Summer's slowly coming to an end, sad times! But under-graduate students (like myself) are preparing for the week of pure drinking non-stop, parties and cough...other things…cough…the both beloved and dreaded week of 'Freshers'. So let's get you all in the party mood aye? 1) We Are The Kings - "Check Yes Juliet"
2) Joan Jett and The Black Hearts - "Bad Reputation"
Under-rated. Not
reach their peak. Deserve more than they got.
Whatever you want to
call it there are plenty of bands that never reach the full recognition that
they should have achieved. Members such as Angus Young of AC/DC, Eddie Van
Halen of Van Halen, the song writing genius Jim Steinman are completely
underrated in the musical community, being out shadowed by the likes of Slash,
Hendrix and Meat Loaf. However, people seem to forget that although there are
these amongst the legends and prima donnas, there’s equally (if not more) among
the smaller, “indie” (I strongly dislike that word but my thesaurus is limited
I’m afraid) bands. Too many to name. But there’s one band I want to talk to you
about in particular: Madina Lake.
Back in the autumn
months Rebel Yell dedicated its October edition to “Madina Diary” in which I
recalled one of the most intense yet intimate gigs I have been to in my
eighteen years. Recently Madina Lake have been playing on a continuous loop
through my iPod, stereo and Spotify; my love for them has maintained its
strength and importance over the passed nine years; yet my curiosity was first
sparked when hearing “Middle of Nowhere”
by The Blank Theory back in 2002 (the Leone twins previous band before they
days of Madina).
Although, The Blank
Theory did not capture my heart as profoundly as the emerging Madina Lake. Like
a phoenix from the flame Madina burned with the same passion and energy that
The Blank Theory possessed, however captivated my attention on a new level
completely. Passion, energy combined with theatricality and humility are a
potent concoction that is enough to create an addict out of the sanest creature
in this universe (in which I am way off the spectrum of sanity).Thus I feel that the world deserves to know
more about the spectacle that is Madina Lake, and how this band were able to
latch onto my soul and physically tug at it with every note and syllable.
But lets start with
the basics shall we? Before diving deep into the twisted inner workings of my
mind. Madina Lake are quartet originally, and from what I’m aware still
currently (hey not a complete stalker here!) situated in Chicago, USA. Formed
in 2005 with the same members remaining right until their farewell tour in 2013:
The names in
brackets relate the concept of Madina
Lake a mystical place created by the band; each member has an, if you can
call it an alter ego, that is homed in the mysterious town and plays a vital
role revolving around external characters such as Adalia, Jonathan, and Pandora. This ideology was able to act
as a catalyst for the achievement the band had in mind – from three albums to
the release of Matthew’s book “Lila, The
Divine Game”…hence the theatricality I previously mentioned.
Upon releasing The Disappearance of Adalia EP back in
2006 (funded through winning various stunts on the special edition of Twin Fear Factor) Madina began on a road
that would soon cause them to become somewhat international successes. The
release of this EP not only caught the undivided attention of potential fans
but also the interest of Roadrunner Records. Personally, The Disappearance of Adalia contained two of the most significant
songs of Madina Lake’s career, as “House
Of Cards” was the first song I had heard by the wonders; as well as being
on of the first singles by the band, it was also the first video they created.
The song briefly hit number 38 on the Billboard Hot Modern Rock Tracks.
The other song of
great importance to moi is “One Last
Kiss” that to this day stands as one of my personal favourites of the band
as well as being in love with the video from day one.
Being the new kids
on the block they had yet to make a name for themselves across seas. The
release of their debut album “From Them,
Through Us, To You” in 2007 managed to reach number 60 in the UK album
charts. With evident connections to The
Disappearance of Adalia the band began to tell the tale of the small town Madina Lake. The album opened several
doors, from playing the Kerrang! and Warp Tour in 2008 to being specifically
chosen to play the Projekt Revolution tour by Linkin Park in 2007. It is this
album that instated my love for Madina Lake, The Disappearance of Adalia sparked the curiosity, “From Them…” sealed it with a venomous
kiss.“From Them…” has a raw quality about it that enchants the mind and
soul, upon first listen you’re hooked to the extraordinary essence. The artwork
for the album also re-establishes this raw motion as the painting-like
depictions emphasis an eerie ambiance, almost reminding me of prehistoric
magic…if that makes sense. Not prehistoric as dinosaurs and cavemen; but as in
pure emotion with an element of barbarisms of true magic…a savage,
un-controlling nature that simply engrosses the looker/listener into a honest,
unimaginable world…the world of Adalia’s
Madina Lake…now I realise that all of that sounds extremely intense,
perhaps even negative but quite the contrary I believe those qualities to be
truly magnificent…something that I am extremely infatuated by.
“From Them, Through Us, To You”-
2007 - Track Listing:
1.The Auspice (2:00)
2.Here I Stand (3:23)
3.In Another Life (3:11)
4.Adalia (2:31)
5.House Of Cards (3:37)
6.Now or Never (3:20)
7.Pandora (3:24)
8.Stars (4:00)
9.River People (4:27)
10.One Last Kiss (3:27)
11.Me vs. the World (3:08)
12.Morning
Sadness (5:22)
13.True
Love (6:02)
Bonus Tracks:
14.Again
& Again (3:15)
15.We’ll
Be Okay (2:52)
16.Today – Smashing Pumpkins Cover (3:21)
17.Escape From Here (3:33)
18.Here
I Stand (Acoustic)
Now I could go into
in-depth detail about each and every song created by them, but instead am
refraining myself as not to completely short circuit your ability to take in the
true awesomeness of Madina Lake…this is taking great self-control I’ll have you
know.
As well as this, the
band also recorded a cover of Iron Maidens “Caught
Somewhere In Time” for the July 16th 2007 edition of Kerrang!
Magazine special cover CD “Maiden Heaven:
A Tribute to Iron Maiden”
After a few more
years of touring and climbing the social ladder of the music industry, Madina
Lake returned to the studio, releasing their second album “Attics to Eden” in May 2009.Again, without wasting a single breath the band revisited their touring
life style, starting off with supporting Anberlin
on a Canadian tour moving shortly on to Soundwave
Festival 2009 then Vans Warp Tour after three shows in Japan.
“Attics to Eden” revealed a more sophisticated side of Madina
Lake compared to “From Them…” the
band’s sound became somewhat cleaner…not in a band sense whatsoever, just a
feel that they were starting to look more into the music and producing system
of album creation, enhance each instrument to their optimum level. Allowing the
sound of the album to reflect how the band was growing as a unit as the story
developed further. They say that a band has a life time to write their first
album, yet mere years or month to write the second. Madina Lake clearly
illustrated how though the deadline maybe shorter that doesn’t mean quality
should be sacrificed; instead it should be strengthened.
Interestingly, the
inside booklet of the CD case unfolds to reveal a map of Adalia’s journey
through Eden (the second mystical
place of Madina Lake’s yet-to-be-told tale).
“Attics to Eden” – 2009 - Track Listing:
1.Never Take Us Alive (3:00)
2.Let’s Get Outta Here (2:59)
3.Legends (3:00)
4.Criminals (3:57)
5.Through the Pain (3:27)
6.Never Walk Alone (2:42)
7.Not For This World (3:12)
8.Welcome to Oblivion (3:03)
9.Silent Voices Kill (2:53)
10.Statistics
(3:02)
11.Friends
& Lovers (3:49)
12.Lila,
the Divine Game (2:20)
Bonus Tracks:
13.Never
Take Us Alive From the Attic
Mix (3:28)
14.What’s
the Point? (2:33)
15.Scorched Earth (3:03)
16.Angel
Japanese bonus track (3:22)
Now in 2010 the band
began a project entitled “Dresden Codex” the
name of which refers to the oldest existing Mayan astrological codex; the band
enhanced this to retell Madina Lake’s traditions
of bringing astrology into their backstory aka. Folklore. Though the EP
continued to tell the story of Madina
Lake it was not included as part of the trilogy, instead acts more as an
interesting piece of heritage rather than a puzzle piece to the story unveiled
by the albums. After “Attics to Eden” this
EP almost attempts to return to the primitive foundations of “From Them…” however brings together the
rawness of their debut album and the musical appreciation of the second.
Yet, the band faced
several instances that threatened the existence of a third album, one being an
announcement of leaving Roadrunner Records through a Rocksound interview. But
the most devastating event that not only put production on hold, but also the
very lives of both band members and fan was on June 30th Matthew
Leone was hospitalised after intervening in a violent domestic dispute near
Nathan’s Chicago apartment. The man whom was beating his wife caused Matthew
numerous life threatening injuries including a fractured skull, broken jaw and
a swelling in his brain. The critical condition lead to doctors removing one
third of his skull in hope that the swelling would subdue; the portion of his
skull that was removed was later replaced after undergoing second surgery on
July 21st. Nathan continuously expressed his gratitude to fans and
friends as he claimed “the outpouring of support has been amazing…every band
we’ve ever toured with, every Facebook and MySpace outlet has been going crazy
with love and support. We’ve heard from friends, fans, neighbours, labels and
management. It’s honestly overwhelming. When something horrible happens, you’re
inclined to despise humanity, but this proves how many amazing people there are
in the world.”
I remember the day I
heard about Matthew incident; it felt beyond surreal. Seeing the photographs of
him in the hospital bed was enough to make anyones heart stop beating. This was
before meeting them, so being just a fan taking my own reactions must have only
been a fraction to what his close friends and family were feeling.
Simultaneously my faith in humanity hit rock bottom whilst soaring; how someone
could come to harm an innocent man as well as someone they’re supposed to be in
love with is completely beyond me, almost not human. However Matthew, a complete
stranger to the couple in question risked his life (whether knowingly or not)
to help the needed. He is an example of a true hero in modern society; chivalry
that was arguably lost centuries ago was re-emerged.
Days later after the
announced recovery, The Smashing Pumpkins (personal favourites of the Leone
brothers) played a benefit show in Chicago for Matthew to help pay for his
hospital bills that were sky high due to lack of insurance.This combined with special bundle selling of “Dresden Codex” on pledgemusic.com lead the bills being able
to be paid off.
“Dresden Codex EP” – 2010 – Track Listing:
1.Hey Superstar (3:08)
2.Heroine (2:44)
3.They’re Coming For Me (3:12)
4.Let It Go Acoustic (4:08)
5.A Beautiful Lie hidden track A Rite Of Passage at 7:40 (13:29)
Now to conclude the
magnificent trilogy, Madina Lake released “World
War III” in 2011. The final chapter exposes a battle of good and evil that
acts as a metaphor for the internal struggle of the self; as well as the
discovery of Adalia. Interestingly, the track “Imagineer” was co produced and written by Smashing Pumpkins’ Billy
Corgan, a dream come true for the Leone twins especially. It was confirmed that
Sony signed the band before recording the feature length though Mateo produced,
engineered and mixed the album itself. Honestly, I find this album the most
remarkable and suitable ending to the enticing tale; yet the album manages to
capture two tales, not only the story of the fictional dimension, but also the
very real universe of the members themselves. The seventh track on the album “We Got This” without fail brings
unspoken emotion to me as it accounts Nathan’s inner turmoil when living
through the horror of Matthew’s traumatising incident. Nathan has always stated
that Matthew was his soul mate; it wasn’t until this song that I realised how
strong and deep that connection truly was. Ican’t imagine what it was like to face that, nor do I ever wish to; but
it makes you appreciate everything and everyone you have in your life.
Upon it’s release
Madina Lake yet another shocking and saddening bomb on the River People
community, that they would be conducting a Farewell Tour in 2012, finishing in
the UK in 2013 (where “Madina Diary” recalls my own account of a truly magical
and memorial experience that is engraved into me).
After putting down
the microphones and guitars, the Leone twins decided to take a turn towards
literature. Matthew neatly brought together everything their albums embodied
into a single book – “Lila, The Divine Game”.
Whilst Nathan dabbled in a more non-fictional element – “Don’t Love Me Judge Me” – an autobiography that reveals the hidden
reality of Leone.
I’m aware that this
is lengthy, but I’ve cut back so much as to keep to the point and not go off on
some emotional tangent provided but them impact Madina Lake has had on me as a
person and musician. This is a band whose influence is incredible obvious in my
lyric and music writing as well as ideas of how a band should be. Remember how
I said some bands in the smaller circle never really achieve their full
potential? Well looking back on all Madina’s achievements I can see how they
concluded the band at an appropriate time; it seems the tale of their imagination
reached it’s satisfactory ending, something that both the band and fans are
proud of. But during their time I don’t believe the industry truly appreciated
who Madina Lake were and what they stood for.
They were a catalyst for the
renewal storytelling through music; they saw the musical world through eyes
that were lost back last century. What’s more they appreciated all mediums of
creativity, from the music itself to the careful cinematography of their videos
to the literature. Music and literature are two elements that withstood the
tests of time, camera and producing works are the creation of the new era; thus
the band embodies past, present and future, whilst exploring the frail boundary
of reality and fantasy.
