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.
WeMoveForward
The Midnight Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And the girl with the braids in her hair
Steady breeze and oh I was falling
I would follow her anywhere
The sky turned grey in a flash flood warning
She smiled and she took my hand
She kissed my lips and the rain came pouring
Swore I heard a marching band
We move forward
‘Cause we can't go back
We move forward
‘Cause we can't go back
We move forward
‘Cause we can't go back
We move forward
‘Cause we can't go back
Hanging out of the third story window
Oh you were a sight to see
The black dress that bends when the wind blows
Roll back the tide for me
Sunset skies, the paint is pealing, the wind blowing sand in her hair
Endless days in the deep blue feeling
I would follow her anywhere...
The Midnight's song WeMoveForward expresses a sense of excitement, adventure, and uncertainty that comes with moving forward on life's journey. The song begins by describing a beautiful scene of the sun shining on the gold coast and a girl with braids in her hair. The singer is falling for her and is willing to follow her anywhere. However, the sky turns grey, and a flash flood warning is issued, and this sense of danger prompts the girl to take action. She smiles, takes his hand, and kisses him; the rain comes pouring, and the singer swears he can hear a marching band. This moment creates a sense of wonder, and it feels like anything is possible.
The chorus of the song repeats the phrase "We move forward ’cause we can't go back" several times, emphasizing the idea that we cannot turn back time or undo actions we have taken. We must keep moving forward, even if it means facing challenging situations or making difficult decisions. The song's bridge describes a beautiful sunset sky, peeling paint, blowing of wind, and endless days in the deep blue feeling. It concludes by reiterating that the singer would follow the girl anywhere.
In summary, WeMoveForward is a song that captures the fear, excitement, and hope that accompanies moving forward. It encourages listeners to persevere and to continue taking steps towards their future, even though it might seem difficult or uncertain.
Line by Line Meaning
Sun in my eyes and the gold coast shining
The bright sun is shining in my eyes and reflecting off the gold coast.
And the girl with the braids in her hair
I see a girl with braids in her hair.
Steady breeze and oh I was falling
The breeze is blowing steadily and I am falling in love.
I would follow her anywhere
I am so in love that I would follow her anywhere.
The sky turned grey in a flash flood warning
The sky turned grey and there was a warning of an imminent flash flood.
She smiled and she took my hand
She smiled at me and took my hand.
She kissed my lips and the rain came pouring
She kissed me and it started raining heavily.
Swore I heard a marching band
I thought I heard a marching band playing in the distance.
We move forward
We keep moving forward.
‘Cause we can't go back
Because we cannot go back to the way things were.
Hanging out of the third story window
I am hanging out of a third story window.
Oh you were a sight to see
I am enjoying the sight of you.
The black dress that bends when the wind blows
Your black dress is bending when the wind blows.
Roll back the tide for me
Make time stand still for me.
Sunset skies, the paint is pealing, the wind blowing sand in her hair
The skies are beautiful with the sunset, the paint is peeling, and the wind is blowing sand into her hair.
Endless days in the deep blue feeling
I am experiencing an endless feeling of deep blue emotions.
Contributed by Allison G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@huntakilla1234
Sun in my eyes and the gold coast shining
And the girl with the braids in her hair
Steady breeze and oh I was falling
I would follow her anywhere
The sky turned grey in a flash flood warning
She smiled and she took my hand
She kissed my lips and the rain came pouring
Swore I heard a marching band
We move forward
'Cause we can't go back
We move forward
'Cause we can't go back
We move forward
'Cause we can't go back
We move forward
'Cause we can't go back
Hanging out of the third story window
Oh you were a sight to see
The black dress that bends when the wind blows
Roll back the tide for me
Sunset skies, the paint is pealing, the wind blowing sand in her hair
Endless days in the deep blue feeling
I would follow her anywhere...
@Bzk--
It's amazing how a song like this can resonate with anyone who experienced true love, and for each one it evokes different feelings and special moments.
The magic of music.
@Scribbby
I love how visually descriptive this song is. The song also has a gradual build up, into an upbeat peak, followed up with a swift sorrowful downfall similarly to how you would fall in and out of love. Definitely one of my favourites from them.
@5422074
Beautifully written
@matthiaswegger
Love these guys. This particular track actually reminds me of the golden days of progressive trance music back in the 90s. Chills.
@barking_mad6649
I actually thought it was an Above and Beyond tune as I think I heard it on one of their live performances.
@jackfersztbabybabies
Tylers song writing gives me chills every time. the imagery is so powerful
@trueblu8
Is that the guy who sings or plays the synth?
@trueblu8
Powerful imagery and words. So talented these guys. Love them. 🎶💖
@huntakilla1234
Sun in my eyes and the gold coast shining
And the girl with the braids in her hair
Steady breeze and oh I was falling
I would follow her anywhere
The sky turned grey in a flash flood warning
She smiled and she took my hand
She kissed my lips and the rain came pouring
Swore I heard a marching band
We move forward
'Cause we can't go back
We move forward
'Cause we can't go back
We move forward
'Cause we can't go back
We move forward
'Cause we can't go back
Hanging out of the third story window
Oh you were a sight to see
The black dress that bends when the wind blows
Roll back the tide for me
Sunset skies, the paint is pealing, the wind blowing sand in her hair
Endless days in the deep blue feeling
I would follow her anywhere...
@danna3768
Thank you so much