Though Middle Life has been playing in folk bands for the better part of the last 15 years, he grew up on alternative rock bands of the 90’s. A few years ago, he sitting on these songs reminiscent of that sound but, of course, they really wouldn’t fit with any of the folk projects he plays with in and around Nashville. Taking matters into his own hands, Middle Life was born.
In this interview spotlight, I chat with Middle Life about the latest project, technology, challenges and more.
Full Q&A along with links and music below.
Where are you from and what style of music do you create? (In your own words, not necessarily in marketing terms or by popular genre classifications.)
Originally, I am from Indiana. I was born in South Bend though I spent most of my youth in a small(ish) college town called Terre Haute. I moved to Nashville in 2012 for a new graphic design job. I have played in primarily indie folk bands for the past 15 years, though I was raised on 90’s rock. Middle Life is kind of my “mid-life crisis” project. As I approach 40 years old, I questioned whether anyone was still listening to my americana/folk songs in a city like Nashville, which is so oversaturated with americana/folk songs. To some humorous degree I feel like part of it was also just proving to myself that I could still get loud. I still very much enjoy writing/performing those folky songs with my main project, The Highland Reunion but this was a fun project to get off my chest.
What led you down this path of music and what motivates you to keep going?
I lived in Brazil, South America my freshman year in high school. Not being able to speak to anyone in a Portuguese speaking country forced me to find an outlet somewhere else. I picked up the guitar and started learning as many Nirvana and Beatles songs I could. As I mentioned earlier, I’ve played in several bands over the past 15 years and honestly, about the time I started writing these rock songs was about the time I wanted to just quit, which isn’t like me at all. I just felt like I was in a dark room and couldn’t tell if anyone was listening anymore. I received some words of encouragement from some friends, family and fans and ironically decided I needed to not quit but release MORE music and quit hoarding songs. I rediscovered that I primarily do this for me. I have a day job and a wife and kids. Whether I “make it” or not makes no difference. I just love writing, recording and performing my music for folks.
How is this new release different than previous ones? Were you trying to accomplish anything specific?
I went out with the specific intent of writing songs that sound reminiscent of 90’s rock.
Name one or two challenges you face as an indie musician in this oversaturated, digital music age? How has technology helped you (since we know it does help)?
It’s a double edged sword, these days. You have platforms like Spotify that help and hurt the artist. Every artist out there has an opinion about how little Spotify pays but when it comes down to it, we can’t turn back now. We can’t not have it. This digital age needs Spotify, Tidal etc. They give the independent artist a platform they never had before. Through playlists and discovery pages you can reach a much wider audience. Music blogs and festival websites have been around forever but seem like they make more of an impact these days. I played in a band called Yearbook Committee that was invited to play as an official showcasing artist at SXSW 3 years in a row and the traffic we got just by being on their website and before we even played our first set at the festival, was incredible. Before that we were begging blogs to feature us and after, they were knocking on our door.
What was the last song you listened to?
Dylan Thomas by Better Oblivion Community Center
Which do you prefer? Vinyl? CDs? MP3s?
Depends. At home, it’s vinyl, no question. But I recently purchased a new car and have bluetooth in it for the first time ever and I gotta say, having access to all of my music in my car like that is a dream.
How about this one…. Do you prefer Spotify? Apple Music? Bandcamp? Or something else? Why?
They all have their strong suits. I get more money when folks buy my album on Bandcamp. I get more exposure and reach a wider audience with Spotify.
Where is the best place to connect with you online and discover more music?
Working on a website at the moment but folks can keep tabs on this project on Facebook (Middle Life), Instagram (@middlelifemusic) or Twitter (@middlelifemusic
