Rebuilding a Creative Identity: Lincoln Parish’s Second Chapter

Veteran musician and guitarist to innovative producer. 

The music industry has changed substantially over the past several decades. As such, many of the young people who spent their childhoods listening to their favorite acts and dreaming of becoming musical artists themselves have grown up to find the industry a very different place from what they expected. Amid so much technological innovation, major labels and popular music are increasingly dominated by algorithmic approaches and corporate-approved tactics. 

Fortunately, for those still looking to make authentic, handmade music, some professionals shepherd young artists and show them how to make an impact, and Lincoln Parish is chief among them. Parish may be best known to modern audiences as a founding member of the seminal alternative rock band Cage The Elephant.

Still, he has actually spent the last decade-plus cultivating his experience as a Nashville-based producer, mixer, studio owner, and artist advocate. Today, Parish strives to help new acts find the sound they are trying to create, drawing on a perspective shaped by over 20 years in the music industry, both on stage and in the studio.

Credibility From Real Industry Experience

Parish brings firsthand knowledge from his years with Cage The Elephant, where he played on the band’s first three albums and was part of the era that helped establish their commercial and critical momentum. Some of the biggest alternative rock hits of the past several decades, such as “Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked,” “Shake Me Down,” and “Cigarette Daydreams,” all resulted from his tenure with the band, featuring his writing and guitar playing. 

Though Parish ultimately left the band in 2013 to pursue other interests, his time with the act gave him unparalleled insight into the industry at large. This allows him to both relate to musicians on an artistic level and understand the broader implications of both creative and marketing decisions. When working with artists in the studio, Parish emphasizes honesty, trust, and communication above all else.

Passion for the Recording Process

Even while touring the world with Cage the Elephant, Parish was often just as interested in what was happening in the control room as what was happening on stage. While others would simply perform and leave, he would hyperfocus on microphones, guitar tones, and further arrangement ideas before and after each performance. This obsession with the recording process eventually led Parish to step away from touring altogether, as The Beatles and Brian Wilson had before him, in favor of building a career as a producer. 

Now, as a producer and mixer in Nashville, Parish creates records from the ground up in a way that feels more personal and lasting to him. He has established a reputation around vintage rock tones, modern alternative production, live-band recording, and guitar-driven music.

Forward-Looking Artist Development

Moving forward, Lincoln Parish is passionate about the next phase of his career, leveraging decades of experience in the music industry to help launch the careers of other ambitious musicians. By partnering with Ray Horton to form Middle Finger Management, he has founded an artist-centric management and booking company focused on indie acts, and is thrilled at the prospect of building a more authentic foundation for tomorrow’s artists.

The Paste editorial staff was not involved in the creation of this content.

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