An Interview With... Noon A.M.

23/02/2021

All you need to know about the heartfelt alt rock of Noon A.M.

Here at Middle Eight, we are keen to showcase up and coming artists who are working hard to make themselves heard.


Recently we spoke to boyhood friends Max and Benjamin who are coupling their musical passions together to form Noon A.M.


The indie pop duo released 'Firing Line' on February 19; an emotionally driven song contemplating self-turmoil and feelings of being at war with yourself is delivered through upbeat lyricism, "I will move on to something better", and a Foals-esque riff running throughout.


It's a big tune and a massive statement from Noon A.M. who recorded the song out of Ben's bedroom. 'Firing Line' is the fourth effort from the duo and offers something completely different to their three previous recordings.


October 2020 release 'Somebody' hits much deeper, allowing the vocals to shine and offering more doses of emotionally charged alt rock. Whereas 'Come Down' demonstrates a more melancholic, melodious tune, opening with piano, slowly growing in atmosphere throughout.


Find out more about Noon A.M. below!


Who are you and where are you based?

Hi! We're Noon A.M., made up of Benjamin O'Connor and Max Rhodes. We are two friends who have known each other since secondary school and, after graduating from our respective universities, recently decided to pursue our shared passion of music!


How would you describe the music you make?

We would describe our music as emotionally driven alternative rock with a hint of pop. All our songs are produced and mixed in Ben's bedroom. Lyrics are really important to us; we often spend hours playing the same loop over and over to find the right words to communicate whichever topic we are writing about.


How did you first get into music?

So, I started playing guitar from around 15 years old, then picked up piano a little after. I got into the production side of things in my final year of university around a year ago now and have been obsessed with creating and manipulating sounds on my laptop ever since! I have found that music production has taken music to another level for me with the freedom you have and experimentation it allows. Max has been playing guitar since he was 8 and then faffed around with piano soon after. He has sung with his family for as long as he can remember!


Who are your main musical influences?

Our shared main influences are definitely Foals and Kaleo, and we think our sound definitely steers that pop rock sound. Separately though, Ben has always been influenced by Ben Howard, and I'm a big fan of Tom Misch so love to squeeze his kind of tones into our music!


Which artists do you currently have on repeat?

I'm really into Chelsea Cutler and Alexander 23 at the moment, a sad girl and sad boy haha! I find their music really therapeutic at the moment during this weird time. I've also got Jeremy Zucker and Chelsea Cutler's new EP Brent II on heavy repeat at the moment, as well as the Glass Animals Dreamland album. I (Max) listen to a lot of Tom Misch, the song Outsider by Bloom Bat and I love The Amazons at the moment!


What separates you from other artists?

I feel like we really have something to say. Our songs often cover themes of loneliness and how you interact with yourself. I think this may be because of all the lockdowns recently and spending a lot of time alone, but I like to write about those emotions you get when you're communicating with that inner voice, whether that be negative or positive. From a production standpoint, we like to merge genres together and create different vibes with different songs. Whether this makes us different, I don't know, but it's what makes us-us for sure!


What are your plans for the future?

In the future we're really just hoping to be able to get back in Ben's bedroom studio and make more music! Due to the current lockdown measures we haven't been able to, so really looking forward to doing that and putting some tunes out. We will also be filming a music video for Firing Line with Toby Mant as soon as we can which we've been brainstorming!



The talent on display in Noon A.M. is remarkable considering it is a band in its infancy. If 'Firing Line' is a sign of things to come, there is so much potential for the young duo. Their honesty and maturity in song writing is evident and the care taken over perfecting their work is reflected in the four singles we've been treated to so far.


Listen to Noon A.M. here and keep up to date via their Instagram!


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