Molly Hanmer & The Midnight Tokers - Micra
Molly Hanmer & The Midnight Tokers - Fool's Run (Different Song).Stuck in a Daydream, the debut album from Los Angeles based quartet Molly Hanmer & The Midnight Tokers, might be labeled Americana, and accurately so, but throughout are hints of blues, rock and roll, folk, psychedelia, even Bossa-Nova that makes it a unique sound in its own right.
Unlike albums where every track sounds the same, Stuck In A Daydream switches it up, making you stamp your boots on the floorboards and clap along on one track; and weep, pull out your journal and express bottled up feelings on the next.
The album is the product of Hanmer teaming with two industry pros who share her musical views, producer Marvin Etzioni (co-founder of Lone Justice) and engineer Sheldon Gomberg, a two-time Grammy winner, along with her talented band, The Midnight Tokers. BANDCAMP.
The first track I listened to on the new 'Stuck In A Daydream' album was 'Fool's Run (Different Song)'. It's the third of twelve songs in this collection (the rest should also play thereafter, if not the link above will do the trick).
Anyhow, it's a fine song to say the least, and one that provides a fairly representative feel for the album (in terms of quality and imagination), that said expect variety as the band comfortably settle into different genres, doing so with an eclectic mixture of emotions and styles.
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The Triple J-tipped, Sydney-based atmospheric-pop duo, Micra, just shared their soaring new single, ‘Child Grows Old’. Following support in their home country based upon debut performances and early demos, the band, comprised of Bulgarian born and raised singer-guitarist, Ivana Kay and Australian multi-instrumentalist, Robbie Cain will support the string of single releases with debut performances in the UK and US in 2019.
Co-produced by the band alongside emerging Sydney producer/mixer, James Christowski, the reflective ‘Child Grows Old’ draws on influences ranging from Ariel Pink through to Beach House and Zero 7, working with glittering soundscapes and rich atmospherics. Speaking about the new single, Cain says: “The song explores a time in life which felt like nothing had changed for too long. Waiting around for something to happen without knowing where to begin. It's an internal conversation about forcing yourself to jump into the next phase of life and facing the obstacles that come out of that.”
The pair initially met - as if by serendipitous fortune - when were coincidentally sat beside each other at an Unknown Mortal Orchestra show after both arriving alone. That chance encounter would blossom into a musical alliance that culminated in the formation of Micra in early 2018. FACEBOOK.
Last month we featured 'Plastic' from Micra describing that track as "a dream pop song which occasionally moves towards shoegaze." They have quickly followed up with 'Child Grows Old' and it's another imaginative song. There's less shoegaze and a more feisty rhythm resulting in a catchy, electro rocker, with the vocals adding melody, clearly Micra are capable of differing styles and plenty of gorgeous hooks.
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