Nick Leng Brings ‘Duality & Sensation’ With New Songs ‘My Mind Is A Mess In The Morning’ & ‘Morning Midnight’
Whether you’re a ‘morning’ person or a night owl often on the other side of ‘midnight,’ Nick Leng has two new songs perfect for you – no matter what the hour.
Walt Whitman wrote, “I am large, I contain multitudes” while looking at a blade of grass, but the quote applies to anyone who goes through twenty-four hours of life on this earth. Enter Nick Leng, like a modern Sphinx of Thebes, asking if the person who wakes up in the morning is the same when they go to bed at night? In his two new songs – “Morning / Midnight” and “My Mind is a Mess in the Morning,” Nick shows his own multitudes. “My Mind…” is a piano-driven ballad of self-reflection, looking at all the “troubled thoughts” that come with the dawn’s first light. It’s also a shining example of the self-love struggle that anyone with a messy mind deals with, of finding “forgiveness” and allowing themselves to be worthy of love.
While “My Mind…” might be a warm embrace of oneself, flaws and all, “Morning / Midnight” shines like a streetlight in the late hours. It’s cool. It slinks. It saunters. It’s the hum of confidence, an intoxicated grin. It’s the all-nighter with friends, of walking towards your front door just as the sun is coming up.
“I’ve always had trouble writing quotes that summarize songs,” Nick shares with HollywoodLife. “It feels like the words can put songs in boxes, and possibly snuff out any personal interpretation a listener might have. In a similar way, when I was finished with ‘My Mind is a Mess in the Morning,’ and was thinking about releasing it as a single, it really excited me to pair it with ‘Morning / Midnight.’ They’re equally important to me, and, one might say, quite different. together, I felt like they painted a better picture of what I’m trying to say.”
Though the often-maligned quote states that “writing about music is like dancing about architecture,” Nick does his best to share with HollywoodLife how these two songs came to be. “‘My Mind is a Mess in the Morning’ was written while I was living in Topanga in a trailer park which, subsequently — and arguably hilariously — became rat infested, prompting a hasty departure,” he says. “‘Morning / Midnight’ was started there as well one late night when I was chopping up a classical piano improvisational piece I had recorded, on a sampler.”
“There’s a video on my Instagram of me playing the melodica in the intro in the morning and the sun peeked through that ended up in the final version,” continues Leng. “I had considered dividing that intro, with the chopped piano and the ‘second part’ when the beat comes in, into two songs, but the journey of the intro, and duality and sensation of when the bass and kick comes in, had a real story to it that it cemented the conviction that it’s one idea.”
Nick will share these stories and ideas when he joins LP – someone of equal coolness and smoothness – on tour this spring. It’s the first chance for many to see Nick play his 2020 album, LEMONS, in person, though he did release LEMONS – Live From Drive In OC last fall. However, nothing can replace the real thing, so get ready to stay out late when Nick and LP come to your town.
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Thu 04-14-22 – Portland, OR, USA – Roseland Theater Fri 04-15-22 – Vancouver, BC, CAN – The Orpheum Sat 04-16-22 – Seattle, WA, USA – The Paramount Theatre Sun 04-17-22 – Portland, OR, USA – Roseland Theater Tue 04-19-22 – Salt Lake City, UT, USA – The Union Event Center Thu 04-21-22 – Denver, CO, USA – The Mission Ballroom Fri 04-22-22 – Kansas City, MO, USA – Arvest Bank Theatre at The Midland Sat 04-23-22 – Saint Paul, MN, USA – Palace TheatreSun 04-24-22 – Chicago, IL, USA – The Vic TheatreTue 04-26-22 – Toronto, ON, CAN – HISTORY Thu 04-28-22 – Portland, ME, USA – State Theatre Fri 04-29-22 – Laval, QC, CAN – Place Bell Sat 04-30-22 – Boston, MA – House of Blues Sun 05-01-22 – Philadelphia, PA, USA – The Fillmore Tue 05-03-22 – New York, NY, USA – Terminal 5 Wed 05-04-22 – Brooklyn, NY, USA – Brooklyn Steel Fri 05-06-22 – Washington, DC, USA – The AnthemSat 05-07-22 – Charlotte, NC, USA – The Fillmore CharlotteSun 05-08-22 – Asheville, NC, USA – The Orange Peel Tue 05-10-22 – Atlanta, GA, USA – Tabernacle Wed 05-11-22 – Nashville, TN, USA – Ryman Auditorium Fri 05-13-22 – Austin, TX, USA – Stubb’s Bar-B-QSat 05-14-22 – Houston, TX, USA – House of Blues Sun 05-15-22 – Dallas, TX, USA – House of Blues Tue 05-17-22 – Albuquerque, NM, USA – The Historic El Rey TheaterWed 05-18-22 – Phoenix, AZ, USA – The Van Buren Fri 05-20-22 – Oakland, CA, USA – Fox TheaterSat 05-21-22 – Los Angeles, CA, USA – Greek TheatreSun 05-22-22 – San Diego, CA, USA – SOMA