“Blends gospel hymns of
the sermon, down tuned rock and roll riffs of southern rock, and dark delta
blues”
The Midnight Ghost Train is a heavy blues / hard rock band
hailing from Topeka, Kansas. They have been most commonly described as hard
rock, and related to bands like Kyuss, Black Sabbath, and Clutch. The
band was originally formed by frontman Steve Moss in Buffalo, NY in 2008 – as a
eulogy to his best friend John Goff, who had suddenly deceased a year earlier. “Something
had to be done,” Steve says. “John’s memory and life has to be remembered in
some way.” Moss then moved to Buffalo, New York planning to form a band, cut an
album, and start touring. This was the idea and drive that fuelled The Midnight
Ghost Train’s engine. The band's name comes partially from a Hank
William's song lyric in ‘I'm So
Lonesome I Could Cry’. The current line up consists of Steve Moss (guitar,
vocals), Brandon Burghart (drums) and Mike Boyne (bass).
The
Midnight Ghost Train is known for their consistent touring and highly intense, energetic,
and loud live shows. Their first release was ‘Johnny Boy EP’ in 2008. In 2010, they
self-released their first full length album ‘The Midnight Ghost Train’. The
album was self-recorded in their home studio after the band relocated to Kansas. In 2012, the band released ‘Buffalo’ on Karate
Body Records, which was well received by critics and fans alike, making several
top 20 lists of 2012 and also rated “Best Stoner Rock Album Of 2012” by Heavy
Planet magazine. ‘Buffalo’ was recorded entirely analog by Dave Barbe in Athens',
Georgia Chase Park Transduction Studio. Displaying the band's delta blues influences,
the album features a Lead Belly cover of ‘Cotton Fields’ done a
cappella.
In 2013,
TMGT played the Roadburn Festival in Tilburg, Netherlands. After multiple line-up
changes, they released ‘Live From Roadburn 2013’ on Roadburn Records. In 2014
TMGT signed with Austrian based metal label Napalm Records, whom released their
third full length album ‘Cold Was The Ground’ in 2015. The album has a much
faster tempo than previous releases, with more emphasis on song and lyric
construction. Napalm will also release their latest album ‘Cypress Ave’ in August
2017. This album, straying away from their straight forward hard rock roots,
focuses more on song writing and reflects their eclectic influences. The band’s
records have been highly reviewed, and have been noted as some of the best music
to come out in the past years. Their intense, passionate, and soulful live
shows have been reviewed as being some of the best of all times. No matter
where they are or how many people they play to, you will never find TMGT giving
anything less than their absolute best. Since their formation, they have been
touring relentlessly in both the U.S.A and Europe, including tours with fellow
road warriors Jucifer, Truckfighters, and Greenleaf. They’ve played various
well known festivals such as Hellfest, Graspop, Motocultor, Deserfest, and
Stoned From The Underground.
The Midnight Ghost Train Website
The Midnight Ghost Train Facebook (official)