Credit: Counter Records
Horror Show (The Midnight)
Genre: Darksynth
In short: "this is just superior classic-synthwave-leaning darksynth"
Credit: Counter Records
Genre: Darksynth
In short: "this is just superior classic-synthwave-leaning darksynth"
Rating: 90
Cohesiveness: 78
Track quality: 82
Tags:
Beginner-friendly? kind of? should be fine
The Midnight embrace darksynth and infest it with Tyler's infectious vocal and some brilliant complementary production.
The good: "Horror Show" is a masterclass of darksynth with hints of retrowave, outrun and synthpop embedded in it. The vocal hooks are addictive, the brooding lead lines are rich and beautifully mixed, the lyricism is clever and flows well — nothing in this EP goes wrong, nothing in the slightest. This is a brilliant gander into darksynth by an already well-established synthwave duo, complete with the co-production skills of Essenger and a cohesive vibe to it — slightly introspective, slightly dark, slightly prophetic, and a little bit uncanny, and just as spectacular for it.
The bad: I mean, I don't have much to put here. "Because The Night" is a bit of a weaker tune but it's bolstered by Nikki Flores' vocal, and the "Neon Medusa - Edit" felt a little unnecessary, but I really didn't mind it at all.
| Name | Comments | Superlative |
|---|---|---|
| The Stranger | Honestly a great tonesetter, tons of cyberpunk/outrun influences and immaculate synth lines, both darker and brighter | Structural |
| Ghost in Your Stereo | Love Tyler's vocals that switch between high and low, lyricism is great and the rich, bassy drops are sick | Dark |
| Neon Medusa | A bit wack structurally, but the lyricism and vocal flow really shines here, and it's got the addictive lead and guitar to match | Standout |
| Devil Make a Deal | Tyler's got a bit of a swagger to his vocal here, and the synthwork is absolutely on point as well | Melodic |
| Good in Red | Again, it's Tyler's incredible attention to vocal flow that really hooks me here, and the synthwave is fantastic too | Catchy |
| Because The Night | I don't quite like how the production takes a back seat here, even if Nikki Flores pitches in a pretty great vocal | Laid-back |
| Neon Medusa - Edit | This track feels unnecessary because all they do is remove the final drop, but it's still peak and the structure isn't so wack anymore |