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.
Prom Night
The Midnight Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Now an open door
And a pretty girl who's hand beside yours
Do you know what to do?
She looks at you
Can you leap from the ledge and bridge the two halves of the world
Hold her hand
Hold her hand
Forever I will slow dance
Well, breath is deep as you make it
There's a chance if you take it
And a heart that you break is still a heart
Hold her hand, hold her hand
There's an open floor
As the chorus soars
And a pretty girls hand beside yours
Knows what you'll find
But the threshold shines
Can you leap from the ledge and bridge the two halves of the world
Hold her hand
We'll never pass this way again
Hold her hand
Forever I will slow dance
Well, breath is deep as you make it
There's a chance if you take it
And a heart that you break is still a heart
Hold her hand, hold her hand
Prom night turns to daylight
We discovered friends become lovers
Under covers
Hold her hand
We'll never pass this way again
Hold her hand
Forever I will slow dance
Well, breath is deep as you make it
There's a chance if you take it
And a heart that you break is still a heart
Hold her hand, hold her hand
Hold her hand
The Midnight's song "Prom Night" showcases the story of a young couple, who are experiencing the intensity of young love on prom night. The first verse signifies the fear of vulnerability and the uncertainty of love. The wound in the metaphor represents the fear that arises when someone puts their trust in someone else. The first meeting with your crush is always an open door to an array of possibilities, but it's up to you to take the chance. The second line of the verse describes a pretty girl holding the singer’s hand, representing a connection that has already been established. The question posed is whether the singer knows what to do next, and whether he is ready to take the next step in their budding relationship.
The chorus emphasizes on the importance of holding her hand; reminding the singer of the fleeting nature of their prom night and the rarity of the experience. The words "we'll never pass this way again" represent the prominence of this night, and how each step should be cherished. The slow dance represents a connection that is not solely physical, but also emotional.
The second verse follows a similar theme, but also introduces the idea of crossing the threshold. The chorus is repeated, but with a slight variation of lyrics, which shows progression: the singers have crossed some boundaries and embarked on their quest for love. Toward the end of the song, the slow and sensual tone of prom night transforms into a blissful post-prom declaration of "friends become lovers under covers".
Overall, "Prom Night" is a lyrical depiction of the highs and lows, fear and excitement that accompany young love. The song captures the essence of falling in love with someone for the first time and attempting to navigate through the uncertain waters.
Line by Line Meaning
There's an open wound
There is emotional pain or hurt that is exposed
Now an open door
An opportunity or chance has presented itself
And a pretty girl who's hand beside yours
There is an attractive girl next to you, holding your hand
Do you know what to do?
Are you aware of what actions to take?
She looks at you
The girl is staring at you
Can you leap from the ledge and bridge the two halves of the world
Are you able to take a daring leap to connect two different worlds?
Hold her hand
Take her hand and hold it tightly
We'll never pass this way again
This specific moment or opportunity will not come again
Forever I will slow dance
I will dance slowly with her forever
Breath is deep as you make it
Your breathing is deep, depending on how you choose to breathe
There's a chance if you take it
There is a possibility of success if you act on it
And a heart that you break is still a heart
Even if you hurt someone, they are still a human with feelings
There's an open floor
There is space to dance on the floor
As the chorus soars
The music gets more intense and uplifting
Knows what you'll find
She is aware of what is to come
But the threshold shines
The entrance to something new and exciting is illuminated
Prom night turns to daylight
Prom night ends and becomes a new day
We discovered friends become lovers under covers
We realized that friends can become romantic partners in secret
Hold her hand
Take her hand and hold it tightly
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Songtrust Ave
Written by: Tim McEwan, Jamison Tyler Lyle
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Mykle Angelo
Lyrics:
There’s an open road
And now an open door
And a pretty girl’s hand beside yours
Do you know what to do?
As she looks at you
Can you leap from the ledge and bridge the two halves of the world
Hold her hand
We’ll never pass this way again
Hold her hand
Forever I will slow dance
breath is deep as you make it
There’s a chance if you take it
And a heart that you break is still a heart
Hold her hand, hold her hand
There’s an open floor
As the chorus soars
And a pretty girls hand beside yours
Knows what you’ll find
But the threshold shines
Can you leap from the ledge and bridge the two halves of the worlds
Hold her hand
We’ll never pass this way again
Hold her hand
Forever I will slow dance
Her breath is deep as you make it
There’s a chance if you take it
And a heart that you break is still a heart
Hold her hand, hold her hand
Prom night turns to daylight
We discovered friends become lovers
Under covers
Hold her hand
We’ll never pass this way again
Hold her hand
Forever I will slow dance
Her breath is deep as you make it
There’s a chance if you take it
And a heart that you break is still a heart
Hold her hand, hold her hand
Hold her hand
Feel free to correct any lyrics i misheard,
Sammy Rent
There’s an open wound
Now an open door
And a pretty girl who’s hand beside yours
Do you know what to do?
She looks at you
Can you leap from the ledge and bridge the two halves of the world
Hold her hand
We’ll never pass this way again
Hold her hand
Forever I will slow dance
Well, breath is deep as you make it
There’s a chance if you take it
And a heart that you break is still a heart
Hold her hand, hold her hand
There’s an open floor
As the (???)
And a pretty girls hand beside yours
Knows what you’ll find
But the threshold shines
Can you leap from the ledge and bridge the two halves of the worlds
Hold her hand
We’ll never pass this way again
Hold her hand
Forever I will slow dance
Well, breath is deep as you make it
They’res a chance if you take it
And a heart that you break is still a heart
Hold her hand, hold her hand
Prom night turns to daylight
We discovered friends become lovers
Under covers
Hold her hand
We’ll never pass this way again
Hold her hand
Forever I will slow dance
Well, breath is deep as you make it
They’res a chance if you take it
And a heart that you break is still a heart
Hold her hand, hold her hand
Hold her hand
The Midnight
Thanks for listening! Monsters is out THIS Friday and you can pre-order it here - @t
The Cyberblues
I CANT WAIT!!!!!!!
André Ryan
I want to do an Uplifting Trance remix of Prom Night... Raw Acapella would be amazing.
Jaime Lomban
Eternal thanks!!!!!
joy athan
Love thy art.
Алексей Галямин
Thank you for the songs, the music it unites. Greetings from Russia, we are listening to you, you are the best, we wish you all good health.
Not So Random Inspiration
I would build a time machine from a Delorean and go back in time to marry my wife again just to have this song play at the first dance of our wedding. Amazing.
lexfiles__
Not So Random Inspiration that’s the cutest thing I have ever read 😭
Eric Frye
Glad I'm not the only one 💚
soik90
Thanks for the idea!