The National Parks
The National Parks is a folk/pop band comprised of five members: Brady Parks (Denver, Colorado – guitar and lead vocals), Sydney Carling Macfarlane (Kaysville, Utah – keyboards and vocals), John Hancock (Sacramento, California – electric guitar), Cam Brannelly (Draper, Utah – drums), and Megan Taylor Parks (Draper, Utah – violin). The group was formed by front man, Brady Parks, with original band members Sydney Carling, and Paige Wagner, in Provo, Utah, in early 2013, with 15 March 2013, marking the band’s first public performance. They produced their debut album Young through Kickstarter under the name of the founder and front man, Brady Parks but was eventually released under the name The National Parks on 3 September 2013. The album was recorded at June Audio with producer Scott Wiley and climbed to #13 on the iTunes singer/songwriter chart.
In January 2014, they released “As We Ran,” a standalone single which was written for the documentary film Love in the Tetons. The first month of their proceeds was donated to the National Parks Conservation Association. The online success of the album and “As We Ran” helped them find growing crowds around Utah, as well as, in Seattle, Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York City. International attention to the band began with the release of “Helsinki,” which premiered on NPR’s All Songs Considered in January 2015.
The band’s second album, Until I Live, was released independently in September 2015 and reached #52 on the iTunes Pop Chart, #5 on Billboard’s Top Heatseekers Chart for the Mountain Region, and boosted Spotify streams beyond 2.5 million. The two albums and the standalone single combined have amassed more than 13.2 million Spotify streams and garnered praise from press outlets such as NPR’s All Songs Considered, CMT Edge, Baeble Music, and Pop Matters. Following their sophomore release, the band has been favorably compared to a wide variety of acts including Foster the People, The Civil Wars, and Mumford & Sons, and has sold out shows in New York City, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles.
The National Parks self-booked tour began in the summer of 2014. By 2016, the band was filling clubs in every region in the country while also performing at SXSW, Canadian Music Week, School Night at Bardot’s, Musikfest, Snowmass Mammoth Fest, and Make Music Pasadena. The group has also performed with acts such as Andy Grammer, Peter Bjorn and John, The Lone Bellow, LeAnn Rimes, and The Moth & The Flame.
In March 2016 City Weekly magazine named them Utah’s Band of the Year. The following month, “Monsters of the North” – a lead single from Until I Live – was announced as the winner of the International Songwriting Competition for all unsigned artists.
The National Parks is currently working on their third studio album Places. The lead single was released as a lyric video on their YouTube channel on 16 June 2017 via Rock Love Magic Records. Please visit the tour page on their official website for their upcoming concert dates.
Follow The National Parks
Recent Posts
The Killers Release Their Sixth Studio Album – “Imploding the Mirage”
The Killers’ sixth studio album, Imploding the Mirage, was released on Friday, 21 August 2020, after an almost three-month delay due to the coronavirus pandemic. The album is 41 minutes 59 seconds in length and was released by Island Records in the United States and...
Operation Underground Railroad Ambassadors Unite Their Voices in a Powerful Rendition of “Rescue”
Human trafficking is one of the most deplorable crimes on Earth. It is an abominable form of modern-day slavery that is driven by the evil hearts of individuals whose sole purpose is to dehumanize other individuals, be they men, women, or children, through their...
BYU Vocal Point and a Virtual Choir of 800 Musicians Worldwide Create a Stirring Rendition of “Nearer My God to Thee”
On 10 April 1912, the RMS Titanic, a British passenger liner operated by the White Star Line, set sail on her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York. On 14-15 April 1912, at around midnight, the luxury liner hit an iceberg in the North Atlantic Ocean....
From a Distance David Archuleta and the Rexburg Children’s Choir Created an Awe-Inspiring Music Video
Two years ago, Ben Watson founded the Rexburg Children’s Choir with children 6-17 from across eastern Idaho. Thus far, the group has released four music videos, and Ben wanted to release something extra special this spring. He was impressed with a hit song made...
The Bonner Family’s Powerful Rendition of “Run and Tell That” from “Hairspray” Sends Succinct Message
The Bonner Family teamed up with their fellow Latter-day Saints behind the YouTube channel Working with Lemons and created a music video with a powerful and succinct message. Using the song “Run and Tell That” from the 2002 musical, Hairspray, they hope to shed a...
Celebrating 90 Years of “Music and the Spoken Word” Broadcast
This summer, the Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square are commemorating 90 years of the weekly Music and the Spoken Word broadcast. To celebrate the longest running national radio program’s 90th year of broadcasting, the Choir will host a special worldwide...