After emerging onto the Champaign-Urbana music scene in December of 2023, Aftercare, a rising local band, is taking a significant step in their musical journey. They are officially signing with Perimeter Road, Parkland College’s record label. This collaboration is in hopes to not only promote Aftercare’s music but also provide first-hand experience working with bands and artists.
Aftercare’s music is primarily indie rock, consisting of both more mellow tracks and heavier bangers. Their inspiration comes from various different genres, including folk, funk and punk. In the past couple of years, Aftercare has performed locally at various venues in the CU area, including Canopy Club, Spalding Park and The Junkyard. In October of 2024, they released their debut EP, “OVERSHARE,” in collaboration with Parkland’s record label.
Perimeter Road Sound Recordings acts as more than just a record label; it is a platform for students to gain hands-on experience in music production. “They [the students] will listen to a demo, sign off on them, and then we’ll just go through a recording process,” says Will Johnson, the drummer of Aftercare. “We’ll release the song for free as a learning experience for the students that are part of the record label.”
It provides students with an in-depth experience of the production process, as “A lot of the students come to the actual recording sessions,” says Johnson. “They watch the teacher set up everything and then he teaches us how to do it along the way.”
This also allows students to establish credibility in the music industry. “It’s mutually beneficial because it gives students the opportunity to work with a real band,” says Hannah Kitt, the vocalist of Aftercare. “I think it also gives the opportunity for smaller bands to get into the studio, as I know it can be pretty pricey.”
Though Perimeter Road has been spotlighting local talent for a long time, they have predominantly worked with solo artists and have just recently started to include full bands. “It is not the most common thing, so it might help the music scene in general,” says Johnson.
“People are realizing, hey, these bands are working with the Parkland record label and we can go work with them too. They didn’t think it was possible because they would only see solo artists doing it.” Additionally, the band admires the amount of resources that Parkland College has in its studio. “It’s a lot harder to find anywhere else,” says Zachary Hay, the bassist of Aftercare.
Perimeter Road has also helped the band gain more experience working in the studio. Hay goes on to mention how the record label has helped the band explore different styles of music, as their upcoming single is slightly faster-paced than the songs they have previously done.
Next month, Aftercare plans to release its first single as part of the record label. With this collaboration, the band hopes to showcase their passion while exploring new directions in their music.To stay up to date with Aftercare,
you can follow them on Instagram at aftercare.cu, where you will find information regarding their upcoming shows and the aforementioned upcoming single.
