www.propermusic.com/rdp2101-midnight-carnival.html
Mark Germino is a name you may recognise or not. If you are in the former camp, memories of an influential singer-songwriter who rubbed shoulders with roots industry luminaries will surface alongside recollection of the song 'Rex Bob Lowenstein'. On the other hand, it is perfectly understandable to be in the latter group due to a lengthy gap of recording inactivity that has been filled by a near-lifetime's worth of good music elsewhere. Seemingly out of nowhere, we are presented with a brand new Mark Germino album perfectly set up to be one of the year's surprise packages. MIDNIGHT CARNIVAL unleashes it hefty content upon keen ears via a Red Parlor Records/Proper platform and you will soon conclude that a rich and fertile past has re-surfaced into a prosperous present.
This fourteen track album absorbs, teases and ultimately delivers as Germino metaphorically wanders down America's long and winding songwriting highway. Listen carefully and you won't be too far from a Guy Clark-Sam Baker axis: two names who would deservedly be on a fictional 'recommended if you like' list (RIYL) favoured by some pluggers pushing for their product to be heard. Not that too much pushing is required for an album of such accomplished depth, and ably assisted by such vaunted Nashville players as Michael Webb, Kenny Vaughan, Tom Comet and Rick Lonow. Together they take a bunch of majestically curated story songs and add a variety of touches circumnavigating the wide spectrum of roots sounds from cajun to bluegrass and country to folk-rock. First listen will prick your ears, but to be honest it will take several more before you even begin to unwrap the wealth of Germino's input into this project.
Serious listening to MIDNIGHT CARNIVAL - and you need warning that this album is no quick fix - has syphoned off four tracks to pin to any summary, but to be fair it would tough to argue against any of the others demanding a spotlight. Leading the way is the rampant swinger 'Carolina in the Morning', full of country swagger and planting the memorable line 'a roller coaster ride through heaven's gate' in your mind at several points including a neat repetition at the end. Those managing the pre-release obviously agreed as this track has been the sole one available in the usual places prior to the 6th August release date.
Preceding the stand out piece in the track list are the fascinating story songs: 'Koraleah' with references to Clinch river prompting interest and 'The Greatest Song Ever Written', a six-minute epic memorably weaving in the rhyming line 'the coast of Great Britain'. This pair sealed the Clark-Baker association and likely to accrue further plays once cherry picking eventually kicks in. On a personal note, I am always on the look out for a baseball themed song to request at the start of the season each spring. Now we have the optimistic ditty 'Until the Fat Man Swings' to rival the normal go-to Chuck Prophet's 'Willie Mays is Up At Bat'. Germino's dip into America's favourite past time is the perfect album closer and ends with a fiddle driven beat in contrast to the accordion that dominated the toe tapping upbeat opener 'Traveling Man (Season 1 Episode 10)'.
Each of the fourteen tracks could have their own thesis and dissection attached, but sometimes you just need to allow them space to breathe and evolve. A brief overview reveals ballads, jaunty pieces, feisty numbers and imagery that takes you right across a vast land with heaps of fascinating stories and observations.
Germino's presence is a mixture of regal, patriarchal, rugged and seasoned; all underpinned with a poetic tempo invigorated by a stellar soundtrack. MIDNIGHT CARNIVAL is a triumphant return for Mark Germino. Ultimately, laying out a domineering album awash with stories allowing full enjoyment for those well-versed in his craft and probably more importantly in 2021, a whole new audience.