The Midnight Hollow

On Saturday, a nice mix of psych-slash-experimental bands took the stage at Bowery Electric to show the attendees a good time on their last CMJ night of the year. Around 9:30, songwriter/producer Harley Prechtel-Cortez, aka Halfbluud, kicked things off with his lo-fi pop tunes that set the ambience and immersed the audience in a pleasantly spacey mood.

Halfbluud’s vibrant sound integrates minimalism with shoegazing, and is stroked by some tints of soul (the band even boasts a sax player). On stage, the songs were emphasized by swirling movie images projected on the band members, giving the performance a trippy touch. Immersed in his own transcendental universe, Cortez rarely addressed the audience, but the quality of the music was more than sufficient to make the crowd feel loved.

Brooklyn locals Lazyeyes came next and captivated the stage with their dream pop tunes and hazy sounds. After some initial technical difficulties the show went on smoothly, allowing the band to prove their musical talent. The warm melodies were accompanied by Jason Abrishami’s smooth vocals that revealed a hint of nostalgia reminiscent of lazy summer days. The performance was loudly applauded by the cheerful audience and Abrishami in turn, sincerely thanked everyone on a number of occasions.

Later, fellow New Yorkers The Midnight Hollow slightly skewed the ambience of the evening into a more upbeat, jolly one. Fronted by the suave singer/songwriter Spencer Draeger, the band cleverly combined electronic-charged rock with psychedelic elements that gave each song a distinct and engaging personality. Moreover, the band recently added Vahak Janbazian’s bells and congas to their set—a dynamic move that was highly appreciated live.

The show began a little late as the band spent a couple minutes making sure the sound technician got everything tuned just right. In the meantime, Draeger engaged in a charismatic conversation with the audience that lasted throughout the show. Somewhere along the way he announced, “Guitar’s over, we’re gonna dance and we’re gonna make romance,” and left the stage to share his quirky dance moves among the crowd.

The band closed the night with a pretty amazingly l-o-o-ong jamming session that was marked by Andrew Segreti’s powerful drums and Matt Liebowitz’s solid basslines. The vocals slowly found their way into the mix, complementing the intense flow that was enjoyed by both band and audience. - CMJ

The Midnight Hollow’s songs tend to build, born from electronic whispers. Soon, a beat brimming with bottled-up energy comes in, then vocalist Spencer Draeger joins with a crystal clear and brooding baritone. Eventually, after toying with tension, a sort of catharsis is reached when Draeger unleashes a powerful wail shot through with desperate honesty.

It’s a formula that allows for a lot of variation, and it’s pretty heady stuff. The Midnight Hollow have crafted a sort of desert/space/prog sound, blending lengthy watery guitar-filled instrumental sections with choruses carried by Draeger and driving drums and bass lines — fitting, given that they describe their “Influences” on Facebook as “Huge sounding drums.” If there is another near constant across songs, it’s that sense of desperation, an urgent need for understanding, and a sense of purpose. A friend described their sound as reminscent of the National, the Cure, and Interpol. Not far off.

Draeger started the Midnight Hollow as a solo project in San Francisco last year when his band of nine years, Mata León, broke up. After a move to New York and “countless jams with jaded musicians,” he recruited drummer Andrew Segreti when the two met in a bar in the East Village. The rest of the lineup fell into place soon after. They’re currently at work on an EP to be released later this year.

The band’s played just a handful of shows, and I was lucky enough to catch the first back in early August. You would have thought they had been playing for years, given how polished they were live. As good as the four songs available on their SoundCloud are, when performed live they blow the recorded versions away. (They’re playing next Glasslands in Williamsburg on 11/3.) Check out and download “Her Morning Glow” below. - Stereogum

New York City’s the Midnight Hollow (Band To Watch class of ’12) has been bringing its brand of brooding, driving rock to Brooklyn venues for a couple of years now, and up to this point if you wanted to hear the band’s material it meant doing so live. One of the highlights of those live shows was “That Rabbit Talk,” a feet-moving and radio-ready number that starts with a pensive groove and later arrives at riffed-out crescendo territory. Recorded, it’s big-sounding, slick, and captures that live-show feel. Give it a listen below, and watch the fantastic, trippy new video for another of the band’s highlights, “Her Morning Glow” — both songs will be on the band’s upcoming self-titled EP. - Stereogum

I'm tired of bands putting together dumb videos filmed through a VHS tape recorder (a.k.a. a shitty filter slapped on top of random footage) in a backyard, and backing it with a song about nothing. How DIY of you, bro. A video should do more than just accompany a track—it should provide an overall tone to what you are listening to and make you feel the feels of the sounds that sound because #music is the #best. So when I first saw the Midnight Hollow's new music video for "Her Morning Glow," which Noisey is premiering above, I was immediately in it to win it for the entirety of the six-minute long track. Not only is the song hypnotizing, but the video is stunning, making one confused if what's being witnessed is sexy or creepy—or both. I'm pretty sure that's the best feeling ever. Not to mention the vocals are haunting with real life lyrics about actual things. Homeboy didn't mention the beach once.

If you're in New York, the Midnight Hollow play Radio Bushwick on Saturday, June 14 and Glasslands on Monday, June 16. - Noisey