Midlake (Acoustic) At Higher Ground July 31, 2014

Words by Tim Lewis.

I had a great time seeing music last night. A few months ago Mike Luoma brought home an album by a band called MIDLAKE BAND. He played it a few times, and one of the songs got stuck in my head. I’ve listened to Antiphon several times, and often play a song from the album before or after my radio show. I was excited when I saw they were coming to town, but the show was acoustic, and at the time I do the radio show. I got the night off from the radio show and Mike got me in as his guest. We arrived shortly before showtime and the large room at Higher Ground was steadily filling. After a short wait, three members of the band took the stage and started to play. With two acoustic guitars and a keyboard player, who played flute a couple of times, they created a full and lush sound and I was quite impressed. The songs did not have the thunder, but did have the full lush sound. They played three or four older songs, and several from Antiphon, including a gorgeous version of the title song. The singer’s voice was crystal clear and carried the songs nicely. The guitars weaved a beautiful spell and the keys were sometimes driving piano, and sometimes lush soundscapes. The large audience was very appreciative and seemed to be having a good time. When they announced they had one more, I though for sure it would be their “hit” The Old And The Young, but instead they pulled out a cover of I Shall Be Released. They did a great job with it, and played it with passion. It sounded noticeably different from their other songs, but great nonetheless. When they wrapped up, I was pretty tired, so I took the easy ride home, instead of staying for Band Of Horses. I knew I would need it to be an early night, since there was tons of music about to happen the next day.

This post was originally published by Tim Lewis at his personal blog, https://timstriangletribune.wordpress.com.