Prior to forming The Midnight, Tyler Lyle and Tim McEwan were both established musicians. Lyle was an indie-folk singer-songwriter based in the state of Georgia and gained initial notability with several self-released titles, becoming regionally and nationally known. McEwan was a drummer and producer based in Denmark, later becoming a member of the Danish production group Deekay who has written and produced songs for many popular artists.
The pair met for the first time in 2012 at a songwriter’s workshop in North Hollywood organized by Katie Donovan, Lyle’s A&R representative at the time. Prior to meeting, McEwan had listened to some of Lyle’s previous work and liked Lyle’s folk sound. Despite differing musical backgrounds, they bonded over a mutual love of 80s rock and began to write songs together. After initially struggling to define their sound, McEwan suggested that they compose songs in the synthwave style. McEwan had prior exposure to the burgeoning genre and was inspired by the movie Drive. The first song they wrote together as a duo was WeMoveForward, which was included on their debut EP Days of Thunder.
STYLE AND WORKFLOW
For most of their career, The Midnight has created a strong and distinct synthwave sound in their music - Tim McEwan once described the band's early albums “as if Miami Vice had a baby with a John Hughes movie”. However, McEwan has continuously expressed a desire to evolve the synthwave genre and not be confined by it. Tyler Lyle has stated several times that the band's philosophy when composing is “combine, not confine”. Influences of genres such as lo-fi, soft rock, trance, and vaporwave can be heard on Monsters, and Lyle's musical background has brought influences of indie folk and Americana to the band's sound as well. Regarding the merging of their individual talents and styles, Lyle has said:
It’s rock and roll with synthesizers. Tim has a keen ear for production, and I can write songs that fit comfortably within the tradition of 20th century classic pop songwriting. Somewhere in the middle things get interesting.
McEwan employs various digital synths in his production, including Serum, Diva, TAL-U-NO-LX, Spire, and Roland Cloud's Jupiter 8 and Juno 106. In mid-2020, he mentioned that his favorite synth to use at the time was U-He's emulation of Prophet-5, known as Repro 5. McEwan has stated that he commonly begins with presets and then tweaks them to his liking. KONTAKT is used for sampling.
Both McEwan and Lyle use Logic Pro on macOS as their primary Digital Audio Workstation (DAW).Universal Audio interfaces are used to capture their sounds, which are then processed using UAD plugins. Using the same utilities makes it easier for them to share session files as a significant amount of their work is done remotely, due to living in different areas of the US. However, they will usually get together in the same room a few times during a release's production and will often write and record together while on tour. A release's sound and overall direction are generally created by the two bouncing ideas off each other - McEwan will send Lyle a rough track or beat, which Lyle will then think of lyrics and a title that would go good with the beat, after which McEwan will further build and produce the track. McEwan has stated that the production of a typical The Midnight album takes around three to six months, “from the early gestating part to finish”.
Production and drums are handled by McEwan, with Lyle providing guitar, lyrics, and vocals. Lyle has stated that he writes on a daily basis, and many lyrics come from a large number of fragments he keeps stored in Evernote. Most of the remaining instrumentation is digital, but on occasion songs (including most with saxophone and guitar solos) will at first have digital instruments that are then outsourced to other musicians to play live on the track. Thomas Edinger has been the primary saxophone player for The Midnight's releases, and McEwan's brother Oliver has frequently played bass for the band as well.
For live performances, various setups have been used by the band. Lyle stated that the Spring 2019 tour utilized an Ableton rig, with McEwan using an SPD SX sampling pad and MIDI controller. Lyle ran his guitars through a Kemper profiling amp, and he also used an OP1 for certain synth moments and pads.
America 2
The Midnight Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And I was so happy with 28 years of free fallin'
Ah, but now it's all guts and I'm bawlin'
She was born in a tenement walk-up
With shit for nerves, you know she never learned to talk to adults
She said "everything's easier in here"
Like the dancer with bruises who gathers the cash
I've come to look for America too
All I ever wanted was a spot in the mountains
With an A-frame cabin and nobody counting our days
Or cursing or praising our name
But the best we could do is to enter the void
Like a wide-eyed child waking up to the noise of East Harlem
Don't they see that we're starving?
Like the dancer with bruises who gathers the cash
When the music is through, no she don't look back
I've come to look for America too
And we stole the car on the 4th of July
I pawned my guitar and we drove through the night
I've come to look for America too
(Woah, woah)
I've come to look for America too (woah)
(Woah, woah)
I've come to look for America too
Like the dancer with bruises who gathers the cash
When the music is through, no she don't look back
I've come to look for America too (woah)
And we stole the car on the 4th of July
I pawned my guitar and we drove through the night
I've come to look for America too (woah)
(Woah, woah)
I've come to look for America too
(Woah, woah, woah)
I've come to look for America too (woah)
The lyrics of "America 2" by The Midnight encapsulate a sense of disillusionment and longing with America. It opens with the lines "I made my home in a ten-ton bomb/And I was so happy with 28 years of free fallin'," which is a metaphorical reference to how the singer felt they were living in a precarious situation that was also exhilarating. However, all joy has been sucked out, and they are left feeling miserable. In contrast, the second half of the verse focuses on the story of a woman who had a difficult upbringing and has now found solace in a place of her own.
The chorus of the song repeats the phrase, "I've come to look for America too," which suggests that both the singer and the woman want to find something more in America. They are searching for something beyond the struggles and disillusionment that they are currently experiencing. The second verse describes how the singer wants to live a quiet life in the mountains, free from external pressures to succeed, but is unable to do so. The phrases "our days/Or cursing or praising our name" suggest that they do not want to be defined by the usual standards of success.
Overall, "America 2" describes the disillusionment and struggle of the American Dream, as well as the search for something more meaningful.
Line by Line Meaning
I made my home in a ten-ton bomb
I settled down in a dangerous place
And I was so happy with 28 years of free fallin'
I lived my life with no real responsibility or direction
Ah, but now it's all guts and I'm bawlin'
But now I feel vulnerable and lost
She was born in a tenement walk-up
She grew up in a cramped, rundown apartment building
With shit for nerves, you know she never learned to talk to adults
Her upbringing left her with poor communication skills and discomfort around grown-ups
She said 'everything's easier in here'
She feels more comfortable and in control in her small environment
Like the dancer with bruises who gathers the cash
Similar to a stripper who endures abuse but makes money
When the music is through, no she don't look back
She doesn't dwell on the past or her painful experiences
I've come to look for America too
I'm searching for something new and meaningful in my life
All I ever wanted was a spot in the mountains
My dream was to have a quiet, secluded home in nature
With an A-frame cabin and nobody counting our days
A simple life with no one monitoring our activities
Or cursing or praising our name
A life without judgment or excessive attention
But the best we could do is to enter the void
But we're left feeling empty and unfulfilled
Like a wide-eyed child waking up to the noise of East Harlem
Our expectations were shattered, like a naive person confronted with harsh reality
Don't they see that we're starving?
Can't others tell we are emotionally and spiritually hungry?
And we stole the car on the 4th of July
We decided to take a risk and act impulsively on Independence Day
I pawned my guitar and we drove through the night
I was willing to let go of something important to pursue this adventure
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Songtrust Ave
Written by: Tim McEwan, Tyler Lyle
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Dare Run
Lyrics...
I made my home in a ten-ton bomb
And I was so happy with 28 years of free fallin’
But now it’s all guts and I’m bawlin'
She was born in a tenement walk-up
With shit for nerves, you know she never learned to talk to adults
She said ‘everything's easier in here’
Like the dancer with bruises who gathers the cash
When the music is through, no she don’t look back
I’ve come to look for America too
All I ever wanted was a spot in the mountains
With an a-frame cabin and nobody counting our days
Or cursing or praising our name
But the best we could do is to enter the void
Like a wide-eyed child waking up to the noise of East Harlem
Don’t they see that we’re starving?
Like the dancer with bruises who gathers the cash
When the music is through no she don’t look back
I’ve come to look for America too
And we stole the car on the 4th of July
I pawned my guitar and we drove through the night
I’ve come to look for America too
...and of course, thank you guys for the music.
Rowhaus
There’s something so unapologetically magical about this music. It always lifts my spirits and helps me remember life isn’t all bad.
Junkfat69
same
TronnicK
Yes this always lifts my spirits. Synthwave is such an amazing genre!
Brandon Tse
Unrelated, since when did Mordecai become so ripped? He reminds me of a JoJo character.
CHAKIB NAJI
Same feeling buddy!
Ivaldi
Couldn't have said it better myself!
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The Midnight can literally do no wrong. One of the most consistently amazing bands in the genre.
Kaze Captor
Anonymous Pro you have fm attack for retromance too
Dr. Anonymous Pro
What do you mean? FM Attack isn't in the same league if you ask me.
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Yeah Timecop1983 is fantastic! I've only heard some FM-84, and I don't know the other, I'll have to check em out