Earlier this year, the Nashville-based alt-country band The Midnight Revival released their debut self-titled album; a sound for those looking for raw authenticity, the 11-track album is an impressive introduction to their blues-meets-rock-meets -soulful songwriting niche.
We recently caught up with one-half of the founding duo Adam Sizemore to chat about the creation of the band, this new album and more.
CN: For our readers who may not be familiar with you, can you tell us a little bit about yourselves? How did The Midnight Revival begin?
Adam: Chris [Bragg] and I first entertained the idea of starting a band when we started working together on other projects over a decade ago. We both ended up in Nashville and threw some ideas together and the Revival began.
CN: A new day and a rebirth. How did you come to decide upon the name The Midnight Revival?
Adam: The Midnight Revival as a name came from Chris I believe. But, it kinda has multiple meanings between us. One we can agree on is that The Midnight Revival is the late night sermon at the bar or at the party where everything comes together and the crowd becomes the Clergy thru music, libation and good times!
CN: Which artists have influenced you both personally and as an artist?
Adam: We are both huge Eagles fans and we both love Tom Petty…..i grew up with Soul, Blues, Southern Rock and Metal. Chris grew up on 90’s Country and Alternative Rock ……oh don’t forget Neil Young! He’s Canadian and so is Chris…….gotta represent!
CN: Earlier this year you released your self-titled debut album. Each of the 11 tracks was co-written by you, was the process to select the songs difficult?
Adam: There’s no one process as far as song writing. There’s many ways to make a baby. Its the same with songs and writing creatively in general. Try all the ways…see what you come up with. We wrote songs with the purpose of finishing a solid body of work so, that made it easier to focus on the album bound material.
CN: Speaking of songwriting, can you take us through your songwriting process? Do you write solo or together most often?
Adam: We don’t have a specific formula or recipe. We both have written solo but, have done well collaborating on each other’s respective ideas.
CN: The songs on this album are very personal to you both. Does writing songs from your personal experiences make the writing process easier or harder?
Adam: It could really go either way. Sometimes a fresh experience can provide details that will let a song practically write itself and sometimes some experiences can cloud the process and slow things down depending on how personal the subject matter.
CN: Debut albums are commonly one’s first impression to the listening public. What do you hope your fans take away from this release?
Adam: We hope fans take away with them that we have a little something for everyone to take with them. We are just fans or music in general and hope that we can give you enough familiarity while serving something fresh or maybe even bold at times.
CN: This may not be a fair question, but do you have a favorite track on the album?
Adam: We both go back and forth with that all the time. But, we love ’em all equally different. Ha ha
CN: If you could collaborate with any one artist, who would it be?
Adam: There’s definitely a short list but we don’t have a singular choice. A few that would be fun…
– Neil Young
– The Eagles
– Jelly Roll
– Willie Nelson
– Blackberry Smoke
– Black Crowes
– Dolly Parton
– Chris Stapleton
– Teddy Swims…….Adele….Laney Wilson……& more
CN: If you could describe yourselves in one word, what would it be and why?
Adam: That’s a tough one but, I guess the one word to describe us would be……Frightened….. just kidding…..sorry for that……seriously, though. The word would be momentous because we are just getting started on this amazing journey…… just picking up momentum.
CN: What’s on the horizon for the second half of 2024?
Adam: We are looking forward to more shows and opportunities. We are currently working on new material as well. Stay tuned!
For more information on The Midnight Revival, visit their website themidnightrevivalband.com and follow them on Instagram and Facebook.
The Midnight Revival is available for download and streaming here.
Members of The Midnight Revival are: Adam Sizemore (Lead Vocals, Acoustic Guitar), Chris Bragg (Electric Guitar, Resonator Guitar, Background Vocals), Michael Sharp (Keyboards, Background Vocals – American Idol band, Billy Ray Cyrus, Leigh Nash, Kid Rock, Tim McGraw, Jamey Johnson), Bryan Keeling (Drums – Pink, Macy Gray, Shooter Jennings, Waylon Jennings, Fuel), Zach Kasik (Bass -owner of Wild Feather Recording Studios and Gold and Platinum selling producer), Eric Bickerstaffe (Banjo, Electric Guitar), Hannah Jason (Background Vocals), Jenna Jason (Background Vocals).