Mercy Beach

Flint alt-rock quartet Mercy Beach are no stranger to us here at the Banana. They appeared many times and were often victorious on our now defunct local show, The Flint Town Throwdown (R.I.P.), and even scored the #1 Throw Down song of 2013.
After some retooling in 2014 and a lot of quiet behind-the-scenes work, the band is starting to unleash the fruits of their labor. One incredibly tasty piece of said fruit, is their new stop-motion animated music video for a song that generated more buzz than any other track we played on the Throw Down — ‘My Pet Monster.’
The video amplifies everything that makes the song fun and unique, while telling the story of a psychotic toy through the magic of stop-motion animation. We have to admit, seeing our favorite toys from the 1980s brought to life and doing battle make this video a special slice of awesomeness.
The process of stop motion is well-known as tedious and time-consuming, as every frame of footage has to be shot individually. The idea to shoot it in stop-motion came from Chris Lewis of Fire Hyena Studios, who has recorded all of Mercy Beach’s music since 2007. The band immediately loved the idea and embarked on a two-and-a-half year journey to bring it to fruition.
As with any project that is as intensive and lengthy as this one, there were several bumps in the road. In fact, frontman Mike Roland told us there were a few times they felt like pulling the plug on the entire operation. “There were issues in the middle of the process where we had several actors quit that set us back months,” said Roland, “which is why I ended up heading down to Florida to shoot it with myself as the [lead] actor.”
Despite the fact that he added lead acting duties on top of lead vocal and lead guitar, Roland tells us that a music video this demanding is never a one-man show. “Drey Andrus devoted so much of her time to the project and Brian Vroman gave it a little bit of a sparkle on the end product.”
Now that the music video for what is, perhaps, their most infectious tune to date has been realized, the band is gearing up to move forward with the release of their next project. They are planning to release a new album of acoustic and piano based tracks called ‘2:22′ in late February or early March. - Tree Riddle of Banana 101.5 Flint Rock Radio

Mercy Beach opened the Saint Patrick's day bash at Whites Bar in Saginaw this past Saturday. As always the guys put on a great show, and ya gotta dig Mike's shoes! They lost the performing in suits bit, which I miss 'cause it was a nice touch, but Mike still wears those same white shoes! Pay attention the next time you see these guys, oh and if you don't go see them you don't know what you're missing.

Take their latest CD 2:22 for a few spins. Not just once but several times, give it time to sink in. The CD starts off with the very upbeat and somewhat quirky tongue and cheek song I've Got 99 Problems but a Percent Ain't 1 with a catchy chorus you find yourself singing to after just a few spins. But don't let that fool you, you're about to be taken on is a cynically fun yet dark and quirky ride. I'd describe their sound by taking Nirvana and heavily influence them with Radiohead then sprinkle with a pinch of 90's alternative. So don't let the first track fool you, it's there to lure you into their clutches.

2:22 is mixed with dark thought provoking lyrics that I'm sure many of us can relate to whether you want to admit it or not. Then on the flip-side there are tracks like The Once and Future King. Such a beautiful ride this track takes you on, it's a mellow track with thought provoking lyrics that are delivered with such conviction you not only hear them, you feel them.

Mercy Beach's performance on 2:22 is top notch both instrumentally and lyrically. I highly recommend it, especially if you're fond of the 90's alternative sound. But don't be fooled this isn't a 90's CD! - Matt Giddings

This is one of those bands that makes me wonder why more people don’t listen to local music because this is such a great band. We’ve missed several opportunities to play with these guys until a couple weeks ago they played the Flint Local 432 with us and The Bobby Meader Music group. I had a chat with the front man Mike Roland about the band, the album and his life in general and I was surprised to find how deep everything went with his band. Too often we go see an act and forget that this is someone’s life work. Music is often the reason why they continue, and its also the mark they leave on this world.
Albums are funny things, sometimes they take 2 days to record and sometimes they take 2 years. Their latest album 2:22 is in the latter category; starting in March of 2014 and being finished in September of this year. As Mike and I talked about the record he paused for a second and said to me, “It was meant to be three solo songs to get them out of the way and make sure they were documented then I planned to off myself.” As it turns out, Mike was battling a severe bout of depression that had been torturing him for 6 months and this was his plan to be the end of it. Its something I think every artist thinks about from time to time, and thankfully some things happened that altered his plan.

The band Mercy Beach we know and love today came to its current line up earlier this year with Mike as the front man, Randy Dunkley on piano and guitar, Jeff Lawrence on bass, and John Jacobs on drums. “I love these guys. We have long standing friendships outside of the band and they’ve invested a lot of themselves into my vision to make it work” Mike says. Things have come a long way from two years ago when it was just Mike driving alone to Saginaw after working 10 or 11 hours; recording all night, then back to work the next morning. The longest strip of time he didn’t sleep for was 52 hours! Holy Cow!

Their album dropped last month and it is a dandy, and available all over the web iTunes, CDBaby etc etc. If you’re a fan of the Tom Toms, its safe to say that you’ll fall in love with their music as well. It was a joy talking with Mike about everything that had happened and it makes me very happy to see that music and friendship is what got him through the tough times and that he’s planning on sticking around. Towards the end of the conversation we had he said to me, “Life is Good… The group is the best set of guys I’ve had the honor of working with. … I have nothing I could complain about currently that wouldn’t be a minor day to day annoyance.” Also he mentioned that life has become more stable and he’s expecting a Baby in the next few weeks! Exciting! - Chris Day

One of the biggest complexities I faced as a child was the ever-going debate of what my toys did when I went to sleep. I was always slightly jarred whenever I’d put my action figures somewhere and when I went back to play some more, they’d be in a different place or different position. I never knew how or why that happened, but now thanks to a new music video from Flint natives Mercy Beach, I have a good idea of what went on. Combining stop motion, good ole fashioned rock and roll, and of course nostalgia, Mercy Beach cooked up a solid video for their hit song “My Pet Monster”.
This video took over two years to shoot and thanks to some nifty editing, it looks extremely amazing. - Rob Boggan of Nerd News

Rating: *****

With the first track of Mercy Beach's 2012 EP Dancing the Foxtrot With the Kings of the Sea, the listener is immediately indoctrinated to singer/guitarist Mike Roland's very unique vocals. The first thought might be, "This guy sings with conviction." He walks the lyrics of the first verse to the plank of the chorus of "Face Your Fears", then dives right in. The hook is searing and soaring, and the rest of the song continues on that path.

The lyrics are plaintively assuring and clever (Don’t let “nothing” chase your dreams away, once they start running there is nothing on Earth that will catch ‘em), delivered with direction and most importantly, without irony. The accompanying music is bouncy and feels just right, the guitar never overpowering the driving rhythm section. It's my favorite song on this very good collection of eclectic songs, my favorite asset of a band in a modern musical environment so stagnant and so satisfied to sound like everything else.

Mercy Beach definitely does NOT sound like everything else. The guitar lines on "Porcelain Bones" are as memorable as any melody on the album, and played with a distinctive flair that complements Roland's vocal style. Often, the verses lull the listener into a calm, only to have the tables turned when the band amps up the tension and aggression with the undeniable hooks; you'll be slapping your head for days after if you're trying to get some of these sticky choruses out.

That's not to say that they don't have their influences, but they're of the subconscious kind, rather than the "Hey, let's try to sound like so and so..." variety. Fearless like Jeff Mangum, with a hint of George Harrison and vintage Pixies, all working together very well.

The production is strong, with every instrument easily heard and the crunch of the heavy songs unscathed by the cold digital world. This is more of a triumph in and of itself than a lot of people might recognize; one of the many torments of a great live band is that they're rarely ever to capture what they sound like in a studio recording. Mercy Beach sound big on these recordings, a notable achievement.

Roy Miller and Jeff Lawrence, drums and bass, hold the bottom tightly down for Roland's often wry guitar dances in the slightly askew moonlight. Chris Klein shows up for a stint of acoustic guitar on the balladry of "Pretty Pink Pills", which showcases Roland's deliberate vocal reading and some great lyricism (You greet me with smiles and a mile of denial; I’ve got the whole damn thing on tape).

As a whole, with the excellent musicianship, clever words, bouncy alt-metal-folk dance numbers, it's still not enough, which is often the mark of a great EP: after listening, you should want more. Hopefully, the band's next foray into the studio will result in a full length record to sublimate this already very appealing and promising group of songs. - Paul Counelis for The Examiner

Michigan’s alternative rock outfit Mercy Beach, who just recently joined The Sights Set North, have just released their brand new music video for their hit single “My Pet Monster.” The song was released on their newest EP, entitled Dancing The Foxtrot With The Kings Of The Sea, that was released last year. The band has recently finished work on their new full length, entitled 2:22, that will be released this spring. The band will then hit the road this coming summer and fall to bring their infectious sound and energetic live performance to the masses. More details on each will be announced closer to their respective dates. - Shrum of New Noise Magazine

Mercy Beach from Michigan are ready to capture your attention with their blend of alternative, hard rock, pop storytelling. They have released a video for their song My Pet Monster and you can check it out here: The intro has a haunting guitar intro and then grabs a hold of you throughout the song. With it’s almost Rage Against the Machine storytelling vibe, it awakens your senses and has you hooked. The song was released on their newest EP, entitled Dancing The Foxtrot With The Kings Of The Sea, that was released last year. They have also finished work on their new full length, entitled 2:22, that will be released this spring. The band will then hit the road this summer.

Make sure to visit their social media sites so you can stay up to date on their latest news. - Marisol of Music Junkie Press