The Middle East: "Jesus Came to My Birthday Party"

The Middle East have, amongst doubtless many other non-notable accolades, the dubious acclaim of writing my most played song on Last.fm. Admittedly, it’s been a while, but “Blood” still holds a massive resonance for me, due in equal parts to its dextrous handling of brutally complex subject matters (cancer, amongst other things) and its fantastical musical arrangements; a lone voice and a fingerpicked guitar become a cavalcade of instruments and musicians, upon which a children’s choir is borne, the song resolved with that same voice and guitar. Let’s get one thing straight: for me, the Middle East will never write that song again.

For any artist, an important part navigating one’s career trajectory is finding within themselves ways of making it less of an arc, and more of an exponential. All musicians live with the fact that their next release is expected to harness the successful aspects of previous work to constant progression and improvement, and failure is a very tangible reality for almost all. In this case, the plight of the Middle East is made ever more difficult by the fact that arguably the best song they could write was their first single. Putting all that aside, however, “Jesus Came to My Birthday Party” is actually pretty decent. Chosen as the lead single to their first studio full-length, it’s a considerably more upbeat effort than many of their previous efforts, consisting mainly of major chords, their trademark male/female vocal harmonies, and a flighty, semi-serious addressing of teenage nostalgia. This is often where the band sounds most comfortable, producing satisfying melodies and moulding them into satisfying conclusions, pausing only from the established path to insert a thoroughly unchallenging guitar solo. Where the band does attempt introspection and “depth” on the album, it often feels overwrought and forced, but “Jesus” is the perfect antidote to such songs: it announces what it’s going to do and delivers, not seeking complexity where complexity is not required.

The wistfulness for the past, evident in Bree Tranter’s voice as she sings, “[It was] when I was seventeen / It was a long time ago,” serves as a mirror to how the Middle East might conceivably reflect on their music. As much it disheartens me, I can’t help but feel that their breakthrough single condemns them to being a late-afternoon festival act, a band enjoyable for all, opening with “Jesus,” playing pleasant indie-pop numbers, and closing with “Blood,” leaving the audience in a semi-sober “where did that come from?” haze—until the next band rolls up. I just hope they can prove me wrong.