Album Premiere: Society of Broken Souls 'Midnight and The Pale'

Folk noir songwriting duo the Society of Broken Souls - Dennis James and Lauryn Shapter - will release their second album, Midnight and The Pale, on April 13, 2018. The ten-song collection was indeed a truly independent project as multi-instrumentalists James and Shapter did the writing, arranging, producing, and engineering, as well as performing all the parts. Pouring your heart and soul, as well as sweat, and tears, into a project can be exhausting, but in the end the rewards are immensely fulfilling. Lauryn notes,

"I love this album. Honestly, in the midst of recording it, I wasn’t sure I would feel that way, and I’m glad I have Dennis as my partner-in-crime because he has a much better ability to have the long view, to see how it’s all going to come together. But I really love it, love the individual songs and love how they flow together. When we were in the studio we were a little baffled as to how we would order the songs, but of all the albums we’ve done, this one feels the most cohesive and seamless. Somehow, they all found their place.

Doing everything ourselves — writing, arranging, performing, producing, mixing, mastering — is truly a mixed bag. On the one hand, we can work whenever we want. If inspiration hits at one in the morning (which it did, many times), well, we’re right there and aren’t beholden to anyone’s schedule. We know the songs far more intimately than session players would. It’s far cheaper than hiring a producer and side musicians and engineers, and there’s definitely a profound sense of accomplishment to being 100% DIY. But it’s also exhausting. You don’t get to lay down your guitar and vocal parts and then walk away while other people finish the song, whether that’s adding parts or mixing. It takes a lot of creative brain power to come up with a wide landscape of color and sound, both within a song and from song to song. And it’s harder to get a bird’s eye view of the project — you’re so close to your own art it sometimes hard to see the forest for the trees. Someday maybe we’ll have the luxury of working with our dream producer and musicians, but this works for us right now."

Credit: Liz Brown

Dennis adds,

"Midnight and The Pale turned out to be a bit of a surprise. I didn’t have a hard, clear vision of what I thought it would be but I was pleasantly surprised by it. While most of the songs we chose seemed to belong together, there were a few outliers that gave us pause. We weren’t quite sure how they’d all fit together in the end. As we began to sequence them so that it felt right, Lauryn came up with what was the final order and it all just clicked. It feels cohesive, cogent, and mature. I guess it’s that mature part that surprised me. There’s a quiet satisfaction that accompanies it for me. For us, the creative process is always a tug of war between inventiveness and servitude. We want to explore new areas and stretch boundaries for ourselves but never at the expense of the song. So when new and exciting ideas come to mind, we have to have the courage to go down those roads but then have the wisdom to decide if doing so is right for the song - sort of musical version of “just because you can doesn’t mean you should.” With Midnight and The Pale, I feel we did just that. There are sounds that are fun and creative as well as compositional elements that were new and challenging. But most importantly, the essence of each song feels true to its original voice. I’m really happy with the album. 

With us doing everything ourselves, there’s a mix of trust and trepidation. We bounce ideas off one another and look to one another for encouragement but there’s still a bit of a vacuum element to the whole thing. Because it’s just the two of us, we carry a little extra weight to fill out the recording, and that works for us. After all, the studio is great because we can indulge ourselves with all the instruments we love to play. But for me, I found myself at the end of the project with the aforementioned trepidation, and I realized it was because the final album was going out the door with no outside ears or input on it. And that’s where the trust came into play, which I suppose may also contribute to the sense of maturity I feel about it. But we do feel good about it, and that feeling holds up with every new listen.

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As the title foreshadows, Midnight and The Pale studies the interplay of light and dark and the beauty that can occur when they are allowed to walk comfortably side by side. Via expansive, mature storytelling replete with weathered characters, tough topics, and quiet beauty, Midnight and The Pale captures a heartfelt authenticity in songs that are profoundly personal and darkly fictitious. From the folk-based opener, “Ghosts of Kansas” to the keys-laden “Witness,” the poignant "Broken Bouquet," and the ominous-western vibe of “April’s Moon” the twosome’s intricately woven, delicate, and varied arrangements create a dynamic and vast sonic palette that draws the listener in, captivated, and lingering long after the final word is sung and the last note is heard.

​Today, TDC is incredibly pleased to share Midnight and The Pale with you in its entirety. Enjoy, and share, the album above. For more information, visit the links below.

Website: www.societyofbrokensouls.com
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/society.brokensouls 
Twitter:  www.twitter.com/SOBSmusic 
Instagram:  www.instagram.com/societyofbrokensouls 
YouTube:  www.youtube.com/c/Societyofbrokensouls