Fortune favours the brave

Auckland band The Midnight Youth. Photo / Supplied

Midnight Youth has just lived through, and survived, D-Day – the date when New Zealand was officially introduced to the fresh face of Kiwi music. It is, of course, debut album release day and lead singer, Jeremy Redmore and guitarist, Simon Oscroft have spent hours telling journalists their story; they've been asked the same questions over and over and even sung an impromptu song about pigs on live radio.

Now, late in the evening over burgers in the kitchen of their record label, Warner, they show no sign of flagging – instead, as the latter part of their name suggests, only endless exuberance. "We're loving this, because it's something we have been working towards pretty much our whole lives," says 23-year-old Redmore, who is without his on-stage trademark headband tonight, but still pulling off the slightly kooky 'rocker from the 70s' look with ease.

Redmore, Oscroft, and their mates Nick Campbell, Matt Warman and Aidan Bartlett have been the band on everyone's lips since the release of the hit single The Letter. It was followed by All On Our Own, now sitting at number nine in the charts, thereby making the lads from Auckland one of the country's most promising bands. It's appropriate then, that the release of The Brave Don't Run, which debuted in the charts at number two last week, coincides with New Zealand Music Month, when all eyes are on local talent. "The good thing about Music Month is that it makes people aware that New Zealand is proud of our own music," says Oscroft, 21.

"One of the reasons we say that is because we went to America and we saw bands at that grassroots level and they were crap compared to the bands at the same level in New Zealand. You can go and see five awesome bands play at the Kings Arms in Auckland every week that very few people have heard of. I don't think you could do that in LA," Redmore chips in.

Despite The Brave Don't Run being very much a Kiwi labour of love, Midnight Youth is already making inroads in the US, even moving to New York for six weeks to record the album. They have since returned to the States to play numerous gigs, including the acclaimed SXSW festival in Austin, Texas and a show at LA's infamous Viper Room. It goes part way to explaining some of the feedback the band's been getting about its "international sound" but Redmore thinks otherwise: "To be honest, I think it's just my voice. I don't have a Kiwi accent, I don't have an American accent and I don't have a British accent."

Whatever the case, it's a vibe that's got fans here snapping up albums, and industry heavyweights in the States waiting in the wings. Although the attention is incredibly flattering and they're still exploring their options overseas, Midnight Youth has no intention of fleeing the country just yet. "We want to be a band that doesn't just run away from home. We want to be successful here and branch out," says Redmore.

Oscroft adds they admire Kiwi legends such as Neil Finn, and it's very much the band's intention to "be around in the long term". Part of building the foundations that will lead them down that path, he says, is doing the hard yards. "All of a sudden we've got two massive songs and we feel bad that we haven't toured. We don't deserve to suddenly start skipping to arenas."

Whether or not they feel deserving of it, the bottom line is Midnight Youth has been fortunate enough to jump the queue. They've got the major record deal they were looking for at home, as well as the kind of international interest young bands would give their right arm for; two hit singles and an album that's heading in the same direction. The question is, where to from here? And for Midnight Youth, there is such a thing as peaking too soon.

Oscroft admits there's always that niggling doubt in the back of his mind. "I guess I am a little worried because I can't remember how we wrote those songs. And I don't feel that we should be up there with all these other dudes in New Zealand." In the same breath, however, he says he knows the band has what it takes to go all the way. "I have so much self-confidence in the band.

Without sounding arrogant, I've always known we'd get to this stage at some point. I guess we just didn't know it'd be so quickly." And, as he rightly points out, they are young and there's plenty of time to ponder the future. But, right now, it's all about making their mark and savouring the day: "It's the pinnacle of all of our lives so far. We feel like a real band, finally," he says with a smile.

* Midnight Youth's The Brave Don't Run is out now. Visit www.nzmusicmonth.co.nz for more information on New Zealand Music Month.