Music That Matters: Midlake- The Trials of Van Occupanther

With almost every current artist creating albums with some sort of yelp, scream, grunt, cry, whimper, growl, or moan, it’s refreshing to hear a group that can actually sing; very well in fact. Midlake’s second release Trials of Van Occupanther is a stunning work which harkens back to the vocal styles of Crosby Stills Nash and other select artists who put forth just as much effort in constructing their vocal arrangements as with instruments. Midlake’s pronounced vocalist Tim Smith has some of this generations most mature and stunning lyrics; a refreshing afternoon breeze under your favorite trees in a period swarming like bees around a hive of often yammering introspective lyrical content. Welcome Midlake, to one of ‘00’s most grown up, thought provoking (in a buoyant way), and lyrically and instrumentally rich artists.