Photos By Darren Kim
(darren@rockscope.com)

Better Late Than Never

Midnight Movies have steadily grown on me the past year. And even though they've been touted as one of LA's most talented bands for the past four years, they've yet to break into indie's mainstream consciousness.

Maybe it's because they're always opening for bigger acts instead of headlining their own. Last year, they opened for The Raveonettes, Blonde Readhead, Rogue Wave, and Imperial Teen. Not only that, lead singer Gena Olivier had the privilege of singing the female lead of Peter, Bjorn, and John's Young Folks when they performed in LA. (How many indie frontwomen can add that to their resume?)

So it came as no surprise when the band opened for Dead Meadow at the Echoplex this month. Except this time, I was determined to give Midnight Movies the fair attention they deserved.

Midnight Movies can be summed up like this. What if Nico fronted Joy Division with modern Stereolab-like influences? Well, you'd get awesome retro-sounding psychedelic pop like Midnight Movies!

Their music ranges from dance rock to spacey psychedelic dream pop. One moment you'll be staring at your shoes contemplating the meaning of existence. The next, you'll be unable to stop grooving to infectious drums and synth.

If that sounds good to you, give them a listen!

(P.S. I read an interview the other day where the band said they wished people would 'implode' if they ever heard the Nico comparison again.

Well I haven't imploded yet, but if you don't hear from me in a few days, you'll know what happened.)

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