INSTANT KARMA
Mint Mile
The Silkworm has turned! Indie-rock lifer ploughs a fruitful new furrow
WE’RE NEW HERE
Just doing their stuff: Mint Mile with Tim Midyett (right)
MRKING;DAVIDA.SMITH/GETTYIMAGES
TIM Midyett is one of the most undersung voices in American indie rock. Formerly the frontman of Silkworm, now at the helm of Chicago’s Mint Mile, Midyett has presided over four decades of music while never quite breaking out of the category of cult concern. What’s important, though, is that Mint Mile’s new album Roughrider is up there with his best: an emotionally resonant rock record that sets his rich, ruminative baritone front and centre. “It comes out of the same working method that any of my bands have ever had, which is do what comes naturally and don’t overthink,” says Midyett. “We hardly ever talk about anything conceptual – it’s all feel.”
After releasing 11 albums through underground institutions like Matador and Touch And Go, Silkworm splintered in 2005 following the death of drummer Michael Dalhquist, killed when his stationary car was struck by a suicidal driver. “It was this dual tragedy,” says Midyett. “Obviously the worst thing was losing Michael as a human in our lives, but also the band died. There was no way to replace him as a drummer.” Midyett and fellow Silkworm founder Andy Cohen formed a new group, Bottomless Pit.