Midland is one of the hottest acts in country music right now, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t a fan of other genres. The trio’s lead singer, Mark Wystrach, praises artists who have successfully had their music played in either styles of music, especially pop, and hints their music might be heading in the same direction.
“Today the landscape of country music, so much of it has gone pop,” Wystrach told PEOPLE. “That’s been going on for some time. If it’s good music, and if it’s compelling to the artist, and they’re making it because it’s compelling, and they’re not just making to try to sell units, and to chart, then it’s fine. People have said on this album there’s a pop mentality, I guess, and I think in a lot of ways I look at pop as being very successful music.”
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Midland, which also includes Jess Carson and Cameron Duddy, just released their sophomore Let It Roll record, which includes songs that go back to long before anyone knew who they were.
“We’ve had a large catalog of songs that are dating back to the Sonic Ranch sessions, which is the first time the three of us got together to record demos, which was five years ago this summer,” Wystrach previously stated. “And there’s songs that we maybe didn’t know how to approach back then, that we’d been playing in our live set for a long time. Songs like ‘Fourteen Gears,’ ‘Gettin’ the Feel’ – those have been around for a long time.
“And some of the stuff was new and written while we’ve been on the road touring On the Rocks,” he continued. “We haven’t stopped touring and moving, basically for the last three years. So it’s an amalgamation of all the songs, but there’s a linear thread that ties through and a theme I think, that really, is being on the road – perhaps the strains that puts on various relationships and you’re gonna hear a lot of that.”
Let It Roll might include songs from their early days, but it also reveals some of the current situations the threesome has faced, especially since their popularity soared.
“From On the Rocks, we’ve all three, as individuals, have grown,” Wystrach maintained. “As musicians and songwriters, we’ve grown, which comes from living, which comes from practicing, which comes from playing and experiencing. And that’s what Let It Roll is to us, I think, it’s a continuation but it’s an evolution, and I think that’s what you’re seeing in the songs.”
Midland is nominated for two CMA Awards, for both New Artist of the Year and Vocal Group of the Year. The 2019 CMA Awards will air live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena on Wednesday, Nov. 13 at 8 p.m ET on ABC.
Photo Credit: Getty Images / Roger Kisby
