Music Review: Grace Potter, Midnight

By Melissa Bratcher

Damn, that Grace Potter can sing. In stepping away from her band the Nocturnals to make her first solo album Midnight, Potter stretches her poppier wings, making an album that features dance beats and thumpers. The focus, though, is Grace Potter’s soulful, incredible voice.

Midnight often wears a clubby, sonic sheen. The opener, “Hot To The Touch” is dramatic, urgent, and sexy, with a massive, catchy chorus. Potter excels at creating delicious ear worms with her choruses, causing sing alongs amongst the unsuspecting, and perhaps there’s something beyond just her gift for melody and hooks. Grace Potter makes singing sound like it is so much fun.

She’s clearly having fun on “Alive Tonight.” Driving and soaring, the song is exciting and has the vaguest feeling of an 1980s dance track. It’s pop diva music (think Beyoncé, Taylor Swift, etc.) with an edge. “The Miner” is a ballad with added volume and a lovely melody, enrobed in layers of instruments and a huge drum sound. The closer, “Let You Go,” is piano driven and beautiful, presenting Grace Potter’s voice unencumbered by dance beats. It’s a stunner. The empowering, kickass anthem “Instigators” is gritty, with a beefy guitar sound over glittery synths. The treasure is Potter’s blistering vocals. It’s a pump-your-fist-in-the-air and sing along song, giddy in its power.

The bass driven “Your Girl” boasts another madly catchy chorus. It’s funky (I kept landing on Taylor Dayne as a comparison) and clever (she doesn’t want to hook up with a guy she has mad chemistry with because she really likes his girlfriend. Perhaps she should hook up with her instead). “Delirious” is a shimmering, sparkling dance tune that morphs into… something: swirls and scratches, a muted keyboard, a hushed wail, and then Potter lets loose with a roaring vocal that turns into a throat-shredding performance. I hoped she was OK afterward.

Midnight is on trend with the current radio-friendly pop singers, but it’s different. Grace Potter has an enormous, expressive voice, and her lyrics are thoughtful and empowering. This isn’t disposable music of the moment; it’s an album that has legs and is ridiculously catchy. I dig it.

Midnight was released on August 14.

Tour Dates:
Aug 14 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Fonda Theatre
Aug 15 – Oakland, CA @ Fox Theater
Sep 12 – Burlington, VT @ Grand Point North Festival
Sep 13 – Burlington, VT @ Grand Point North Festival
Sep 19 – Morrison, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheatre
Sep 20 – Del Mar, CA @ Kaaboo Festival
Oct 01 – Charleston, WV @ Clay Center For The Arts
Oct 03 – New York, NY @ Radio City Music Hall
Oct 10 – Nashville, TN @ Ascend Amphitheater