Review Roundup: Mightmare and Midnight.Blue

This week I've got a two-for-one deal on album reviews; one of which comes out this week and another that has been out for a time but is worth a mention in case you missed it like I did.

Mightmare- Cruel Liars
Out of adversity comes innovation and we've certainly seen that from the music community in the wake of the COVID-19 lockdowns. Touring and traditional studio recording might have been off-limits but all those creative minds still churned, finding ways to make art in non-traditional ways. Sarah Shook, bandleader of Americana act The Disarmers, was not only dealing with pandemic isolation but also becoming newly sober. Her answer was an almost completely DIY album, Cruel Liars. Dubbing herself Mightmare, Shook wrote, produced, engineered and played all instruments on the album, save bass on six of the album's eight songs.

With a new name came a new musical identity and, while Shook's distinctive voice is easy enough to pick out, the shimmery indie pop songs are like nothing she ever performed with The Disarmers. Lyrically, there's a darkness counterbalanced by a drive that makes an appealing listen. This is an album with no body fat. The eight songs clock in at a Ramones-esque 27 minutes. No lengthy solos, no waxing eloquently, Shook cuts to the bone with lines like “I'd rather be the enemy than fade away like a childhood friend.” She saves the album's best verse for the final track, “Sure Thing;” “I was just a child the first time I lost a friend. My mama said someday when you're grown you'll understand. Well I'm all grown and I still don't. The only thing I know for sure is there's no such thing than a sure thing.”

But that's not completely true. Sarah Shook is a sure thing. Whether with The Disarmers or as Mightmare, she consistently delivers.

Midnight.Blue- Breathe
In the interest of full disclosure, Breathe has been out for some time now but it was recently introduced to me and the nice thing about being a one-man album review team is you can do things like hype a good album you missed the first go.

Midnight.Blue is a supergroup made up of former and current member of The Motet, Lettuce, Sunsquabi, Recess, and Black Eagle Society. With a lineup like that you might be expected some funky hip-hop infused jam. The fact you'd be wrong is what makes Breathe special.

Rather than the loose and free flow of jam, Breathe is tight. Like super tight. It's a mixture of jazz, rap, soul, and even elements of easy listening that sound a bit like someone combined the DNA of The Roots, Weather Report, and Patti Labelle.

Highlights of the album include “20/20” with G. Finesse ably rapping over a jazz fusion background, The Voice alum Halle Tomlinson channeling her best Natalie Cole on “Remember,” a track that goes down as smooth as top shelf whiskey and leaves you just as warm.

If you're looking for wacky time changes, 28 minute songs, or genre mashups that defy belief, Breathe isn't the album for you. If you want some well-played jazz fusion with a few surprises, it's an album I can't recommend enough.

The album's out now on Perception Records at your favorite indie record shop.