LDN Meets… Midnight Motion Picture

Words and photography by Isabella Nixon

Having formed in their teens in Pembrokeshire College over five years ago, alternative-rock band Midnight Motion Picture is one to keep your eye on. Championing the South West Welsh music scene, the boys have transitioned from pub covers to a range of original music, performing in venues all across the beautiful county of Pembrokeshire, one of South Wales’ most popular holiday destinations, known for its diverse landscapes and beaches.

The band sit down with LDN’s Isabella Nixon, to discuss their latest single, ‘Old Rosie‘, and what’s in store for the future.

“A compelling narrative that ties in deeply with the struggles of sexual identity and connection”

“So, for people who are unaware, could you introduce the band to us? What’s everyone’s role in the band?“

” We’re Midnight Motion Picture! We formed in 2018 whilst studying together in Pembrokeshire College on the Performance & Production course. After weeks of thinking for a decent band name for our upcoming gig, the first was quickly chosen as ‘Waves’ as our lecturer needed us to choose a name within five minutes before heading onto the stage… Imagine trying to find us on Google!

Tom, our singer, was eager to start a band, make music and perform. So, he assembled us together in the studio room, and we were all super keen as we knew Tom was, and still is to this day, an incredible frontman.

Tom, as mentioned, is the vocalist but also plays rhythm guitar, Sam is the lead guitarist, Jamie plays bass and Harry is our drummer. “

“As we know, you’ve just released your first single ‘Old Rosie’. Could you tell us what the song explores and how it came about?“

“The song explores an intimate journey through love, longing and the bravery to embrace your true self. ‘Old Rosie’ captures the emotional journey of coming to terms with who you are, even when it feels like the world might not understand. Inspired by Elton John’s ‘All the Girls Love Alice,’ Tom crafted a compelling narrative that ties in deeply with the struggles of sexual identity and connection.

Instrumentally, Sam came up with the main riff in his bedroom at stupid o’clock at night. He brought the riff to a rehearsal where the rest of the band were eager to forge the riff into a complete song. All four of us brought something crucial to the song when writing ‘Old Rosie’ it simply couldn’t have been done if one of us were missing.”

“The song explores an intimate journey through love, longing and the bravery to embrace your true self”

“From previous interviews you’ve participated in, we know that Jamie produced the track. How did you find the process, being a track of your own? Did you find it harder, or was it a fun process?“

“It was fun! We are really fortunate to have an excellent producer in our band. We’re all incredibly grateful for Jamie. We were able to take our time with it as we recorded at his home studio, instead of a hired-out studio with a producer under time pressure.

Being in a familiar environment helped our first recording session to be smooth, which truly allowed our creativity to excel. We had a good laugh experimenting with recordings of various sounds that Tom recorded on his phone, adding different effects to them. The result of that was a door screeching from one of our local pubs, drowned in reverb, delay, and some pitch shifting, which you can hear in the introduction of Old Rosie.”

“Do you plan on releasing any new music anytime soon?“

“Yes for sure! We are aiming to release music for as long as our bodies will let us! We have a few songs that we have written now, so we are going to have a break from gigging for a little while to focus on recording our other originals, this way we can have an exciting release schedule for next year. We urge people to come to gigs if they want to hear them first!”

“What are some of your standout achievements so far as a band?“

“A big achievement of ours is definitely releasing our first single, getting lots of positive reactions, followers and just overall support from it. We’ve just hit over 2,500 streams in two months which we’re really proud of, we’ve even had people ask to cover our song – what a compliment! We’re over the moon with everything that’s happened since releasing our first song, it’s given us the drive to work even harder. Putting the music to one side, our biggest achievement is staying strong together, supporting each other through the difficult times and allowing time to celebrate together through the good times.”

“What’s the best advice you could give new and upcoming musicians?“

“To always keep the faith and put in the hard work equally as a band. Be yourselves when writing music – don’t try and aim to sound like someone else, you’ll find your own sound by combining all your styles, creativity and influences together – find that fine line between seriousness and fun. One of our strong points is showing our chemistry as a band on stage and on social media. We always receive compliments about our chemistry and how much fun we are having when we play together, so don’t just go and bury your head in the music. Go out, have fun and enjoy yourselves and get to know each other. Show positive fun energy between your band and it will reflect in the audience.”

“As we know, you guys formed in Pembrokeshire, and have performed all across the county! How was it taking a step further and performing in Swansea at the beginning of March this year?“

“We only played to a small crowd, but it was super cool to branch out. And it’s always fun traveling up in one vehicle together and having a laugh on the way. We want to build more of our following and start performing alongside other bands at promoted events in the cities, which is something we are working towards currently.”

“I attended your gig at Hwb in Narberth recently, and you guys were great! – however, for the people who couldn’t make it, how did that go for you guys?“

“Yeah, it was awesome! Narberth is like our home, people really love us and appreciate us there, which we are forever grateful for. Tom literally calls it “Our Wembley!” Many there have watched us since our first gig in The Eagle. We are constantly amazed at the people from Narberth dancing from the start to the end with no break, they’re machines! In Hwb, watching people raving, singing along and having a good time always encourages us and fills us with excitement, and the venue itself has a brilliant sound – we always look forward to playing there.”

“What do you guys hope to achieve in the upcoming months?“

“Our goal is to work on recording our other originals, get them mixed and mastered in order to have them ready for 2025. We’re also looking to get on some city line up/festival gigs to hopefully increase our following and get more out there. If anyone fancies having us play, look us up on Instagram! – @midnight.motion.picture“

Midnight Motion Picture rocking Narbeth’s Hwb on July 20th

After shooting Yonaka and The Amazons at Somerset House on the 16th, I headed back down to Wales to catch the boys at Pembrokeshire’s Hwb. Hwb hosts live bands as well as serving incredible food and drinks, so make sure to check it out if you ever visit!

As per usual, this night was packed with an energetic and fun setlist, lots of dancing, and even a surprise performance from a close friend of the band’s. Find my gallery below!