My Midnight Creeps

Albums That Burnt My Soul - 
by guest writer JK from the stupendous and amazing blog Stoner HiVe

My Midnight Creeps – Histamin 

When Tony asked me to write something for his new ‘Albums That Burnt Your Soul’ project my mind drifted towards a great many records old and new. Ones that formed me; ones that made this deep love for music grow and the ones that fed and nurtured it to the monstrous beast it now is. Zeppelin, Sabbath, Beatles, Stones, Dylan, Bowie, Parker, Boomtown Rats, Johnny Cash, Iggy Pop, Jefferson Airplane, Nirvana, Dream Theater, Wall of Voodoo, Soundgarden, Faith No More, Iron Maiden, Metallica, Morphine, ZZ Top, The Yardbirds and of course The Doors. I could type away page after page listing all the amazing artists who filled my cup with incredible records and songs till it runneth over and it would still not convey the pure love I have for everything good and honest. Those few who might have stumbled upon the Stoner HiVe blog know of my enthusiastic love for everything that has anything to do with the Rancho De La Luna studio in the Palm Desert. An infatuation started by Kyuss, Masters of Reality and Queens of Stone Age; but has grown into an all encompassing journey that has taken me back into history towards Yawning Man, Across The River, Dead Issues, What Is This?, Walk The Moon and Ministry of Fools. And into an ever growing future filled with an eclectic bunch of artists and has cost me way too much money. 

But all that commitment and devotion probably pales in comparison to my undying love for the Norwegian rock band Madrugada and its members. There is even a faint connection between Rancho and Madrugada; and I desperately await the moment that one of the surviving members records or spends a few days in the Palm Desert…

The Tale of My Midnight Creeps… 

For some weird and possibly insane reason the night of Thursday the 12th to Friday the 13th has always provided me with something special. Whether it was an amazing meteor shower, luck with the slots, with the sluts or even love. That date always provided a new special memory to remember; sometimes even so big it boggles the mind. Rarely but on occasion it turned twisted and dark. Back in the year 2007 I was on holiday in Cognac region of France. And we had grand adventures during the festival, at the best Cognac house of the world and in the family castle of another doable Cognac brand. That last adventure happened on the night of the 12th. Walking home after a great day at the Festival itself we came across the castle keeper who invited us to join him at the estate. We drank the night away with incredibly expensive Cognacs and cigars. And when the morning came the truly vicious and amazing hangover was cherished. For a hangover caused by liters of Richard is nothing more but a genuine gift. But then the ever so gently rustling sounds of the trees opposite our little tent got brutishly distorted by a digital noise… 

I had been spinning one record over and over for about a month. A record made by one of my favorite guitar players from one of my favorite bands. In this band he had mastered the art of playing one note so beautifully he hardly needed more. But since you do want to play more on occasion he founded his own side-project: My Midnight Creeps. 

Their second album Histamin was released in June 2007 and quickly became my personal soundtrack. The vague feelings of despair, loss and unease felt when my telephone rang were not caused by the hangover. I felt something was a miss, wrong and that the world would not be the same if I answered. On the other side was a buddy telling me master Robert S. Burås had passed away. After not turning up for a certain gig his friend and bandmember Alex Kloster-Jensen (ex-Ricochets) rushed to his apartment to find him on the couch with his guitar in hand. A day later at the Stavern Festival in Oslo where My Midnight Creeps should have played; their timeslot remained empty and a complete silence crept over the festival grounds…

Burås spent his teens practicing at least five hours a day and developed a fluid style and bluesy sound that became a trademark for the group. An intuitive and fiery player, Burås provided the perfect framework for Sivert Høyem's moody baritone. Born in Bjerkvik, a village with a population of 160 in the Nordland area of northern Norway, in 1975, Robert Burås made his own entertainment as a child. He heard "Jailhouse Rock" by Elvis Presley and "Rock'n'Roll" by Led Zeppelin and formed his first band at 12. Brought up on the Rolling Stones, the Velvet Underground, Jimi Hendrix, the Stooges, and the Jesus & Mary Chain, he met Høyem and Jacobsen, from neighboring towns, and the trio formed Madrugada in the mid-Nineties. With his red curly hair and sideburns, Burås cut a distinctive figure. Ostensibly the most rock'n'roll member of the band, he was warm, generous, very personable and lived for music. He seemed at his happiest treading the boards and trading licks with the guitarist Kid Congo Powers - of the Cramps, the Gun Club and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - who guested on Live At Tralfamadore... 

He was a wild, romantic and dramatic character. He lived for his music and searched for something his heart could not name. It broke every time he loved or said goodbye. It jumped with joy on every wild night and with every wild note he played. He suffered from his addictions. To wild times, to the monkey on his back and several substances that are way too dangerous to fool around with. He once admitted to the question of his lifestyle: "I should probably take it easy sometimes. Not go too far." He always tried for the edge and has definitely been one of the few who actually strolled along side before finally falling over… 

His music lives on. The amazing songs he produced with his band of brothers in Madrugada and ofcourse the two albums he wrote by himself under the My Midnight Creeps moniker. Histamin shows his love for old school rock ‘n roll, blues, garage and something darkly soulful. His lyrics are full of his demons, his passions and artists that deserve to be honored. The album starts off by this dirty saxophone played by Dag Stiberg and with luscious sounds trickling over that filthy sax which provide you with an enchanting mantra. And then the rambunctious guitar kicks in; followed quickly by drums that let you know the shit is about to hit the fan. And then the wild music starts. There is no holding back here and every curve taken becomes a possible deathtrap. You can hear the effort in playing along at the very point of the needle and his voice professes his needs with razor sharp precision. This continues in the second song Shot By The Blues where his overly romantic soul again tells about all that is wrong. The soulful guitar underlines every one of his carefully weighed words. For a moment there you expect this track to go the way of opener Speaking In Tongues; but after the intro the guitar turns you onto a rock ‘n roll pop sensible melody. He shows he is also capable of writing excellent songs with heads, tails and actual choruses. With the lingering melody and lyrics still in your head we grind to a full stop as the dirty sax dies away before slowly growing cold as the organ and sax start building their cathedral. Dramatic guitar and drums adding to the lofty walls before his voice crackling with emotion starts: ‘I cannot tell you what I’m feeling…’ Don’t Let’em Bring You Down is dark but with a faint glimmer of hope telling you to just hold on. There will probably be another day and things can always change. The music is grandiose and bordering on delusional; it fits with the imagery and story portrait like that of a lone rower weathering a storm in a dingy little boat…

Violet is evil and it’s best to forget this girl. Garage and roll guitars and drums; with a wailing sax and a definitive wavering singer. Should I stay or should I go? Frode Jacobsen of Madrugada performs the rumbling bass for he badly wanted to play on this record. He therefore locked the regular player Raymond Jensen in the bathroom claiming that Jensen could not make it to the studio that day and he would love to fill in for him. I Don’t Need You has more of that angst, anxiety and nervousness as he tries to set himself free. This slow building rocking blues does not see its wanted release and probably professes the fact that he still isn’t free even though his voice may say so. The same goes for Made Out Of Stone which incorporates something of an Middle Eastern or North African influence to make it all grow even larger. The percussion and guitars are out of this world. The next song gave name to the band the remaining members founded after Mr. Burås passed away. Kitchie Kitchie Ki-Me-O. It rolls and it slows and it crashes and it moves like water and has this chased lyrics with a great release. And exactly when you start to feel overwhelmed by all the emotions and guitar assaults; he slows down and picks up the acoustic guitar. He throws his most genuine, moving and heartfelt song about his wrongdoings and loss at you: Love Is Gone. Arresting and stunningly beautiful. He faces his demons once again with the ‘simple’ but loud rocker Shakin’ Of My Demons. Followed by One Last Dance that has this beautiful anti rhythm in comparison to the rest of the record. It closes with I’ll Let The Light Shine On You. Apparently written for the 2002 Grit album by Madrugada they could never get it to work properly. He then dove into the studio with his Creeps in 2006 and recorded it within a few takes. It starts off just as magically as the record did and puts you into a luscious state of saddened zen. It was also the last song played at the Hyllestkonsert - Oya Tribute festival for Robert a month later where all his Madrugada, My Midnight Creeps, Ricochets, Dum Dum Boys and Sereena Maneesh friends played a set on stage. The album therefor ends with a definite send off; a deep sad note with a slight hopeful spotlight on the knowledge that some notes are only played right when they’re blue… Blue notes that will last forever and ring on into legend… 

"When I'm gone, people won't have to talk about me anymore, they can just listen to the music." Robert S. Burås (1975-2007)

Many thanks JK - informative, interesting, passionate ...... nice one dude!