New York band St. Divine recorded “Midnight (to Track)” during the sessions for their debut album, The Devil You Know, but timing constraints on the record meant it was cut from the final tracklist. Written by Will Croxton with original St. Divine collaborators Al Maddy and Steve Lewis, it came out on October 16th, and the band felt it was worth releasing as both a look back at the album and a warning shot ahead of the midterm elections. WFMU gave it an early push, debuting it on the Evan Funk Davies show on October 6th. The band’s message is a plain one: please, vote.
I always enjoy St. Divine‘s tonal choices because they are so simple but effective. The arrangements have a real live feel to them and are not overly produced, so it would sound exactly the same if you heard them play live. I have to say I was surprised by that chill xylophone section. The band is clearly open to experimenting with different textures to highlight the song’s narrative, and to push the envelope with the arrangement by creating these tense and hypnotic sections and harmonically using some exceptionally dissonant chords.
The band says “Midnight (to Track)” follows the spirit of “30 Dolls,” an acclaimed track from the album, with a deeper groove and a slightly more measured approach. That makes it feel like a companion piece to The Devil You Know rather than a leftover. They also argue there is far too little political pushback in music today, and this is their answer to that.
Whatever your own politics, the actual ask is modest. The release lists the constitutional amendments that expanded and protected voting rights, from the 14th through the 26th, and the band simply wants people to use them. For St. Divine, a song that nearly went unheard has turned into a timely one.
