Watching Me Watching You
Following their 1990s heyday as one of the most unusual bands in the new wave of US progressive rock, Discipline continue their second coming with an album full of intricate detail. Prog catches up with songwriter and vocalist Matthew Parmenter to get the lowdown on Breadcrumbs and the band’s musical philosophy.
Words: Stephen Lambe
Discipline, L-R: Chris Herin, Henry Parmenter, Matthew Parmenter, Mathew Kennedy.
Portrait: Hugh Syme
I n the progressive rock map of the USA, Detroit in the great state of Michigan rarely features. Think of Detroit, and you’re far more likely to link it with Motown and the car industry. But another significant export since 1987 is Discipline. Speaking from his home just outside the city, Matthew Parmenter – vocalist, songwriter and keyboardist of the band for 38 years – recalls the early days of his group, during the somewhat analogue wild west world of cassettes and physical mailing lists.
“We played a lot around Detroit and built up a mailing list, transitioning from high school into college with a lot of friends following us. Then we started getting people we didn’t know, but were interested in what we were doing musically. After a while, we had over 500 people on our mailing list, which I was told was pretty good. We were wearing costumes back then, so I think people thought it was a little bit trippy, and we stood out.