February 6th, 2012 
James Shotwell 
The second day of February is a day that Evan Pharmakis will likely remember for the rest of his life. After eight years of hard work and dedication, he was officially no longer the guitarist and cleans vocalist of Boston post-hardcore act Vanna.
Member changes are a big deal on UTG regardless of the band’s popularity, but with Pharmakis, who was one of two original members left, this change seem to make a much larger impact on the music community than usual. As the popularity of various alternative scenes have risen and fallen over the years, Pharmakis has continuously been a unique and clear voice of great skill and message that echoed above the crunching breakdowns and circle pit-inducing riffs. Fans feared his voice had been silenced, that the message of finding peace in the life’s turbulent waters was finally snuffed out, but those paying attention to Pharmakis activity outside the group knew that was not the case.
Winds In Sails, Pharmakis’ solo project, blends beautifully intoxicating acoustic guitar with a lyrical presence wholly unique to Pharmakis. UTG had the chance to discuss the origin of Wind In Sails, as well as release and touring plans with Pharmakis, and the conversation can be read below alongside the official video for “Set Adrift.”
We wholeheartedly believe Wind In Sails is destined for great things in 2012. If you agree, be sure to show support by liking the official WiS Facebook and/or following Pharmakis on Twitter. UTG is working to bring you new Wind In Sails music in the near future and will keep you updated with any further developments.
UTG: You’ve been one of the driving forces in Vanna for eight years now. So, when did you get did you get the idea for Wind and Sails when did you realize it was going to become it’s own project?
Pharmakis
Evan: Good question. Honestly, since the 2nd release of Vanna, I kind of realized I wasn’t going to be able to sings as much as I wanted to in that band, because it’s a situation where everyone has to be happy with what we make and I couldn’t do what I wanted without being selfish. I was one of the founding members and I wanted everyone to be content with it and they still wanted to have a hardcore/metal edge on everything. Singing on stuff like that just doesn’t work out so I knew back around ’07 I was going to eventually have to start another project to keep me content because I couldn’t get as much in as I wanted in Vanna.
I was writing softer stuff for a while and ended up coming across an acoustic guitar and once I had that available to me, I just started playing and writing songs. I wrote 5 or 6 songs about 2 and a half years ago. So, basically, at the beginning of Vanna I knew I was going to need another project, I just didn’t know when I was going to get to it.
UTG: Anyone Familiar with your writing in Vanna in the past decade is likely not too surprised by the aquatic pseudonym that you’ve chosen to give this project, but what is the whole story behind the name The Wind in Sails?
Evan: My parents split up when I was 13 and I grew up in this really shitty place [in] Massachusetts which is really a dangerous area. It was hard growing up there. A bunch of kids I went to school with were killed, there were drive-by shootings in the parking lots, it was just a dangerous city. All of the kids I was friends with ended up in jail or on drugs, so when my parents split up, my Dad told me that “we’re moving to Middletown.” I was kind of bummed at first. Once I got here I found that it was a small beach and surf town only an hour away from Brockton. That was kind of surprising to me, life was that different even if the distance wasn’t very far. It was a fresh start on life, and this place kind of saved me really. So I made a connection and being by the ocean has always felt right to me. I’m pretty positive this is where I want to be for the rest of my life. I traveled all over the world with Vanna and I just love being here so much. I write by the ocean a lot, a go to one of these spots that I know of that are secluded from the tourists and whatnot with some of the most beautiful views I’ve ever seen. I’ve been to Europe, but some of those sights don’t ever compare to the place that I live.
It’s a sailing town, so there are a lot of docks and ships. It jut means a lot to me. If I hadn’t moved here I wouldn’t have ever gotten into music, I might be in jail, I might be dead. I think everything happens for a reason and moving here really put me on the right track and made me happy in my life. It’s a cool name and it feels right to me.
UTG: So far you’ve released 3 rough demos and a self made music video back in November. Last we spoke, you said you’d planned to record at Webster Lakes Studios with Chris in January. Is that still the plan?
Evan: Right now I’m starting to produce bands, which is something I’ve wanted to do for a long time. I’m doing it with Chris, who is teaching me how to do things, he’s my engineer. We’re recording bands and producing records and he’ll be recording and helping me record my music, which is great. Chris is one of the best around for recording. I love his work and everything comes out great. Especially with my song, “Set Adrift,” sounds amazing and I still haven’t had it mixed or mastered or put drums or bass on it. “Live” we did about a year ago, and even that sounds good, but I think we are going to scrap it and rerecord it. I’m positive that anything we do together is going to come out great. Right now we are recording A Faylene Sky who were just signed to Tragic Hero, and we are producing their first full length with the label. We’ll be working on that in January and February, which sort of takes up some of the time I was going to record my stuff. So, over the next month and a half, I’ll be recording all of my music. Chris from Vanna will be playing drums in Wind and Sails and a few other people filling in on the instrumentals and vocal harmonies and whatnot. I should be releasing my first record around April and it will be 8 song release. I think this will be the format for every CD. 8 songs is sort of a weird half-way point between an EP and a full-length and I can print vinyls with 4 tracks on each side. It’s weird but kind of cool, so I think I’ll do that. I have a little over 20 songs written, some not fully developed, but Chris helps me out with that. There are 12 or 13 ready to be recorded, so it’s just picking and choosing which 8 I want to do for the first record. “Set adrift” will be on the first record for sure and “Live” probably will too. I’ve got some piano/rock-esque songs that are kind of like Ben Folds. I’m excited to get it out there. I’m hoping to get into writing soundtracks to movies and tv shows and do singer/songwriter stuff and sell songs to people and record my own stuff and get out there and start playing shows.
UTG: What is the plan as far as playing shows? Will you be doing it acoustic or are you looking to find a rotating band to come out and play with you?
Evan: As of now I could go out and play shows by myself. I’d love to do that. Old-school Dashboard style. However, I’d like to still have all of those harmonies there in the live performance. It adds more to the vibe, but I’m thinking it’s going to be a mixed bag. On the recordings, there are going to be a few songs with a guitar and me singing and others that are full band. So the shows will have a mix of both as well. I’m hoping to start playing shows in March, just because I’m so busy right now with this band over the next month. I need to start rehearsing and get the recordings done first, though. So, the getting this record done by March and releasing it by April is the main goal. I’ve talked to a few labels and entered a contents called Unsigned Only where you submit a song and If you win, Major Labels will release the song and help you figure out where to go from there. I’m submitting “Set Adrift.” I’ll likely release the album myself though. I’ll put it on iTunes and have a bunch printed up to sell with some merch at shows. I feel like this project is going to be my means of expressing my self and clearing my conscience and finding a way to be happy in doing what I love to do.
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Best of luck to you Evan:-)
amazing, my son…..