Midnight Reruns celebrate release of debut album at Cactus Club

Perhaps, in the grand scheme of things, one might consider Midnight Reruns a “new” band, but the Milwaukee-based foursome have been active since 2010. The band-at the time comprised of drummer Sam Reitman, guitarist/vocalist Karl Giehl, bassist Peter Sentz and singer/guitarist Graham Hunt-were four friends, all former members of Milwaukee’s street punk scene. Their 2011 debut Central Time showed a lot of promise, its seven songs showcasing the bands affinity for catchy melodies and intertwining guitar leads. The band played  shows in support of its release, but things came to a brief halt when Hunt joined fellow Milwaukeeans Trapper Schoepp & The Shades. After two years of writing and recording, Hunt left the group, wanting to commit his full attention to his own music.

“I loved being in the Shades and don’t regret a single second of it” said Hunt. “But I had to leave them to do what I originally set out to do”. Upon his departure in mid-2012, Midnight Reruns started writing the songs that would make up their debut full length. Prior to the recording of the album, the band stopped by the TCD offices for our Take One at TCD video series, with the brand new songs “Grand Slam” and “Basement Guy”.

Not long after the performance, the band left for Rockford Il for a brief four day recording session with engineer Dan McMahon. The resulting album, Midnight Reruns, shows both a lyrical and musical growth for the band.

“I think what a person listens to definitely comes through in what they write” said Hunt. “When I was writing the songs for this record, I was listening to a lot of heavy rock like Queens of the Stone Age, and a lot of classic soul like Sam Cooke. You can totally hear both of those come through on the new record on songs like “Stop Lying Down” and “Grand Slam”.

The album also marks a change in personnel, with the inclusion of new bassist Brady Murphy. “Peter [Sentz] wanted to focus on school, so we got Brady to join and that definitely changed things” said Hunt. “He can play so many instruments, he’s just a great musician overall.”

Midnight Reruns was released earlier this week, and the band will be celebrating with a show at Cactus Club on November 16, along with Direct Hit and Slow Walker. “I think we’ve played more shows with Slow Walker than any other band in Milwaukee” said Hunt. “We both kinda started around the same time, and we’ve been friends with those guys for a while, so it made sense to have them on the show with us. Direct Hit we met recently, but we like their band, and they just got done with a European tour, so this is like a homecoming show for them”.

This weekend is packed with plenty of shows happening across town, but Midnight Reruns’ album release is definitely one not to miss. If you’re a fan, then you need no convincing, but if not, come out and see one of Milwaukee’s most promising up and comers. There’s no gimmicks, no arrogance and no pretension; just straight ahead rock n roll.

Midnight Reruns play Cactus Club Saturday evening alongside Direct Hit and Slow Walker. Tickets are available at the door. The album is available now through Milwaukee’s Good Land Records and can be purchased here.