New Album: Midnight North – Under The Lights

Midnight North - Under The Lights
Midnight North’s 3rd studio album, Under The Lights is here!

Get it now:
iTunes
Bandcamp
Amazon Music
Spotify

And in stores across the world via The ILS Group!

In June of 2017 Midnight North is slated to release their third studio album: Under the Lights. On this full length record, Midnight North left it all on the court. Recorded by David Simon-Baker (Los Lobos, ALO, Jackie Greene, Mother Hips) at the Greene Room and Allegiant Studios, Under The Lights features their 11 best new tunes. Expect flares of country on tracks like “The Highway Song” and “Greene County”, tinges of soul on the likes of “Back To California”, but mostly good solid rock and roll. With strong melodies and stronger harmonies, for this band it comes down to one thing: the song.

Immediately after their last studio release, 2015’s Scarlet Skies, Midnight North – fronted by lead songwriters Elliott Peck & Grahame Lesh with lush Hammond B3 organ, lead guitar, and harmony work from Alex Jordan and stomping bass lines from Connor O’Sullivan – began touring the country in earnest, visiting the East Coast and the Midwest for the first time in Summer 2015. The band wrote the majority of Under The Lights in the following months, and the lyrical road themes – the initial excitement, the longing for home, and the inherent need to keep moving – shine through.

“Under the Lights is the perfect title for this collection of songs,” said O’Sullivan. “These songs and lyrics are about being a band of musicians on the road away from home. Songs literally performed and tested under the lights at countless venues across the US.”

Last year, while work in the studio continued, the band’s stream of amazing live shows and festival appearances sped by as the band jammed with heavyweights like Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Tom Hamilton, Mihali Savoulidis, and more. Hitting the road night after night and building their fan base has proved a lot of fun and every time they come back to a city the venues and crowds get bigger while the songs get tighter. “On the road you have an opportunity to dig into what the band is capable of and learn where your limits as a group are and aren’t,” said Jordan. “It was a wonderful opportunity to capture a sound on this album that is identifiably our own.”

In addition to all the touring, Midnight North is on year five of holding down Sunday nights at Terrapin Crossroads in San Rafael, CA. To celebrate the occasion, they released a free live album, Live at Terrapin Crossroads in 2016, where Relix Magazine took a shine to “the group’s powerful three-part harmonies.” Performing weekly for a hometown crowd allows a chance to continuously test new material. “I feel like I’ll come to the band with this raw idea and watch it totally come to life,” said Peck.

2017 will continue the growth for Midnight North, as the exciting release of Under The Lights helps point the way for more and more fans to discover the band. “These songs tell our story, at least up to this point,” said Lesh. “Our job is to sing you these stories as honestly as we can and transport you into our world for an hour or two.”

New EP: Stayin’ Single, Drinkin’ Doubles

Midnight North's new EP Stayin’ Single Drinkin’ DoublesMidnight North’s new EP Stayin’ Single Drinkin’ Doubles released Saturday, February 14th, 2015 includes three songs previously only heard at the band’s live shows. The first track, “Stayin’ Single, Drinkin’ Doubles”, was originally written by local friends and fellow musicians with Hoosier roots, Jeremy Wilson and Kirby Lee Hammel. Elliott Peck contributed two additional verses to finish the story and added a female perspective to the song. This is about as country as Midnight North gets, it’s also a fan favorite at live shows. Two different versions of the song appear on the EP. The two versions include a shorter, radio friendly version, and an expanded version, aptly titled the “Morning After Mix”. Both tracks include a guest performance by virtuoso Jason Crosby (Doobie Decibel System, Phil Lesh & Friends) on both fiddle and honky-tonk piano, instantly transporting the listener to an old western saloon scene. This tune is sure to have you swaying in your bar stool!
Next up is “Find A Way”, written by Grahame Lesh. Also a staple of Midnight North’s live sets, this song begins with Grahame’s singing and storytelling and then bursts into three part harmonies on the chorus, showcasing all three of the band’s singers. Along with Crosby’s fiddle, this tune includes another guest, Dan “Lebo” Lebowitz (ALO, Brokedown in Bakersfield) contributing a fourth voice to this song; his pedal steel guitar. Lebo’s pedal steel and Crosby’s fiddle playfully work off each other to add a beautiful depth to the arrangement.
Finally, “The Right Time” is a song written by Elliott Peck about luck, hope and good timing. It also showcases the band’s three part harmonies and includes a searing electric guitar solo by Grahame Lesh that had our normally composed drummer in tears after a listening session in the studio!
Betty Cantor-Jackson, a pioneer in the recording & engineering world, now shares her skills with the next generation of the Grateful Dead family on this release. She artfully mastered all four of the tracks on this recording.
Download the EP on Bandcamp! You can also stream it online on Bandcamp, or Spotify!

Tracklisting
1. Stayin’ Single, Drinkin’ Doubles (Radio Edit)
2. Find A Way
3. The Right Time (Electric Version)
4. Stayin’ Single, Drinkin’ Doubles (Morning After Mix)