Midnight Faces
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Midnight Faces

Los Angeles, California, United States | Established. Jan 01, 2013 | SELF

Los Angeles, California, United States | SELF
Established on Jan, 2013
Band Rock Alternative

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This band has not uploaded any videos
This band has not uploaded any videos

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"Hear Midnight Faces' Triumphant Post-Punk 'Over Again'"

Midnight Faces unites vocalist Philip Stancil with composer Matthew Doty, who, along with Josh Tillman, a.k.a. Father John Misty, co-founded the post-rock outfit Saxon Shore in the early 2000s. But for Midnight Faces, Doty stays focused on crisp, synth-lined pop drama, as heard on the project's 2013 debut album, Fornication. On May 13, the Los Angeles-based duo will return with The Fire is Gone, a sophomore effort that's due out via Broken Factory. But first comes lead single "Over Again," a darkly shaded track that merges a post-punky bass line with snapping percussion, twinkling sonics, and an ascendant chorus. Hear it below. - SPIN


"New Song: Midnight Faces, ‘Holding On’"

Who here likes Depeche Mode? Great! Does that include a little soft spot for classic rock God Tom Petty? Cool! Maybe a side of The Smiths or The Cure? Duh! Well, ’80s dance-pop and classic rock fiends will find their happy place (or sad, as the case may be) in Washington, D.C. newcomers and synth pioneers Midnight Faces. Formed by Philip Stancil and Matthew Warn (formerly of post-rock outfit Saxon Shore), Midnight Faces recently put the finishing touches on their debut full-length album, Fornication (out June 18 via Broken Factory), with producer Jason Martin, and have just released the disc’s second single, “Holding On.”

Listen to Midnight Faces’ “Holding On” after the jump.


Kicking off suddenly with an eerie, ’80s-inspired Moog bass line, the Jason Martin-produced track evolves into a dance-driven, desperate plea: “But oh, where did I lose you/ when will I find you/ when I feel like holding/ But oh, where did I see you/ When will I find you/ When I feel like holding?” Man, talk about wearing black on the outside because “black is how I feel on the inside,” right? But we’ll never say no to a little brooding New Order-meets-Joy Division-meets-Tom Petty dance-pop. (Yes, Tom Petty. We’re serious.)

Grab Midnight Faces’ new album, Fornication, when it drops June 18 on Broken Factory. - MTV Buzzworthy


"PREMIERE: MIDNIGHT FACES – THE FIRE IS GONE (FULL ALBUM)"

When I got ahold of The Fire Is Gone, by Los Angeles-based Midnight Faces last week, you know I had to ask when NYLON Guys could premiere a track. Lucky for us, the duo granted us not only the premiere–but they gave us the whole record a day early and did a Q&A with us!

The band is comprised of vocalist Philip Stancil and composer Matthew Doty of Saxon Shore, the instrumental post-rock pioneering band founded by Doty and Josh Tillman aka Father John Misty. To better understand what The Fire Is Gone is, please understand what it isn’t: No fancy producers, no big name special guests, no one wearing robot costumes, no all-analog studio, and no songs recorded live to tape.

Doty told us “We made this album by ourselves and for ourselves. We made it in my apartment on a computer one track at a time. If you dig the tunes, cool. If you don’t, that’s cool, too.” Well, we have news for you guys. We dig…we dig very much, in fact. With all of the reverb we could ever want on tracks like “Shadows” and Peter Gabriel-esque ballads like “Animal,” this record is solid from start to finish.

The first single from The Fire Is Gone is a track titled “Over Again,” which Stancil explains was “the last song we wrote before sending the album to be mastered.” For a band that seemlessly layers sounds, “Over Again” is essentially a guitar, bass, and drums track. Stancil says, “It’s easy to keep adding, but every once in a while it’s good to take it back to basics.”

The Fire Is Gone is out tomorrow on Broken Factory Records HERE but you can listen to all eight tracks below and check out the Q&A we did with the fellas. Follow Midnight Faces on Twitter HERE, find all of their tour dates and “like” them on Facebook HERE. - NYLON


"Midnight Faces have Father John Misty connections and a catchy new single"

Way back in 2001, Matt Doty co-founded Saxon Shore with Josh Tillman. Tillman would go on to become his own sort of musical icon as Father John Misty, but Doty’s still hard at work with his own projects. His latest, Midnight Faces, finds Doty paired up with vocalist Philip Stancil for some new wave style ‘80s cuts. The band’s second album, The Fire Is Gone, isn’t out until May 13 on Broken Factory, but A.V. Club readers can get a glimpse at the record with “This Time,” streaming below. The album’s second single, “This Time” is full of air and catchiness, making it the perfect track for a late April jam session.

Midnight Faces plays May 10 at Milk Bar in San Francisco and May 13 at Soda Bar in San Diego. The Fire Is Gone is available for pre-order via iTunes. - AV Club


Discography

Still working on that hot first release.

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Bio

Midnight Faces is an LA duo comprised of vocalist Phil Stancil and multi instrumentalist Matthew Doty.  Barely into his teens, Matthew Doty began making music with childhood friend Jonny Pierce (of The Drums), resulting in a full-length album released by Columbia Records.  At age twenty, he went on to co-found post-rock instrumental giants Saxon Shore with Josh Tillman (aka Father John Misty), releasing three EPs, and two albums produced by Dave Fridmann (MGMTTame ImpalaFlaming Lips).

To better understand what The Fire Is Gone is, please understand what it isn’t:  No fancy producers, no big name special guests, no one wearing robot costumes, no all-analog studio, and no songs recorded live to tape.  The non-singing half of Midnight Faces is Matthew Doty who elaborates by explaining, “We made this album by ourselves and for ourselves.  We made it in my apartment on a computer one track at a time.  If you dig the tunes, cool.  If you don’t, that’s cool, too.”  Fair enough, but there’s a damn good chance you’ll be landing in the camp of the former.   The album has received critical acclaim from the likes of SPINNYLONAV CLUBand CONAN O'BRIEN.

Still, Doty asserts, “Just what L.A. needs –another fucking 80’s new wave band, right?”  Well, no.  But when the songs are as good as what Midnight Faces is cranking out, perhaps the listener should be the ultimate judge of that?  In fact, The Fire Is Gone is an even more evolved take on the sound that Doty and vocalist Philip Stancil already had pretty damn near perfect on Fornication.  “Phil and I no longer live in separate parts of the country,” Doty explains of the duo’s progression. “We were able to sit down and write together, no more file sharing.”  Stancil elaborates, saying, “We hit on a lot of genres while working on this album, throwing out songs we didn’t like and re-working others to fit the mood.”

The bands debut album, Fornication, received acclaim from the likes of MTV BUZZWORTHY MTV HIVE  and NPR along with popular and influential music discovery websites such as UNDER THE RADAR, MY OLD KENTUCKY BLOGEARMILK, and BAEBLE MUSIC among others.

Band Members