Parlor MobSome bands are very tricky to describe, but that’s not the case for The Parlor Mob. The band consider themselves a rock group, and they have every right to call themselves one. The rockers — who’ve already been compared to Led Zeppelin by critics and fans alike — are currently on tour with Theory of a Deadman.

“It’s straight ahead rock n’ roll man. Kind of like rock n’ roll before all of the sub genres,” says The Parlor Mob bassist Nick Villapiano on the phone from New Jersey. The band — who were previously known as What About Frank? — formed in 2004 after Mark Melicia, David Rosen, Paul Ritchie Sam Bey and Villapiano came together in their home state of New Jersey.

“We hated that name,” Villapiano admits. “We thought it was kind of hokey and stupid, and it didn’t really represent what we were doing musically anymore. So pretty much when we got the first opportunity to make the change, we did.”

After changing their name to The Parlor Mob (based on a 19th century gang), the band also endured what they thought would be a big career change. “We signed a developmental deal with Capitol Records in what later on turned out to kind of be a move for them to sign us so that other labels couldn’t,” the bassist tells andPOP. “And it kind of let us record an EP and just put us on the shelf, didn’t release it, didn’t put us out on tour.”

But that didn’t stop The Parlor Mob from doing what they do best: jam. They took the recording halt as an opportunity to write songs and think up strategies to get their name out there. “We gave our EP away for free to anybody who would email us or go to our website,” recounts Villapiano.

And it turned out one guy noticed them. That guy just happened to be record producer/engineer Jacquire King, who’s worked with the likes of Kings of Leon, Modest Mouse and many other rock acts.

The Parlor Mob then teamed up with Roadrunner Records to produce a professional studio album (of which King acted as producer) called “And You were a Crow,” released in 2008. Last year was also when the band was named “Best New Artist of 2008” in the rock genre by iTunes.

To top things off, The Parlor Mob is constantly being compared to iconic rock band Led Zeppelin. “It’s definitely a compliment,” says Villapiano. “They’re one of the best and most successful bands that’s ever been out there so any comparison to them is very cool. But we try to reinforce whenever we get those kind of things that thank you but, we’re a brand new band doing all original stuff.”

They’re currently in Canada, where Villapiano says they “really enjoy playing,” showcasing their original stuff with Canadian rockers Theory of a Deadman. The band will also be performing at a handful of music festivals this year. Although The Parlor Mob has gotten to be a part of so many rock events including Vans Warped Tour, the most memorable for Villapiano was Lollapalooza.

“It was mind-blowing just showing up there and seeing all of these kids just stoked on you playing, Chicago is one of our favourite cities,” says Villapiano. “It was our guitarist’s birthday so it was just an all-around crazy, wonderful and overwhelming day.”

So is there a new album on the way? Villapiano tells andPOP there is, but there’s still a lot of work to be done. “It’s hard for us because we have such a democratic writing process,” shares Villapiano. “We all really collaborate together and there’s not you know, one primary songwriter…so it’s a little tough to write on the road, but you know, we’ve been coming up with riffs, just jamming here and there.”

For more info and tour dates, check out their Myspace: www.myspace.com/theparlormob






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