Proper Man has poured seven years of blood sweat and tears into their debut album, Forty Elephants.
The band is so much more than just a musical ensemble, cranking out new wave hit after hit in their own private speakeasy. They are a family born out of a break-up and an alter ego that lead singer Jason ‘Norm’ Parkes emulates on stage.
“I started singing with a bit of an English slur and I felt like I was someone else,” said Parkes. “We don’t take this as a novelty band, we are very serious about it. But leaving myself and looking at music through a different lens did help me get comfortable with it.”
Taking the stage as Norm, he’s been reunited with former bandmate Petri Nieminen, the two of whom played together 20 years ago.
“We never thought we would do music again and we happened to be writing songs and having a few whiskies one night. From there it just started going to that new wave style that we grew up on,” said Nieminen, guitar.
Over the years they have perfected their own blend of new wave and rock’n roll.
“The cool thing with this group is the influences are from all over the place there’s a lot of 80s influence,” said Nori Wentworth, bass and vocals. “The drummer (Jorden Gordon) and myself have more of a 90s influence there.”
We are not trying to do something new but we are trying to do something that is reminiscent of days gone by,” said Travis Saunders, piano, keys and vocals.
The band’s debut album, Forty Elephants, has been released on all streaming platforms. For more information about the band, visit their website: propermanband.com