Midtown Dickens began as a ragtag, learn-while-you-play duo of best friends Kym Register and Catherine Edgerton. The project was born in the post-industrial blues town of Durham, NC when the pair began collecting orphaned instruments from generous friends and back alley dumpsters. They developed an unrefined brand of punk-folk that drew from old time bluegrass and the anti-folk minimalism of the Pacific Northwest. After an off-the-cuff two-month tour, the duo released Oh Yell! (307 Knox Records), which garnered wide praise and a cult following for its spirited and charming odes to the wonders of everyday life.
Eager to include more friends in the project, the pair rallied a DIT (Do-It-Together) front-porch collective of players who shared instruments such as the banjo, accordion, musical saw, trumpet, trombone, guitar, drums, mandolin, upright bass, harmonica, glockenspiel, spoons, and whatever else was lying around. The band soon solidified into a cohesive quintet, embarking on a darker and more extensive exploration of folk music, while still rooted in the earnest songwriting of Kym and Catherine.
The group entered the studio last spring with acclaimed producer Scott Solter (The Mountain Goats, Pattern is Movement, John Vanderslice) to record Lanterns, a record about letting go of the things we think we need.
Lanterns will be self-released on September 15th, 2009, in a multi-media package containing a vinyl record, CD, MP3 download code and a 16-page booklet with a full 12"x12" panel dedicated to each song on the record. Created by also-artist Catherine Edgerton, the collages of lyrics, photos and drawings illuminate the themes, memories and philosophies that helped create each song.
Available at Bull City Records, CD Alley and Schoolkids on September 15!
"Album of the Month."
-The Independent
"Without sacrificing the sense of spontaneous fun that makes many of its songs worth a dozen drably proficient indie rock curtsies, Midtown Dickens has started to take their music a bit more seriously...It's as if the group's increased musical proficiency gave them the confidence to lay more on the line lyrically, too. They play better, sing better, say better."
-The Independent
"On the new album Lanterns, the band takes the playground twee of such singers as Kimya Dawson and hitches it to the power of a true mountain band."
-The Daily Tar Heel
"This is the Midtown Dickens of their second album, Lanterns, more mature and a bit darker."
-The Duke Chronicle
"Midtown Dickens has grown far, raising the bar for themselves on Lanterns, an album brimming with energetic down home numbers that boast a small army of instruments lending the whole a colorful tapestry. It’s as fun as it is heartwarming."
-Bootleg Magazine
"These girls are the real deal, playing music they want to play and having a good time doing it."
-Nonalighment Pact
"Oh Yell! has a spontaneous organic vibe well-suited for fans of the Chapin Sisters, Neko Case and the lighter side of the Elephant 6 collective."
-Campus Circle
"Unrelentingly humorous, thoughtful and poignant."
-Rebel Girl
"Toss in poppy melodies, some singalong choruses, and a bucket-load of fun, and this duo will indeed have you yelling for more. "
-All Music Guide
"All in all, there’s an under-produced, rusty knife, kick-the-can style that is infectious here."
-Left of the Dial
"Midtown Dickens create a bouncy, adorable sound that is effortlessly intimate."
-Durham Rock City
"Their goofball folk half-conceals a pair of big hearts fully willing to lay themselves bare."
-Triangle Rock
"This band is a joy to hear and probably even better to live."
-The Independent Weekly
"They're not obsessed with perfection of technique as much as they are purity of feeling."
-The Independent Weekly
"It is petite but not fragile, thin but dense, and most of all imperfect, a quality that the band holds in high esteem."
-Gal Magazine
"Playful, poppy freak-folk with lo-fi production and a DIY ethic."
-Venus Magazine
"Astoundingly catchy melodies, impressively varied instrumentation and markedly poignant moments."
-The Daily Tar Heel
"Midtown Dickens builds winning songs with élan, enthusiasm and a self-made ensemble of banjo, guitar, harmonica, trombone and drums."
-The Independent Weekly
"The songs are more complex and provocative than the stripped-down instrumentation and composition suggest."
-Performer Magazine
love the melodies, if you guys ever wanna book this way we'll direct ya the right way, and we're planning on coming that way in March 2010..maybe we could share a gig?
Can you imagine that some gal living faaaaar away from NC and the States listens to your songs every morning (or so) on her way to work ? The best way of kicking off the day I could ever find. I often think that I'm one of the very few privileged persons in France to know you guys, and I love that thought !
Thanks! We'll be playing at The Pinhook on 11/10 so we might see you there? Hope so, we missed you last time since it was on the same night as your CD release party. If you guys ever need someone to play a show with you let us know, we'd love to!
Wow I just read the article on Indyweek, I had no idea you had gotten such an amazing response to your call for money... Wish I'd been able to put $5000 on the table too !!
Hi midtown dickens! Just stopping by your page to see whats good! Keep me in mind if you need any high quality/low cost mastering. All the details and samples are on my page. Feel free to get in touch with any questions. Take care!
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