First Listen: Smokin' on Planes Release First Single "Parallel Lives"

October 4, 2018 | by Jocelyn Hoppa

You know what I like about Washington, D.C.? There is really only one thing, and it's the music scene.

The D.C. scene, and the existing counterculture as a whole, is and has always been slightly buried beneath a glorified suburb of a conservatively presented city, regardless of political party. Being "cool" is never really blatantly thrown in your face at every turn, as it very much is in New York City, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. In D.C., you have to dig a little for your shit, which in some ways makes the treasures found within — and the tight-knit music community — all the more treasured. It's goddamn refreshing.

Getting to the band at hand: Power trio Smokin' on Planes hails from the District and are doing things their way, the DIY way, the way all the D.C. bands before them did things. I'll salute that, first and foremost.

Friends for over a decade, leader Nick Galasso met bassist Miguel Teixeira in graduate school. Both were studying for political science PhDs, but Teixeira left to take a job with the Army. The pair reconnected in D.C. and formed Smokin’ on Planes with drummer Omri Malul in 2018 (oh yeah, it's got that fresh baby band feel!).

Smokin' on Planes recently released their first single "Parallel Lives," which, at its core, is lo-fi garage rock influenced by Guided By Voices, The Replacements, and the party-rock alternative vibes of The Cars. The song examines regret for untaken opportunities, the fortune of having great friends and life experiences, and how close relationships evolve.

Galasso filmed the video for "Parallel Lives" on July 4, 2018 in Lewes, Delaware ("The First Town In the First State"). Check it. (And visit their Bandcamp page to hear two more tracks.)