Dennis DeYoung - East of Midnight

[StyxGuy]

Here's the latest single!

https://youtu.be/9ezG38Iirqg

[SuiteMadameBlue]

Love the Classic Styx sound

I would like to hear this one live in concert!

[masque]

very very nice song!

[scarab]

First song was good, actually good to very good as it is a grower,
but this song is very very good from the onset, classic Styx harmonies + love the musical musical interlude in the middle,
keys sound very Kansas like.

[FormerDJMike]

From what I have read on another forum this song isn't a new song. It was written by Jim Peterik in the early 80's. The original title is "Late Night Radio", Dennis has rewritten some of it and retitled it. The song was originally pitched to Kansas in 1983.

Here is the original version:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mg7ZCjvPI1o

[brywool]

I WANT to like it. But what's killing it for me is the chorus harmonies. I'm a sucker for great harmonies, but this sounds too much like something out of RENT to me. The mix has a very Broadway feel to it. People saying "oh, it's the Styx sound". I just don't agree. And I was NEVER one to say that any of Dennis' Styx songs sounded too Broadway (And yes, I own 10 on Broadway and like it). Even Babe sounded like Styx- Sorry JY, but it did. Both tracks sound like they came from The Hunchback sessions. I know Dennis touts that as being the best thing he's ever done, but I just don't agree. I don't hate it, but man... 100 Years From Now (for the most part) was such a return to form for him, in my opinion.

The Julian track- I'm a huge Julian fan. Have always loved him and have each of his albums (If you haven't heard 'Help Yourself' you need to, masterpiece). The song with Dennis, again, is good, but I can't get into the chorus. It's great to me until that point, but the chorus comes off as a bit too cliche' for me. Maybe they're growers. It's entirely possible I wasn't in the frame of mind to catch these new tunes. I do like the bridge where Julian takes over. I will buy the new albums, in spite of the artwork, which I'm also not a fan of. But hey, I'm a DeYoung (and Styx, and Gowan, fan). The piano intro is SO much like a Rutles tune, I mean, do I have to spell it out?

I WILL say that Dennis' voice with Julian's sound really great together. And Dennis' voice, always one of my favorites, sounds as good as ever, though his bottom end is not so present in these tracks as it has been. That's not a complaint, just an observation.

The Peterik track didn't grab me at all. It was the first time where I didn't like a Dennis song since First Time. That's weird for me as I can always find something I like in Dennis' stuff. That one... not so much. Everything is so over annunciated vocally that it, again, just has that Broadway thing to it. I just can't get into it.
That being said- Coming back to the song after a few weeks and not watching the video works better for me.

I'm a huge fan of Dennis, always have been. But these new tracks are missing something to me. It might be in the production. I can't put my finger on it, but these tracks are almost too clean or something.

Compare the sound and vibe to "Boomchild" or "Rubicon" or "Save Me". They don't stand up to those.

After a few weeks, the Julian song has grown on me quite a bit.

[FormerDJMike]

I thought the same thing when I heard the chorus. I also thought "hmmm this sounds Broadway to me".

[gr8dane]

I WANT to like it. But what's killing it for me is the chorus harmonies. I'm a sucker for great harmonies, but this sounds too much like something out of RENT to me. The mix has a very Broadway feel to it. People saying "oh, it's the Styx sound". I just don't agree. And I was NEVER one to say that any of Dennis' Styx songs sounded too Broadway (And yes, I own 10 on Broadway and like it). Even Babe sounded like Styx- Sorry. JY, but it did. Both tracks sound like they came from The Hunchback sessions. I know Dennis touts that as being the best thing he's ever done, but I just don't agree. I don't hate it, but man... 100 Years From Now (for the most part) was such a return to form for him, in my opinion.

The Julian track- I'm a huge Julian fan. Have always loved him and have each of his albums (If you haven't heard 'Help Yourself' you need to, masterpiece). The song with Dennis, again, is good, but I can't get into the chorus. It's great to me until that point, but the chorus comes off as a bit too cliche' for me. Maybe they're growers. It's entirely possible I wasn't in the frame of mind to catch these new tunes. I do like the bridge where Julian takes over. I will buy the new albums, in spite of the artwork, which I'm also not a fan of. But hey, I'm a DeYoung (and Styx, and Gowan, fan)

I WILL say that Dennis' voice with Julian's sound really great together. And Dennis' voice, always one of my favorites, sounds as good as ever, though his bottom end is not so present in these tracks.

The Peterik track didn't grab me at all. It was the first time where I didn't like a Dennis song since First Time. That's weird for me as I can always find something I like in Dennis' stuff. That one... not so much. Everything is so over annunciated vocally that it, again, just has that Broadway thing to it. I just can't get into it.

I'm a huge fan of Dennis, always have been. But these new tracks are missing something to me. It might be in the production. I can't put my finger on it, but these tracks are almost too clean or something.

Compare the sound and vibe to "Boomchild" or "Rubicon" or "Save Me". They don't stand up to those.

To me they don't sound natural, they were forced to sound like Styx.

[blt man]

I do think this song sounded a bit like it ends Act I of a modern Broadway play and then has a reprise somewhere in Act II Chorus is hooky but the rest of the song is harder to get into. To be fair, this is a grower. I like it more and more each time I listen to it.

To the Good Old Days made me feel like I am getting old and reflect on my own mortality (and I am only in my late 40s) . Its not a dark song for a final album (like You Want is Darker from Leonard Cohen's final album - that was both dark and predictive of Leonard's death) but certainly caused me to reflect on both good and bad times and regrets in my life.

My issue with a lot of Dennis’ songs 1980s and later, is that they sound too clean. Even the songs that rock sound too clean. I don't know if that makes sense and it is hard to explain what I mean. Almost like the music is too much of a backtrack in the background, sounding disconnected from the singing track in the foreground. Its something that was on 100 Years as well (which I still listen to). It will be interesting to see if he plays any of these songs live and if that changes some of the sound a bit.

I think I prefer Proof of Heaven to both of these releases. But, all 3 songs are growers and I will certainly buy this when it some out.

I will say that for someone pushing 75, writing, and recording this (even with the help of Jim) can't possibly be easy and it is a remarkable accomplishment.

[Monker]

From what I have read on another forum this song isn't a new song. It was written by Jim Peterik in the early 80's. The original title is "Late Night Radio", Dennis has rewritten some of it and retitled it. The song was originally pitched to Kansas in 1983.

Here is the original version:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mg7ZCjvPI1o

That's interesting....and that Zazu band isn't bad either.