Sunday Music: Goin’ Down with The Mystery Lights

There’s something about the gravitational pull of a vamp…

The Mystery Lights do the Daptone thing. Deftly restrained, kind of soft without being quiet. Pulsing and funky. 

“Goin’ Down” is about the resistance to getting pulled down. 

The restraint of being restrained. 

The looseness of the eventual loss. 

It’s a collision of sounds, feelings, and words from different eras. There’s a maturity to it, and an immaturity at the same time. It’s honest-garage music without being pretentious garage music. 

A lot of times, when I’m writing, this is the kind of feel I’m looking for. They’re doing it musically. How cool is that. 

Makes you want to crack a beer and bop along in a sweaty room. 

Last pitch, via singer/songwriter Mike Brander in an Inherent Bummer interview:

“I WANTED TO TAKE THE TOUGHNESS OF THE SIXTIES’ MUSIC, THE GARAGE STUFF, AND INSTEAD OF SINGING ABOUT GIRLS AND HEARTBREAK … I WANTED TO MAKE IT A LITTLE BIT MORE POETIC. YOU KNOW, SING ABOUT WAR OR SOMETHING DARK. SING ABOUT THE SHADOW, SOME CARL JUNG SHIT.”

Intrigued? Listen. And check out the live version too.