After Belfast four-piece Middler first emerged a few years ago with a debut single and live shows, they took a step back. The band put their heads down, and two years later emerged with the beginnings of a debut album. That time in the studio saw them hone a sound that melds genres. Early comparisons to the likes of Chalk and Ireland’s emerging post-punk scene have been forgotten, as Middler’s sound remains their own.
On Sacrosanct they lean heavily into industrial soundscapes, mixing electronic sounds with shoegaze, postpunk and nu metal. Frontman Jonny McCune’s vocals float above a wave of battling textures for much of the album, while in others there’s a ferocity in sync with heavy guitars and drum beats. An album that’s often dark and bruising, but both musically and lyrically, the band reach beyond the turmoil.
Following the album’s release, Middler give us a rundown of some of the influences that have found their way into the album’s sound.
Kessler – Old Wives Tale
There’s very little that isn’t inspiring about Kessler, his rise from playing in Filthy’s to all the success he’s achieved for himself over the past few years to his super clean production, blurring these lush soundscapes and intricate drum programming. The ethereal nature of this track behind a backbone of sub bass became a real reprieve for us when tracking the album.
Pendulum – Witchcraft
From the get go we wanted to wanted to exist in a space between electronic music and heavy music and Pendulum have always been one of those bands that straddle those two worlds, heavy back beats, rave synths with anthemic vocals creating a sound that can’t be contained in a small club.
Deftones – Entombed
There wasn’t a time when we were driving to the studio that this song didn’t come on and for good reason, its pure bliss. The constant push and pull of ethereal and intensity, as well as the inclusion of possibly Chino’s best vocal performance. We’ve always loved the expansive sound of Deftones, especially on this album where the synths took up more space in the mix.
Crosses – Bitches Brew
A constant debate between Ross and David, which is Chino’s better project Deftones or Crosses? The nocturnal nature of the Crosses is hypnotic, as a band we are always looking for music that places us in the depths as listeners. It’s food for the soul.
The Murder Capital – A Thousand Lives
A standout in The Murder Capital’s discography, when this dropped we all turned our heads and marked a bit of a pivot in what we were doing just prior to starting Sacrosanct. The cascading keys, that drum break and the subtle yet venomous delivery of the vocals really spoke to us, the way the track dips in and out from a whisper to an assault was a dynamic we really tried to pull from on the likes of ‘Selfish God’.
Ben Howard – All is Now Harmed
The theme of darkness rears it’s head once again. The intimacy of this track really spoke to us leaving the studio in the late hours of a Saturday night into the early hours of Sundays. The cinematic build and pondering lyrics really gives you space to reflect in a time of lethargy.
Linkin Park – Crawling
One of those bands we all grew up listening to and so became a de facto reference point when carving out what Sacrosanct would become, there’s a lot of Linkin Park DNA in a song like ‘Cometh to Me’, often we hear people make a connection to our music and Deftones but its kind of funny nobody has picked up on the Linkin Parkisms.
Nine Inch Nails – The Beginning Of The End
The sparseness and raw energy of this track was something we tried to distil towards the end of the process making the album, how big can you can make a track with as few ingredients as possible? Over the 18 months of recording we tracked so much material and this track hammered home you can do a lot with a little.
The Prodigy – Breathe
Its hard to say if asking angels would exist if not for this song. The mix of breaks, distorted guitars and the breakdown towards the back half accumulates in one of those tracks you don’t just listen to once, as soon as its done, you pull it back and play it again.
Loathe – Two Way Mirror
For all the reasons we love Deftones, Loathe just take it to the extreme. Dreamscapes juxtaposed with absolute brutality. This is probably their most Shoegazey track. Their influence reared its head several times throughout the album, from the outros and interludes to most notably the bridge section on ‘Turismo’.
Playlist
