actually clapping along to Dub Trio at this other show. Like clapping a beat, or something.

Brooks: A dancehall beat.

Tomino: I don’t think anyone has ever clapped along to Dub Trio before.

Brooks: Usually we get this (scratches head and looks confused) and then “You guys are awesome but you need a singer.”

So, was it a conscious decision when you first started to not have a singer?

Brooks: In a way. We were a rhythm section first, backing up different singers. We started Dub Trio as just doing it without a singer, just playing and improvising, any style of music, whatever we wanted to play. Doing small cafes around Manhattan and Brooklyn, and eventually a little buzz got around.

Tomino: It was just a creative outlet. We were in a band with a singer and we were like, “Let’s do what we want to do on top of this other thing that we really dig as well.” But with the other shit that we can’t do in the other gig. Because we hung out all the time, listening to the same music. You know, let’s make some music and play some fun shit that we like.

Brooks: It was more like a fun project, you know. That’s where the goodness in the music came from. There was not an intention to get a record deal or impress anybody.

Tomino: That was never the intent.

Brooks: I was just trying to impress Joe. Joe was trying - Consequence of Sound September 9, 2010 Katrina Halle

WILLIAMSBURG, BROOKLYN: Joel Hamilton is a hard guy to pin down. Paging through his discography, career highlights jump out from all corners of the map. Although his mixes often feature direct, powerful central elements against backdrops of wide, immersive ambience, his production style is best defined by his adaptability.

Joel Hamilton at the Neve 5316 in Studio G.
Joel works across genres to create records with unique sonic stamps. If a common thread runs through his discography, it’s the prevalence of artists with distinct, singular voices. Often referenced are the unmistakable thumbprints of Elvis Costello, Tom Waits and Marc Ribot. He’s gone from gritty to pretty with Dub Trio, Matisyahu, Sparklehorse, Jolie Holland, and thanks to a newly released Blakroc record, he’s crossed paths with true hip-hop heavyweights like RZA and Mos Def.
We caught up with Joel by Studio G’s Neve 5316 and found him fresh off a two-week recording stint in rural South Africa. Already back into the swing of life as an in-demand NYC producer/engineer, he told us about tracking sessions beneath a bullet-ridden chalkboard in the Nkomazi countryside, long days in the studio with a haunting “mermaid choir,” and pumping out dub tracks for Disney.
The new Blakroc record has been doing pretty well. A lot of Rock/Hip Hop crossovers in the recent past saw Rock artists bringing in Hip Hop elements. Jay Z made some news last summer when he came to this neighborhood for a Grizzly Bear show, and made some comments about modern rap growing stale.
It’s funny you bring that up. Damon Dash had been Jay Z’s producer and partner for years and he was Executive Producer on the Blakroc sessions. If we had the idea to get RZA on a track, he was the guy who could pull out the Rolodex and make it happen. At one point, he basically named all these people and said “Me, Jay, Rick, we’re all getting out of Hip Hop.”
I was a huge Hip-Hop fan from the early days. There were parallels with Hardcore at the time. They shared this urgent “revolution now”, kind of vibe that’s common to street music. The idea with Blakroc was about going around the Hip Hop idiom in a lot of ways. It used to be so authentic, but it’s been xeroxed so many times that it barely resembles the original art form. There’s a lot of great stuff out there, but when it comes to the mass-market stuff you’d hear on the radio, it has none of the soul anymore. It’s been emasculated in a lot of ways.
Emasculated by sheer machismo?
(Laughs) Weirdly, yeah. But to me that is emasculation. If you have a real cause with some substance, that’s about as masculine as you can get. It’s that kind of genuine focused passion that gives people the strength to walk into Rwanda or go into the hood and do a needle exchange program in the early 80s. There’s a kind of power that comes when you’re there trying to do something that actually makes a difference.
Speaking of…you’ve just come back from recording in Africa with TRIAD Trust. Tell us a little about that.

Recording rehearsal under some trees outside the Hamilton setup as a studio for the week in Kamhlushwa, Nkomazi, South Africa.
At a fundamental level, TRIAD Trust is an AIDS awareness program that does medical outreach. The way it’s implemented is really genius. I’m not a complete 16-year-old utopian. The concept that you should be as destitute as the people you’re trying to help is ridiculous. But so many non-profits will have their heart in the right place, and then you walk into the office and they have marble counter-tops and the Park Avenue address, and you think “Do you really need that to save the world?” That kind of bums me out a little bit. There was none of that at TRIAD.
When I was being introduced to them, I was shown simple point-and-shoot videos and photos that were unbelievably compelling. There was one in particular that stuck out. It was a picture of a kid playing soccer. He had a left sneaker on his right foot, and no sneaker on the other foot. The reason was as simple as this: He was right handed and wanted the sneaker on the stronger leg. What he had to work with was one sneaker, and he put it on the leg that could kick better. That just spoke volumes about the attitude over there.
There are some very modern areas in South Africa with well developed infrastructure. I saw some of your photos, and the Nkomazi region, where you were was definitely not one of them.
Absolutely. It was in the middle of nowhere, even by South African standards. Let’s put it this way: South Africa has the highest incidence of HIV and AIDS in the world, and we were in the section that has the highest incidence in South Africa. Over 50% of males won’t see their 30th birthday. It’s not that it’s “the hood”. Nobody’s smoking crack. It’s not the “bad area”. You can’t even call it “poor”. There are just no resources.
So what was the goal of this trip and these recordings? Is there an album that came out of it?
It’s not finished yet, but I have - Sonic Scoop May 26, 2010 Justin Colletti

It is early morning and I’m sitting at my desk at work listening to the latest CD from The Parkington Sisters for about the fifth time.
Though I’m bathed in the unflattering glow of the overhead fluorescents and clad in “office casual” attire, as the music plays it transports me home to my comfy living room where I am sitting in my favorite chair reading a book about sailing vessels and lost loves as a gentle rain falls outside my window.
That is what I love best about the music of these five sisters from Wellfleet – no matter what the song, the finely woven tapestries of acoustic instruments and soulful voices simply spirit listeners away to another place, another time, another realm.
Ironically, though I was handed another Parkington Sisters album months ago (The Parkington Sisters, Fox Run Studio and Trout Towers), it sat in its case, untouched except to move to various spots on my desk when I tidied up.
I heard the Sisters for the first time when they opened for Livingston Taylor in a special Valentine’s Day concert at the Congregational Church in Wellfleet.
As Nora, Rose, Lydia, Ariel, and Sarah took the stage clad in elegant evening gowns and bare feet, I assumed I’d be hearing yet another quirky, slightly off-pitch coffee-house group (read: entertaining but not memorable).
Was I wrong, and for that I am so glad.
Their music, an eclectic blend of acoustic, alternative, ethnic, classic, contemporary folk takes flight, floats across the airwaves, and settles in the soul, begging to be heard again and again.
Haunting is the first word that came to mind during my initial listen to Eagle and the Wolf, but not haunting in that put-it-on-the-shelf-and-ignore-it way. Haunting as in the music stays with you, the melodies sifting like beach sand through complex, yet familiar emotions.
Within the melodies, within the lilting voices, the stirring strings, and the softly thrumming guitars there are messages. Don’t, however, expect those messages to come through in a clear-cut manner in which the music is tailored to the message.
Take, for example, the title song, “Eagle and the Wolf.” Though the song has an almost melancholy feel, at its heart it is a song about an empowered woman stating that she’s not waiting around for her prince to come.
In the song the woman speaks to a man who is “the king of [his] own lonely castle, way up there, in [his] tall tower.”
She is on the ground, with her tambourine, “not in a tower throwin’ my long hair down, for some prince to rescue me.”
She’s “got a new view, boy,” and it would be best to pay attention.
The CDs next tune, “America,” is a song with a down-south folksy feel. I especially love the banjo that works perfectly with the vocal inflections of the singer (possibly Lydia). It makes me think of driving in a car on a warm summer’s day through familiar country where everyone knows their neighbors.
The song is an uplifting, bouncy contrast to the next, “All My Love,” whose lingering melody, when combined with its heartfelt lyrics, calls to mind that feeling of peace just before one slips into sleep.
The final song is my favorite. On the outside “Sailor Song” is a jolly-sounding tune reminiscent of classic sea shanties (the songs, not the sheds). Listen closely to the lyrics, though, and you learn that it’s really a sad tale of a young man’s life – and death – upon the sea.
It you’re a lover of predetermined, heavily synthesized, bubblegum pop, The Parkington Sisters are not the group for you.
If you’re a musical risk-taker, however, and appreciate five-part harmonies masterfully blended with stringed instruments and poetic lyrics, by all means visit their Web site (www.parkingtonsisters.com), purchase Eagle and the Wolf, and see where it transports you. - The Barnstable Patriot, March 19, 2010 Kathleen Szmit

Cape Cod has consistently been an artistic refuge. In 2000, AmericanStyle magazine named Cape Cod its #1 Arts Destination in the Nation. In 1899 artist Charles W. Hawthorne founded the Cape Cod School of Art here, introducing near-derelict fishing town Provincetown to Greenwich Village intelligentsia. Other artists drawn to Cape Cod include Edward Hopper and Jackson Pollock. Eugene O’Neill’s first plays were written and produced here and screen stars are no strangers here—Marlon Brando, Richard Gere, Al Pacino, Bette Davis and others have performed on Cape Cod. A young Tennessee Williams, once an unknown alcoholic struggling to write plays, summered in P-town. Stanley Kunitz, Mary Oliver and Mark Doty live here still as did Norman Mailer prior to his death in 2007. Artists of every discipline and ilk have lived and worked here, many still do.

Sibling songtresses

The Parkington Sisters on stage in Wareham earlier this year. According to all five siblings, it's the ocean that continues to inspire them. Photo by William DeSousa-Mauk.
Given the foregoing, small wonder the eponymous Parkington Sisters—five gregarious, charismatic, beautiful and talented sisters born and raised in Wellfleet (except Ariel, who was actually born in Missouri)—launched their career as a musical group on the streets and byways of Provincetown. Lydia (18-years-old) plays cello, guitar, and banjo; Rose (21-years-old) plays guitar, piano, and accordion; Nora (23-years-old) plays violin, guitar, and tambourine; Sarah (28-years-old) plays violin and guitar; and Ariel (30-years-old) plays violin and has two Master’s degrees. Rose and Lydia attend UMass Amherst where Rose majors in Sustainable Agriculture and Lydia is a cello performance major; Ariel teaches violin and viola in western Mass; Nora lives in Boston and is traveling with Winter Olympics Halfpipe Gold Medalist Hannah Teter this month; and Sarah lives in Manhattan’s trendy East Village where she is a freelance musician.

Talented parents

Some of the Cape’s great artists and artisans were born and raised here, allowing the Cape itself to seep into their psyche, endowing them with its special magic from childhood when little ones are at their most impressionable and malleable. With innate parental musical proclivities nurtured within Cape Cod’s benevolent terrain, the five sisters were guided by two extremely talented and musical parents; their talents were forged and annealed here. Each daughter was trained musically and played one or more musical instruments as young children. Mostly, all five sisters proclaim “It is the ocean which inspires us,” and, with 560 miles of seacoast encircling the peninsula, it remains clear why the sisters are so inspired.

"Under the radar"

The issue of Cheryl and Dani Parkington of Wellfleet, daughters Ariel, Sarah, Nora, Rose, and Lydia are more than sisters, they are soul sisters. Their heady music touches deep in the soul’s core; it grabs listeners from the first bar and does not release until they are taking their bows. Paterfamilias Dani Parkington says his daughters were nurtured in an environment of contemporary Americana music influenced mightily by such luminous musicians, singers and songwriters as Joan Baez, Laura Nyro, Joni Mitchell and Aretha Franklin; French jazz violinist Stéphane Grappelli, and prominent contemporary bassist and composer Edgar Meyer. The sisters’ mother, Cheryl Parkington, is a member of a celebrated lower Cape American string band, The Higher Ground. She nurtured her daughters in the folk tradition. Their father, Dani Parkington, who plays strings and percussion instruments, classifies himself as a ‘world musician’ and studies and plays eastern music, in particular. On family road trips, the car was always a rolling concert; attending concerts and listening to avant-garde classical music was standard family fare. All five sisters agree that their parents and family were the most influential factors in their collective and individual musical evolutions. The women enjoy the group’s ‘under the radar’ status and, in fact, The Parkington Sisters were acclaimed a best ‘Under the Radar’ group by American Songwriter magazine.

From a duo on Commercial

The original duo comprised Sarah and Rose captivating passersby about seven years along Commercial Street. So much did the pair enjoy performing, they soon entreated the three remaining siblings to join in and, within a couple of years, Ariel, Lydia, and Nora were also toting guitars, violins, cellos, banjos, mandolins, accordions and tambourines and the group was born.

Acoustic-indie-folk with classical roots

There is a special bond, a tacit understanding and empathic resonance these five beautiful and richly-talented sisters emanate. It is palpable … their sonorous music and lyrics cannot fail to impress. At first, one feels as if he or she has wandered into a chamber music concert, until the gentle strains of the guitar, mandolin, accordion or - Cape Cod Today, February 8, 2010 Bill DeSousa-Mauk

“The Parkington Sisters take the stage as a force of nature. Five sisters ranging in age from 17 to 29 are a pure celebration of what we love about music. All are serious players. With both parents being professional musicians, they didn’t have to look far for inspiration. Their ensemble includes piano, cello, violins, and accordion, as well as guitar, mandolin, and original vocals. Like a field of sunflowers in the August breeze, The Parkington Sisters have a natural beauty that makes them a pleasure to watch as well as hear. If you have a chance to catch just one show you will be under their spell forever.

Their song “Sweet Stranger,” is innocent and sexy. It touches cords with anyone who has fallen in love with someone new from afar. With a rising sense of hope, The Sisters explore vocal harmonies and violin refrains that are sophisticated but not tricky. It’s easy to be carried away on this warm breeze.

The song “November 15,” has a depression era, mysteriousness that drags us along to the show. Mock tragedy and dreamy vocals add to the vintage quality of the tune.

“Home” is the fifth song on their debut EP. Soft and easy vocals and guitar hint of Ricky Lee Jones crossed with The Moldy Peaches.” - Jay Spica, WVKR DJ

“The Parkington Sisters take the stage as a force of nature. Five sisters ranging in age from 17 to 29 are a pure celebration of what we love about music. All are serious players. With both parents being professional musicians, they didn’t have to look far for inspiration. Their ensemble includes piano, cello, violins, and accordion, as well as guitar, mandolin, and original vocals. Like a field of sunflowers in the August breeze, The Parkington Sisters have a natural beauty that makes them a pleasure to watch as well as hear. If you have a chance to catch just one show you will be under their spell forever.

Their song “Sweet Stranger,” is innocent and sexy. It touches cords with anyone who has fallen in love with someone new from afar. With a rising sense of hope, The Sisters explore vocal harmonies and violin refrains that are sophisticated but not tricky. It’s easy to be carried away on this warm breeze.

The song “November 15,” has a depression era, mysteriousness that drags us along to the show. Mock tragedy and dreamy vocals add to the vintage quality of the tune.

“Home” is the fifth song on their debut EP. Soft and easy vocals and guitar hint of Ricky Lee Jones crossed with The Moldy Peaches.” - Jay Spica, WVKR DJ

“Cape Cod’s five Parkington Sisters, between 17 and 29 in age, are also adorable, not to mention accomplished musicians - they have 3 violins, one cello, one guitar and the kind of harmonies that come from singing together your whole life.” - John Platt, WFUV

"The Parkington Sisters are band whose members have been together all their lives, literally. The group is composed of five sisters from Wellfleet who pair vocal harmonies with violins, piano, guitar and cello. Growing up as the daughters of two musicians, music was a way of life for them...they offer eclectic renditions of new and old tunes and perform original compositions." - The Cape Cod Times, Jul 4 2008

"The Parkington Sisters are band whose members have been together all their lives, literally. The group is composed of five sisters from Wellfleet who pair vocal harmonies with violins, piano, guitar and cello. Growing up as the daughters of two musicians, music was a way of life for them...they offer eclectic renditions of new and old tunes and perform original compositions." - The Cape Cod Times, Jul 4 2008

"Wellfleet's Parkington Sisters...their music tends to be gentle, thoughtful, and largely acoustic..."
www.sonictrout.com/kelp/kelp374.html
- The Cape Codder -Chandler Travis

“Very unusual. Very, very unusual. Five sisters from around Cape Cod. Rose on guitar; sister Lydia plays a mean cello; and Ariel, Nora and Sarah add very classical violins to the mix. Beautiful, mesmerizing, crossing all boundaries. The sisters share lead vocals and add great, sometimes five-part harmonies. Their musical tastes do range from Stravinsky to Joni Mitchell and from Stéphane Grappelli to the Pixies.... Very special: lots of chemistry between the sisters; between genres; between band and audience; between the eye and the ear. Very special indeed: Hallelujah! I’m looking forward to hear their album…cool and original, a future super act who you will be seeing everywhere, sometime soon…” - Folkwax.com Evert Wilbrink

"Wellfleet's Parkington Sisters...their music tends to be gentle, thoughtful, and largely acoustic..."
www.sonictrout.com/kelp/kelp374.html
- The Cape Codder -Chandler Travis

Cape Cod has consistently been an artistic refuge. In 2000, AmericanStyle magazine named Cape Cod its #1 Arts Destination in the Nation. In 1899 artist Charles W. Hawthorne founded the Cape Cod School of Art here, introducing near-derelict fishing town Provincetown to Greenwich Village intelligentsia. Other artists drawn to Cape Cod include Edward Hopper and Jackson Pollock. Eugene O’Neill’s first plays were written and produced here and screen stars are no strangers here—Marlon Brando, Richard Gere, Al Pacino, Bette Davis and others have performed on Cape Cod. A young Tennessee Williams, once an unknown alcoholic struggling to write plays, summered in P-town. Stanley Kunitz, Mary Oliver and Mark Doty live here still as did Norman Mailer prior to his death in 2007. Artists of every discipline and ilk have lived and worked here, many still do.

Sibling songtresses

The Parkington Sisters on stage in Wareham earlier this year. According to all five siblings, it's the ocean that continues to inspire them. Photo by William DeSousa-Mauk.
Given the foregoing, small wonder the eponymous Parkington Sisters—five gregarious, charismatic, beautiful and talented sisters born and raised in Wellfleet (except Ariel, who was actually born in Missouri)—launched their career as a musical group on the streets and byways of Provincetown. Lydia (18-years-old) plays cello, guitar, and banjo; Rose (21-years-old) plays guitar, piano, and accordion; Nora (23-years-old) plays violin, guitar, and tambourine; Sarah (28-years-old) plays violin and guitar; and Ariel (30-years-old) plays violin and has two Master’s degrees. Rose and Lydia attend UMass Amherst where Rose majors in Sustainable Agriculture and Lydia is a cello performance major; Ariel teaches violin and viola in western Mass; Nora lives in Boston and is traveling with Winter Olympics Halfpipe Gold Medalist Hannah Teter this month; and Sarah lives in Manhattan’s trendy East Village where she is a freelance musician.

Talented parents

Some of the Cape’s great artists and artisans were born and raised here, allowing the Cape itself to seep into their psyche, endowing them with its special magic from childhood when little ones are at their most impressionable and malleable. With innate parental musical proclivities nurtured within Cape Cod’s benevolent terrain, the five sisters were guided by two extremely talented and musical parents; their talents were forged and annealed here. Each daughter was trained musically and played one or more musical instruments as young children. Mostly, all five sisters proclaim “It is the ocean which inspires us,” and, with 560 miles of seacoast encircling the peninsula, it remains clear why the sisters are so inspired.

"Under the radar"

The issue of Cheryl and Dani Parkington of Wellfleet, daughters Ariel, Sarah, Nora, Rose, and Lydia are more than sisters, they are soul sisters. Their heady music touches deep in the soul’s core; it grabs listeners from the first bar and does not release until they are taking their bows. Paterfamilias Dani Parkington says his daughters were nurtured in an environment of contemporary Americana music influenced mightily by such luminous musicians, singers and songwriters as Joan Baez, Laura Nyro, Joni Mitchell and Aretha Franklin; French jazz violinist Stéphane Grappelli, and prominent contemporary bassist and composer Edgar Meyer. The sisters’ mother, Cheryl Parkington, is a member of a celebrated lower Cape American string band, The Higher Ground. She nurtured her daughters in the folk tradition. Their father, Dani Parkington, who plays strings and percussion instruments, classifies himself as a ‘world musician’ and studies and plays eastern music, in particular. On family road trips, the car was always a rolling concert; attending concerts and listening to avant-garde classical music was standard family fare. All five sisters agree that their parents and family were the most influential factors in their collective and individual musical evolutions. The women enjoy the group’s ‘under the radar’ status and, in fact, The Parkington Sisters were acclaimed a best ‘Under the Radar’ group by American Songwriter magazine.

From a duo on Commercial

The original duo comprised Sarah and Rose captivating passersby about seven years along Commercial Street. So much did the pair enjoy performing, they soon entreated the three remaining siblings to join in and, within a couple of years, Ariel, Lydia, and Nora were also toting guitars, violins, cellos, banjos, mandolins, accordions and tambourines and the group was born.

Acoustic-indie-folk with classical roots

There is a special bond, a tacit understanding and empathic resonance these five beautiful and richly-talented sisters emanate. It is palpable … their sonorous music and lyrics cannot fail to impress. At first, one feels as if he or she has wandered into a chamber music concert, until the gentle strains of the guitar, mandolin, accordion or - Cape Cod Today

http://www.memphisflyer.com/memphis/many-voices-many-rooms/Content?oid=1960382 - Memphis Flyer

“The Parkington Sisters four-song eponymous EP (Self-Released) is like the best first date you’ve ever been on: transcendent, gooey, and short enough to leave you yearning for more. Aged 17-29, the five Parkington Sisters manage to channel Joni Mitchell, Shostakovich, and Thelonious Monk in such an understated manner as to make the uninitiated heart leap. Opening track “Let Go” manages to cover more emotional and harmonic territory in five minutes than the last two Iron and Wine albums combined. This collection may not be easy to find yet, but rest assured that these songs and more should be widely available and sooner than later. In the barren landscape of girl groups as forgettable as Twitter posts, the Parkington Sisters are the musical manifestation of Louisa May Alcott.”



- July/August 2009, David Mead

http://www.provincetown.com/show_venues_provincetown/entertainment_news_provincetown/_/16595/ - October 9, 2009 Provincetown Magazine

http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090709/ENTERTAIN/307099919 - July 9, 2009, Cape Cod Times