Underground punk rock mastermind Nate Parrish has dropped a new ballad, “Small,” streaming on Spotify. The song is also going for radio adds now. The release of “Small” will be followed by a music video with wistful imagery fleshing out the emotions the song evokes.
“The instrumentation on this song, and all the new songs you will hear, is really just about not trying to stay contained in any punk parameters. If I want to write a ballad, I’ll write a ballad,” the rocker freely explains. Thematically, that gentler musical delivery was perfect for the song’s themes.
“I often find myself overwhelmed, being bombarded with headlines and soundbites and a steady diet of bad news,” the songwriter and multi-instrumentalist says, unpacking the song’s meaning. “As my head fills with information, I start to feel the weight of all the things that I can’t change. Hopelessness creeps in. I wrote this song as a prayer, a plea to God to help me calm my mind and re-focus on what matters most in my life. To let me see a mountain, to make me feel small again.”
This prayer came from a genuine and raw place in the musician’s spirit, serving as one of those creative moments only explained through divine inspiration.
He adds, “I honestly don’t know where this song came from. I remember sitting in my room looking out the window at my son playing in the dirt, and the song just came to me. I wrote and recorded it that same afternoon.”
“Small” further proves Nate Parrish’s versatility as a musician, showcasing the ways his music will continue evolving throughout 2025.
“This new batch of songs really marks a new chapter for me as a musician and songwriter. I’ve pushed myself beyond the parameters I had previously put on myself, striving for more beautiful moments, incorporating more textures and sounds,” Nate explains. “I will always be a punk kid at heart, but I never want to limit myself to what I think I should be. That’s the most punk thing you can do as a musician: not stick to the expected or safe path.”
He adds, “I found myself really leaning into beautiful moments on these new songs, especially in ‘Small. I set out to make songs that are soundtrack-meets-punk-meets-emo. I used reoccurring themes and melodies to tie all of the songs together, which was a lot of fun!”
The upcoming set of Nate Parrish songs was created in collaboration with Disciple’s Josiah Prince. They drew on what Nate Parrish has already created in two independent albums and elevated it.
“You’ll still hear me calling out corrupt leaders and addressing injustice with the aggression that you’ve come to expect from Nate Parrish — but you will also hear me addressing my own shortcomings and the challenges of life and keeping the faith that has gotten me through the floods and fires,” Nate reveals.
As an experienced guitarist with a history of playing for rock worship bands Worth Dying For and Kutless, Nate has continually offered a unique blend of musical exploration and thoughtful, spiritually sensitive lyrics that prod at our culture in the interest of drawing us a little closer to Christ.
