Skip to Content, Navigation, or Footer.
We inform. You decide.
Friday, March 29, 2024

Parrotfish to make High Dive debut Thursday alongside Kevin Masaro

The Nashville group will perform its first show in Gainesville at the venue

Nashville’s Parrotfish, shown here performing at The Rock Showcase at Belmont University, is known for their rock-centric sound and energetic live performances.
Nashville’s Parrotfish, shown here performing at The Rock Showcase at Belmont University, is known for their rock-centric sound and energetic live performances.

The chance to see a parrotfish in person is usually reserved for a trip to the aquarium, but if you head to High Dive tonight, you might be lucky enough to catch a glimpse.

While the actual organism will not be in attendance, the band of the same name will be front and center. Nashville’s Parrotfish is set to play the venue tonight along with Kevin Masaro for a live and livestreamed show.

Tonight’s show is continuing with High Dive’s COVID-safe format, operating at around 30% capacity with seats arranged in a checkerboard pattern. Attendees will sit in groups of two, three or four in chairs and single attendees will sit on the bleachers. Masks will be required at all times, temperature checks will be performed at the door and eating and drinking will only be permitted in the beer garden.

Doors open at 8 p.m. and the show will start at 9 p.m. Those not attending in-person will be able to livestream the show. While in-person tickets will be $10 at the door, with a $3 under-21 fee, livestream prices will operate at a “pay what you want” scale.

The show marks Parrotfish’s first in Gainesville. They will perform alongside Kevin Masaro, an artist at the intersection of hip-hop and electronic music and the co-founder of local clothing brand Always True

Gainesville is a stop for Parrotfish on the way to Tampa, where the group originated. Guitarist Joe Cadrecha, singer Conor Lynch and bassist Matthew Rodriguez formed the group in high school in 2014, and drummer Trace Chiappe was added after meeting the trio at Belmont University in Nashville, where they all attended college.

With a show in Tampa booked for Friday, Lynch said this weekend in particular was the perfect time to head back home.

“The Bucs are in the Super Bowl, so I feel like a lot of people are trying to party,” he said.

After a hiatus from live shows from March to September and only “a handful” of performances since then, Parrotfish said they’re eager to get back on stage. Their music is centered on live elements, they said, and the myriad of influences to all of the members fuels their collective sound.

“In terms of the music we make, the big thing is there are no rules,” Cadrecha said.

Calling on bands like Radiohead, Red Hot Chili Peppers and The 1975, the group takes an alternative approach to their music. Their colorful, genre-bending sound was inspired by the parrotfish itself, they said – much like the fish’s multi-hued scales, the group’s sound incorporates elements of a variety of different styles.

Parrotfish is just coming off the release of last year’s “Old Man 2020” EP, a project recorded all in one weekend. Cadrecha said the EP was their “most cohesive” work yet. The band also teased more material for the future, including longer songs and a YouTube channel in progress.

Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox

Despite the focus on producing content, Parrotfish said live shows are at the epicenter of the group.

“When all four of us are playing together and the song kind of comes to life, you can just sit inside that other world,” Chiappe said.  

They’re looking to bring that energy to the show Thursday, they said, and make some new friends and fans along the way.

“We’re really hoping people connect with the music and actually enjoy it,” Lynch said.

More information can be found at High Dive’s website.

Contact Heather Bushman at hbushman@alligator.org. Follow her on Twitter @hgrizzl.

Support your local paper
Donate Today
The Independent Florida Alligator has been independent of the university since 1971, your donation today could help #SaveStudentNewsrooms. Please consider giving today.

Heather Bushman

Heather Bushman is a fourth-year journalism and political science student and the enterprise elections reporter. She previously wrote and edited for the Avenue desk and reported for WUFT News. You can usually find her writing, listening to music or writing about listening to music. Ask her about synesthesia or her album tier list sometime.


Powered by SNworks Solutions by The State News
All Content © 2024 The Independent Florida Alligator and Campus Communications, Inc.