West Auckland five-piece Double Parked are part of a new wave of Aotearoa guitar bands reshaping the country’s indie landscape: loud, raw, and unafraid to confront the messy realities of life in your twenties.
Formed by a tight-knit group of friends — Tom Purdie, Travis Hassell, Chad Mascelle, Carlin Diprose, and Ben Woolford — the band have steadily built a cult following through sweaty live shows and emotionally charged songwriting that sits somewhere between surf rock’s sun-bleached swagger and the darker edge of post-punk. They call it “post-surf”: jangling guitars, heavy reverb, and restless rhythms paired with lyrics that dig into anxiety, self-reflection, and the chaos of growing up.
Their second EP, Rosary, marks a turning point. Across seven interconnected tracks, the project pulls back the curtain on the band’s shared struggles with mental health, friendship, and the push-and-pull of personal growth. It’s a record that swings between stripped-back vulnerability and full-tilt guitar catharsis, capturing the feeling of navigating breakdowns and breakthroughs in real time.
As the band prepare to take Rosary to bigger stages, including festival slots at Rhythm and Vines and their first international shows, Double Parked sat down with Rolling Stone AU/NZ to talk about growing up on ‘90s rock and nu-metal, the emotional core of their new EP, and why consistency might be the most underrated trait for surviving the music industry.
Rolling Stone AU/NZ: How did music influence you in your early life?
Chad: Well, I was kind of born into it. My old man was a professional musician when I was born. He was gigging around all the time. He’s an incredible drummer. I’d just sit there and watch him tear up the kit with my ear muffs on. As far back as I can remember, I always had a drum kit and I was always, you know, having a go.
What artists influenced you growing up?
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Chad: I had an iPod that was just filled with the music from the 90s that my parents had burned onto it. A lot of Chili Peppers, Nirvana, Rage Against the Machine, Sublime. Just being in the era of the early 2000s, there was quite a lot of Nu Metal there. There was Limp Bizkit, Slipknot, Blindspott. Pretty frothy music for a little grommet.
When did you discover your passion for creating music?
Travis: For me, the penny kind of dropped in high school when it came to, you know, loving the craft of creating a song. I eventually got skilled enough on my instrument to be able to, you know, express my feelings through writing music. Just being able to express those feelings and thoughts when you start writing a song you never know where it’s going to go or where it’s going to take you. So, it kind of reveals stuff to yourself that you kind of didn’t really realise before.
What are some career highlights so far?
Travis: I think definitely playing the couple of festivals we have like R&V and Le Currents. Back in the days to go to those just as a fucking punter, and just seeing how amazing the bands on stage were and then a couple of years later getting asked to play alongside some pretty amazing household New Zealand names is pretty amazing.
Then just also a couple of tours we’ve done, there’s always a just such a fucking fun experience traveling around the country with the boys, just fucking playing music. Then also Aussie, our first international show recently. That was fucking awesome, you know, just playing to people overseas and having fans show up. That was pretty amazing.
Tell us about your new EP Rosary. What’s the project about?
Ben: I think Rosary, conceptually, it’s about looking in the mirror and trying to be brutally honest with ourselves. It’s about working through mental struggles and inner conflict and diving into that chaos in our own heads. It’s quite reflective, it’s raw, and all the songs flow into each other, which kind of make it this larger than life kind of thing. It’s more than just a collection of songs, It’s a way we’ve all felt together.
What kind of personality traits and values do you believe it takes to succeed in the music industry?
Tom: I just think it takes commitment and heart. Consistency is the key to everything in life. There’s always gonna be highs and lows but as long as you show up it means something. Consistency doesn’t mean giving 100% everyday, it just means showing up. And remember to have fun.
How would you describe your music to a potential fan?
Ben: I’d describe our music as post-surf. Post-surf is an evolution from surf-rock. It’s kind of intertwining the basis of surf rock with more of a UK post-rock, post-punk vibe with driving jangly guitars and big reverb riffs. Touching on things that are more mentally mentally involved rather than just about partying and having a good time. The music is a bit darker but it’s still fun. It’s raw and it’s drive-y.
What are your goals for 2025 and beyond? What can fans expect from you this year?
Ben: One of my goals is to appreciate that we’ve written such a good fucking project, you know. Like Rosary is good. Rosary is great. Rosary is… you know, I think, the best thing I’ve ever made. So one of the goals is to really appreciate that and push that hard. I think we want to play bigger festivals and play more festivals and then play more shows and write and record more music. I think it’s just what we’ve been doing but in a more elevated version. I think this has been a goal and we’ve achieved this, you know, doing this Rolling Stone interview. This is sick. We’re going to keep pushing hard and making some good music for ourselves and for you to enjoy.
