Postpunk artist The Sea At Midnight presents the new single ‘We Share The Same Stars’, produced and mixed by Chris King of Cold Showers and with Brandon Pierce of Glaare contributing drums.
This is the latest in a series of singles showcasing this artist’s 2020 offerings, which also include singles ‘Medicine’, ‘Melancholia’, ‘How Many Times’ and ‘Edge of The World’. This brings The Sea At Midnight closer to the release of the eponymous debut album, due out later this year.
Born and raised in Chicago, The Sea At Midnight is Chicago-raised Los Angeles-based songwriter Vince Grant. Inspired by classic postpunk bands like The Cure, Joy Division, the Psychedelic Furs, Siouxsie and the Banshees, New Order and Echo and the Bunnymen, he bought his first guitar at 23 and started playing in local Chicago bands before eventually moving to Los Angeles. He then bounced back and forth between New York and LA for a number of years, playing and singing in numerous bands, working a series of dead end jobs and grappling with drug addiction and alcoholism. After getting sober and making a serious attempt at dealing with his lifelong depression, Vince now calls LA home.
What began as an acquaintance via Craigslist, internet file swapping of acoustic demos, and an initial single blossomed into plans for an EP and then full length album. The eight tracks.
With a sound habitually compared to The Cure, Joy Division, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Depeche Mode, the Mighty Lemon Drops, the Wild Swans, and Icicle Works, to name just a few.
“When working with Chris King, we approached every song asking “What is good for this song?” rather than “How can we make it sound like all the others or how can we make it sound like such and such band”. Each song has its own individual vibe and we didn’t want to rely on a sonic cookie cutter approach with the same musical template. That’s why I especially like bands such as The Cure and Depeche Mode. You know it’s them immediately, but each song has its own personality and style. If I strive for anything, it’s that – for The Sea At Midnight to be recognizable while, at the same time, each song has its own unique personality,” says Vince Grant.
“This release was never supposed to happen. I thought my days of playing in bands and recording were over. If it weren’t for fate, this record would have never been made. I had no intentions of recording ever again. For wont of a better word, the ‘dark’ scene is where I’m coming from. I also really feel a kinship to the cyberpunk esthetic. Lyrically many of the songs deal with my struggles with alcohol and drug addiction and coping with lifelong depression. I suppose there is a strong element of sadness to them, but I also feel they contain a glimmer of hope.”
‘We Share The Same Stars’ is out via iTunes, Spotify and other digital retailers on August 21, but can be pre-ordered via Bandcamp. The full album ‘The Sea At Midnight’ is due out in autumn in 2020.
Photo by Liauna Tolmasoff
