Txttunes Independent Band Profile: The Midnight Youth

Txttunes Independent Band Profile: The Midnight Youth

Nicola Meullo caught up with The Midnight Youth's frontman Jeremymy Redmore to talk about the New Zealand band's much-anticipated upcoming album, as well as the buzzzz around the success of their first two singles.

Nicola: Your new material is quite a lot different from your initial releases. Tell me about how you came to conclude your latest songs.
Jeremy: Our songs these days seem to reflect the fact that we're far more gelled as a band, and Si [Simon Oscroft, The Midnight Youth's guitarist] and I as a songwriting team. Also, the fact we have two sources for ideas means we always keep each other fresh and interesting - which is exactly what people can expect on the album.

Nicola: How do you think your fans will receive this new material?
Jeremy: I like to think our fans have good taste in music in general. We like to write what we are into. It's constantly evolving but we basically believe they will like what we like, too.

Nicola: What are your plans with this album?
Jeremy: We're hoping to head overseas again within the next 12 months. We aren't a band that wants to bring an agenda, we're good at music - it's what we do, and we want to get to a point where we're doing this full time.

Nicola: So, with your first releases, how have you found the success of them got you where you are now?
Jeremy: Our early singles have been very important in setting us up for what we're doing now. We've learnt a lot and now have a really great base to work off.

Nicola: How has Txttunes helped with gaining exposure?
Jeremy: It's easy to use, and easy to market. They're so supportive and give advice on what to do. Most people who listen to us don't have credit cards, but everyone has a phone, so it's perfect.

Nicola: Have you had any other response from overseas?
Jeremy: We've been getting lots of activity from all over, really. We just can't wait to get the album out there and show everyone what we're really about.

Nicola: Where are you guys at with the recording of your album?
Jeremy: We went on a crazy adventure to New York to record with a producer over there for three weeks, which was amazing. We have a bunch of stuff to organise now, but we're hoping to get a product out there within the next few months. We're hoping the inspiration we felt in the city can really shine through on the album.

Nicola: You have supported a stellar line of artists in such a short time, opening for Incubus, Ok Go, Evermore, Pluto, OpShop and Goodnight Nurse, but you also got to open for INXS. What was that like?
Jeremy: INXS was pretty awesome, especially playing two shows, as we got to prove ourselves to rock legends twice in a row. It was hard when the lights dimmed, and the crowd went out of control, then we walked onstage! But we seemed to win over the crowd pretty quickly, so it was great! INXS all personally congratulated us and JD Fortune came and had dinner and a few drinks with us.