The Mystery Lights

The Mystery Lights began in California and have since found a second home in NYC. With a slew of tour dates and local Brooklyn gigs, the band suits any downtown venue, dingy basement bar, or roof party all too well. Surfy, reverb-drenched guitars creep in and out along 60s dance beats while singer Mike Brandon shrieks at the top of his range all too comfortably. A throwback sound made modern like your first introduction to The Hives, it is curious how Burger Records has not already scooped up this band. I was happy to catch their set before King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard at Baby’s All Right but bummed when it was cut short after four or five songs. The live energy is raw yet calculated, a true rock n’ roll band. Like all 60s soul or garage rock, the music carries nothing in the way of originality but it really just doesn’t matter. Sweaty, rock n’ roll dance parties are the antithesis of EDM pill fests and The Mystery Lights are as worthy as any band right now to join the bill. - Dingus

The Mystery Lights were intense. They were completely high-energy, fueled garage rock action. From a first look, these guys were young, way younger than they sounded. I was not expecting what was in store for me. As they warmed up and did a sound check, you could easily tell that the energy and suspense building up in the crowd was overwhelming.

Dressed like Dee Dee Ramone, lead singer Mike Brandon was full of raw energy. He was a blur onstage most of the time, legs thrashing, arms flailing, jumping and just going crazy with the microphone. He had a really great voice too - it was perfect for the bluesy 60s garage sound they were going for. The band played loud: a wall of guitar riffs with a pounding bass line and thunderous drums. Their sound was massive for just four people.

The songs themselves were absolute nonstop action. They seemed to move from really fast overgained guitar-driven rockouts to slow bluesy bass groves on a whim, and the dichotomy of these two never got old. How they managed to keep up all that energy for the entire show, I'll never know. After walking onstage, they assaulted us for what felt like a scant 20 minutes, then they were done. I wanted way more. I know they played for over an hour, but seriously, it was still way too short. - CT Indie

Opening up for Criminal Hygiene were the Mystery Lights and they absolutely shredded. From Salinas, Ca. (wherever that is), the Mystery Lights delivered that 60s classic rock ‘n’ blues sound with a ferocious stage presence. The dudes can jam and they did a pretty damn good job of filling up the Echo at such an early time slot. Following the Mystery Lights’ set were the pop-punkish sounds of GRMLN. The room had cleared out a bit after the Mystery Lights’ set. I guess none of the crowd was into pogo-ing, because that’s the kind of moving (dancing) I’d imagine at a packed GRMLN show. Once Criminal Hygiene hit the stage the room began to fill up. Unfortunately, we had to leave after their set and missed out on LA Font. - Grimy Goods

"Having Singer/guitarist Mike Brandon used every square inch of the stage and set the bar high for every band to follow The Mystery Lights who kicked things off. " - LA Record