Exclusive: Mark Wystrach Talks A Decade of Midland, Working with Producer Dave Cobb and Being ‘Barely Blue’

The landscape evolves with each new mile, the rearview mirror reflecting back a topography of the past – shrinking shades of shifting sand, sun-bleached signs and spent asphalt are the only witnesses to such a voyage. The earth seems to stir with every inch as defiant mountains, born from vast plains, soon give way to severe desert then languid coast, everything changing but the destination.

For the past ten years, Midland has been a journey, one that has seen them resuscitate a jukebox country sound, perfecting their brand of neon-tinted neotraditionalism, to come out on top as genre giants. In that time, they’ve amassed a number of awards, recognitions and certifications for works like ‘Drinkin’ Problem’, ‘Burn Out’, ‘Cheatin’ Songs’ and more.

“The last decade has been like drinking life out of a fire hydrant,” the band’s lead singer Mark Wystrach sums it up in conversation with Holler. He’s in Los Angeles, California, having a new cowboy hat made – he lost his trusty wide brim – ahead of an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live. “It's been intense and it's been wild, and obviously, it's been life-altering in so many different ways.”

The Texas-formed trio – comprising the frontman, guitarist Jess Carson and bassist Cameron Duddy – has captured such a voyage on their latest album, Barely Blue, a project that not only coincides with the band’s double-digit anniversary but also provides a concise snapshot of where they are at this moment in their lives and careers.

The group’s fourth studio release – their first working with renowned producer Dave Cobb – offers a succinct eight-song pilgrimage through their experiences navigating fame and finding their place these last few years, mapping the loneliness and the heartache they’ve felt, while also taking stock of the strength and wisdom they’ve collected along the way. They learn to live in the moment on the warbling ‘Lucky Sometimes’, wax nostalgic on the bleary-eyed ‘Old Fashioned Feeling’, pick up the pieces with the disco-drenched title track and fall in love again on the dreamy ‘Baby It’s You’.

“I do feel like it is a sonic evolution,” Wystrach shares of the record’s lush sounds, likening the listening experience to being thrown into a “giant California king-size bed of beautiful country, soul, rock and roll, blues,” but adds the songs themselves have also matured with the band.

While crafting the record with Cobb at his Georgia Mae Studios in Savannah, Georgia, played a big part in what Barely Blue became – Wystrach explains, “I would say that Dave Cobb a million percent influenced the shape and the direction and the tones of this album” – it was more than that. It is a decade-worth of friendship untouched by fame, understanding bred from years of cooperation and love through the good times and bad that can be heard on this record.

“I've been through a lot with Cameron and Jess, and they've been through a lot personally as well,” the artist shares. “As a songwriter, I think that you can't help but sit down to write about whatever kind of emotions and things you're going through in life.”

What resulted was an achingly beautiful album, one that is truly “barely blue”, dipped in the delicious melancholy of remembrance and yet radiating a tireless hope for the road ahead.

Before their album's arrival on Friday, Sept. 20, Midland will perform a set of classic and yet-to-be-released material at a Holler-hosted album premiere party in East Nashville, Tennessee.

The band has some big aspirations for these songs when it comes to sharing Barely Blue with fans for the first time. “I hope that they will hear their own stories,” Wystrach says. “I hope that they’ll hear a piece of themselves and find bits and melodies that help them move through this crazy journey that we’re all on.”

In addition to touching on the heart of Barely Blue, Wystrach reflects on Midland’s last decade together, offers the secret to the band’s longevity, discusses the finer details of their new album and more.

“A lot of stuff has changed, but I think most of all, as musicians, as songwriters and as storytellers, going around the world many times with millions of miles of touring behind us, it kind of alters your perception of reality and life. And I think the takeaway for me, and for Cam and Jess, is that we're still probably equally as thrilled as we were at the very beginning when there’s a big crowd and they’re singing our songs back to us. That never gets old.

“It always feels kind of surreal. No matter where you go around this country, around the world, that people know and love and listen to our music. It’s living the dream.”

“Friendship and brotherhood. It really is more than friendship; it is a brotherhood, at this point. It's family.

“It's the joy of making music with your brothers and having a similar perspective on this life and this world and music. When it all comes together, it's really a magical thing.”

“Getting to work with Dave Cobb was a dream, and I did feel like we kind of went into a bit of a dreamscape, going to Savannah, Georgia, and recording in a home studio on the intracoastal waterways … It really was this immersive studio experience, which is kind of like how we started the band at Sonic Ranch in West Texas.

“They say you should never meet your heroes or your idols, but with Dave, it was just really conversational.

“He’s a really good human being, a really good family man, a good friend, a great leader in the studio, and just has a very strong opinion, which I think is important for producers. I don’t think you want a malleable producer. You want somebody who has a vision and isn’t afraid to raise their hand and throw out an idea.”

“Part of the reason that we just wanted to do eight songs is that we want to present something that was palatable, that you could sit down and ingest the album in one sitting, that was reasonable and that would take you on this journey of the heart. Not to get too poetic on it, but that’s what it feels like. I think it's reflective of where we've all been in our lives”.

“The album is extremely varied. There are so many different colors. That's why I love the title, Barely Blue, because everything is tinged or painted with a slight melancholy. Most of the stuff has got kind of an uplifting backbeat, but some of the songs are pretty heart-wrenching.

“I haven't been this excited to go on tour and release music since we released [our debut album,] On the Rocks. Now, whether the general public or the business side of things agrees, we’ll have to wait and see; but at least for us, we're enjoying what we're doing and really deeply believe in this album.”

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