For all intents and purposes, this is a single. There is an edited and an LP version of the same song coupled with a B-side. Thus, individuals do not have that much time to get to know who Midnight Movies are and what they intend to do in the music scene. The trance like vocals that start out ‘Patient Eye” hearken back to an earlier gothic style (mix Siouxsie and the Banshees with Sisters of Mercy and you’ve got an idea of what Midnight Movies sound like. The music des not fit this mold quite as easily however, as it comes from the indie tradition that blends together Temper Temper with At The Drive In. Overall, “Patient Eye” gives Midnight Movies a decidedly sixties feel, even if the production is well steeped in the styles of today. “Patient Eye” will glue listeners to their seats, not allowing them to release themselves until well after the track is over.
The only thing else that I personally would like to hear from Midnight Movies at this early juncture would have to be more strings. I would like to see how they exactly incorporate them into a track that is already chock-full of music. The multiple vocal layers that become more prevalent during the second half of the track show that the band can add more to their composition and make it sound proper. “Golden Hair” is the second Midnight Movies track, and it has more of an opening than “Patient Eye”. This is coupled with a more medieval type of vocals, which draw on the fantasy literature more than anything else. The band struggles with keeping the momentum of a track like “Patient Eye”, but there is enough material given listeners at even this early part of the track to keep them involved.
Midnight Movies show listeners two different sides of them on this single, and while I would have liked to hear a third song or “Patient Eye” remixed rather than edited, I feel I have a good appreciation for the band after listening to this track. For those that were questioning it, “Golden Hair” is that band’s reappraisal of the classic Syd Barrett track. Pick up this single and listen to the band and search out their LP and then determine whether Midnight Movies was a one-shot band or if they were actually able to move from the single to the full-album ranks without losing any of their allure.
Top Track: Patient Eye (edit)
Rating: 6.2/10
Midnight Movies – Patient Eye / Golden Hair / 2006 New Line / 3 Tracks / http://www.midnightmovies.net / http://www.newlinecinema.com / Reviewed 16 December 2006
[JMcQ]