JIMMY FONTAINE
JOE P
When Asbury Park’s popular alt-rock combo Deal Casino disbanded at the onset of the pandemic, frontman Joe Parella seized the moment. He rebranded himself as Joe P and began connecting with fans on TikTok and YouTube, finding almost immediate success.
“Off My Mind” (listen below) has racked up nearly 40 million streams on Spotify alone, and the acoustic ballad “Birthday Baby (The Girl With No Smile)” (listen below) has been a fan favorite since he introduced it on TikTok in 2021.
Now, following two self-released EPs, Parella has released Garden State Vampire, his first full-length album as Joe P, on Neon Gold/Atlantic Records; it includes “Off My Mind,” “Birthday Baby” and nine other tracks. Following a Sept. 14 appearance at Asbury’s Sea.Hear.Now festival, he will embark on a headlining tour that will crisscross the nation through the end of October, with more shows following in December. Venues will include The Bowery Ballroom in Manhattan, Oct. 21; and The Stone Pony in Asbury Park, Dec. 13.
Parella may seem like an unlikely rock star: His high, thin voice lacks the booming presence of the typical arena rocker. To what does he attribute his breakout success?
“I think it feels a little like you found a little secret, or you found your own kind of niche thing, when you hear my music,” he said from his home in Red Bank. “People love knowing of this thing that’s not extremely popular, and feeling like they’re part of this world, and part of a smaller community, rather than a fan of a giant thing.”
The cover of Joe P’s album, “Garden State Vampire.”
That is one reason why he has embraced being from New Jersey, dropping nods to the state in his lyrics, filming videos at New Jersey locations, and naming the album Garden State Vampire (a line from the song “guilt.hole” (currently only on physical versions of the album, though it will be released digitally on Sept. 13). “I am a passenger inside of my skin/Garden State vampire with no blood to drink/I threw a party and hid under the bed/Popped all the good champagne once everyone left,” he sings.
Parella’s lyrics may not dazzle with clever wordplay or poetic conceits, but they do seem to connect with listeners.
“People tap into the lyrics for some reason, and I just write about my own experiences, and move on to the next song,” he says. “I never think too much about it, or think people are gonna love this. Whenever you think you’re being clever, you probably are. That’s the problem.
“So, yeah, I think it’s through my lyrics that I try to talk to everyone, and that goes for shows, too. I don’t hide in the back after a show. I try to come out and see everyone, thank everyone, just because I’m always blown away that anyone shows up.”
The 10 tracks on Garden State Vampire continually change up the vibe, offering changes in tempo, arrangements and attack that shift moods and meanings within its alt-rock framework. “Everybody’s Different” is dreamy; “She Got Me” is adrenalized garage rock. Melodic pop tunes like “Violet” (listen below), which was inspired by the birth of a friend’s daughter, and “Lily” (a charming, folkie observation on the coming of age of his wife’s younger sister) vie with “Fighting in the Car” (also recycled from Emily Can’t Sing), a burning Jeff Buckley-ish ballad sung in falsetto.
Given the opportunity to record for a major label, Parella chose to stick to his home studio, where he produced most of the album, playing guitars, bass and keyboards himself. “For the most part, I did everything here,” he says. “I would do a couple things at Atlantic, just because they have a big studio there, and it’s just an hour away into the city, and I would do things like drums there a lot of times, because that’s the one thing you can’t really do justice to at home.”
Parella will bring a small band on tour with him. “For any headline tour, it’s always the band,” he says, adding that he does perform solo for things like radio appearances or in-stores.
JIMMY FONTAINE
JOE P
“I just did Europe and it was just me, because there are so many steps to getting everyone in the band out there,” he says. “And I wanted to see who’d show up, and get a feel for things.
“I love doing the solo thing. I don’t look at it like, ‘Hey, I have to downsize to save money.’ I look at it as a better chance to really win people over for life when you do it that way, because you give them a unique experience. I’m obsessed with that Jeff Buckley Live at Sin-é album: You hear the people in that audience and you know there’s no way those people didn’t follow him as long as time went on. I look at playing solo and with a band as just different ways of showcasing my songs and music.”
The demise of Deal Casino after seven years in 2020 left Parella reeling for a bit. With no other outlets, he started writing solo songs and performing them online. He had no idea it would lead to a new career.
“I never planned any of that, and I never thought that would be my story,” he says. “Before, I was always the lead singer guy and didn’t want to make it all about myself. But the pandemic ended up being very helpful, because I didn’t have a choice. The only way to play for people was to do a livestream or make a video, and it was amazing. I reeled in a million people sitting in my kitchen. And doing a tour after that, I’d meet so many people who said, ‘Hey, I’ve been watching you since the pandemic.’ So I continued that model, and now when I do go out on the road, those people are waiting for me. It’s just crazy.”
As Joe P, Parella will soon hit stages from Michigan to Arizona and be greeted by fans singing along to his songs — something that never fails to enthrall him, he says.
“When I’m onstage, I forget the Internet exists for, like, five seconds, and I think, ‘Oh my gosh, I’ve never met you, I’ve never been here before, but it’s amazing.’ But you know, you still need to do that physical show and connect to really make it last. There’s only so much you can reach out and do on social media, whereas once you’re at a show and you’re in the room and breathing the same air, you get your real chance to solidify a fan base.”
For information, visit joepthehyena.com.
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