The Motor City. Home of the coney dog (actually, the Flint coney crushes it). Detroit pizza. Del Shannon. The MC5. Iggy and the Stooges. The Bob Seger System. And fucking Vernor’s. Well, fiends, friends, and freaks of the Mitten State (and beyond), a new entrant has emerged from the depths of rusted steel, the black burp of Super Bee exhausts, and rampant industrial ruin porn. They are: Midas.
Formed by four local boys who couldn’t let go of Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Wishbone Ash, and likely anything that found its way out of the NWOBHM, Midas practices what they preach. That is, hooky, riffy Flying V-played songs that beat to a bygone era. There’s plenty of denim, leather vests, and beat-up ankle boots imbued into Midas’ ripping metal. In fact, on new album, Demo Tapes, their first for Germany-based indie Dying Victims, the wood paneling and shag carpet (with a spilled-Pabst bouquet) are redolent, much to the delight of metal atavists that call Decibel home-ish.
But we couldn’t say it any better than Midas. “We wanted to touch on that sweet spot in hard rock, that late ’70s / early ’80s era,” say the be-vested Rock City denizens. “Why can’t we combine the soft Wishbone Ash-like elements and the weighty riffs of bands like Judas Priest and Heavy Load? That’s basically where we were at when we wrote these songs. What bands aren’t influenced by their predecessors?”
With Pong on the tele, the Hustle a distant but all-too-real memory, tube socks, and pissing on Tiger Beat in full view, it’s time for Midas to hit the digital stage. Bring on Demo Tapes!
