FLY BY MIDNIGHT: RERUNNING REVIEW

Fly by Midnight might just be your new favourite band. Nostalgic, modern, and forward thinking with their sound, the NYC duo are hard to define and impossible to resist. With the release of their album Rerunning, we caught up with the talented two.

Why are you flying by midnight, what does this all mean?

Justin: *Laughs* I always wish there was a better explanation to follow the reasoning behind our name.

Slavo: We're nocturnal so incorporating midnight was a given.

Justin: Yeah, our creativity usually goes to at least 3:30-4AM most of the week.

Slavo: And the fly had this retro feel to it which is how we like to describe our jams.

Justin: Definitely didn't come together that smoothly either.

Slavo: Yeah.. *laughs* we had finished music before we had a name.

How did you both musically meet?

Slavo: I left playing college football in Florida to pursue music production in NYC.. fast forward a year later and found myself working in a studio Justin was working out of at the time.

Justin: I had been working on a solo project, but knew I wanted something more. We ended up writing one song together and I approached him with the idea of a duo. In all honesty I don't think he knew what he was getting himself into… *laughs*

Slavo: Haven't looked back since!

Is it tough to crack the music 'biz' in New York? How does the big apple compare on all levels to London?

Justin: I've been to London a handful of times but haven't been able to take in the music scene much. Definitely on our list to explore & hopefully tour soon.

Slavo: We always say how crazy small the industry is in such a big city like NY. It's one of the main reasons we love it. Very homely.

Justin: I think in this digital age cracking the biz is finding the balance between connecting with online fans, but also touring.

Slavo: For sure. It's something we've been lucky enough to be able to do more this past year, but we can't wait to reach more fans in 2019.

You've given pop an eclectic edge and sincere credibility - is this where you musically place yourselves genre wise, or is there a fusion to your audio ingredients?

Slavo: We embrace the term 'pop' being we love pop as a fan and listener as well.

Justin: Agreed. The album itself we'd consider pop but it's filled with these moments of eclectic fusions. We were really excited to do that. Kind of approach each song with no rules or boundaries.

Slavo: Justin and I listen to & appreciate every genre so it was cool to see that widespread influence make its way into our music.

What other artists do you look up to, and who's on the wishlist to collaborate with?

Slavo: There's so many on the wishlist… Bazzi's album recently had me really inspired. The rhythms and melodies were so effortless.

Justin: We're really hands on when it comes to our brand & visuals so we've always looked up to artists who are involved on that front also. Jon Bellion's the first one that comes to mind. He has a vision and brings it to life. Fans of our project know we follow the same suit.

You sum up your album as 'an episodic experience of romance and repetition' - care to elaborate?

Justin: We had finished the album and realized 'damn these songs aren't all about the same person or story.. can it even be an album?' ..It took a bit but we realized that all the experiences that inspired the record shared this loop of similarities. Meeting someone, catching feelings, watching those feelings fade, losing that someone.. and then starting all over again. Like rewatching an episode of a tv show.

Slavo: We also wanted the album to have a memorable aesthetic. The idea of the artwork being a television made us fall for the title even more.

Rerunning makes us think nostalgia - what do you both look back on fondly in life, and what would you re-run and re-do if you could?

Slavo: Rerunning definitely has a nostalgic feel. I would go back to Florida in a heartbeat and relive my high school days. Football was a huge part of my life back than and it's crazy to think how much music has filled that space.

Justin: I like to think about the feeling of getting my first car. It was a beater that used to be my moms, but being given a key to independence like that was invigorating. It's hard to think of rerunning anything in my life. Even low points kind of craft you to be who you are right?

You come across as a good laugh together - best prank you've done on each other, funniest moment on tour, and tell us your best joke!

Justin: *laughs* There's a lot.

Prank: I poured a big bucket of M&Ms on Slavo once that went all over the studio. He wasn't too happy.

Tour moment: We went to a bar once after a show that barely had anyone and was lame. We went to leave and I said 'if a bus full of people doesn't pull up by 12 we're gone.' 5 minutes after and 12 on the dot a shuttle bus of sorority and fraternity students rolled into the bar. Turned right back around.

Best Joke: After a few drinks I'll be throwing around jokes. *laughs*

Slavo: I have a prank that I find extremely funny/entertaining where I just stare at Justin late at night before we go to sleep on tour and act like I'm possessed. Scares the sh*t out of him. Unfortunately I'm not much of a joke guy, but I do enjoy some good old fashion sarcasm when the opportunity presents itself.

You've been styling out Superdry recently, and very well for that matter! What did you pick out, and how would you sum up your artist image?

Justin: Thanks man! I chose a couple of jackets that I'm still wearing every day. The whole sheep collar look has to be my favourite. Has this vintage vibe while also keeping me warm in the NY freeze lately. Collectively we always strive for a level of high fashion somewhat euro vibes. But when I'm not in fly by mode, sweatpants and a t-shirt does the trick.

Slavo: I picked out a green flannel and a camouflage hooded winter coat. Both are very form fitting and fit my personal style very well I'd say. As an artist I tend to gear towards a grungier denim vibe or whatever keeps me comfortable without looking like I just rolled out of bed.

Christmas is upon us…oh yes…! How are you both celebrating, and what do you love and hate about all things festive?

Slavo: Christmas is and always will be my favourite. My whole family still lives down in FL so I'll be heading to the warm weather to spend some quality time with them for the holiday. If I had anything negative to say about Christmas is that it's such a high point of the year that I miss it when it's over.

Justin: Agreed man. Love Christmas. It's very difficult throughout the year for me to completely turn my brain off, but during the holidays I really make it a point to focus on friends and family more. We've been going so hard the past few months… more than ever so creatively it will be nice to step back and kind of reboot a bit. For about ten years now we have a tradition with our NY homies on Christmas Eve Eve to go to our local diner. We're all super busy with our own things throughout the year so to all come together is a sight. Really looking forward to that.

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