Press photos by Jordan Kirk
Interview by Alli Lindsey
Like a wave breaking, Cosmo’s Midnight crashes into creation with an effortless force. Despite their meteoric rise to international success, the Australian electronic duo and twin brothers make laissez-faire music with a down-to-earth spirit. They worry less about rigid work ethics and strict schedules by observing the feeling of creation as its own entity separate from the business of music. Whether it’s disco, indie-pop, or electro-anything, Cosmo’s Midnight is a project inspired by leisure and ease. Ahead of their upcoming US tour supporting fellow Australian artist Baynk, Cosmo’s Midnight join Zimbabwe-born pop star Tkay Maidza for their latest single “Bang My Line.” A song defined by its infectious looseness and the brothers’ penchant for the sounds of yesterday, the collaborative effort is a funky daydream with a sweet, feminine edge. In the brief time between the celebrated release and their tour, Cosmo’s Midnight talk small decisions, the early 2000s, and Warren G.
How do you handle sibling conflict while creating? Have you ever dealt with shared grief, loss, or heartbreak in a way that challenged your artistic flow?
Despite having our small differences outside of music, when we work on tunes our visions align very well. Whenever I go through loss or emotional turbulence I tend to not write as much, preferring rather to record when I’m in a clear and good headspace! At least for the music we release as Cosmo’s Midnight.
You’ve seen a lot of measurable success in just a few short years. Outside of streaming numbers and ticket sales, what are some immeasurable ways you calculate your success?
One of our biggest gauges for improvement or success is our parents. My mum is a composer as well and I love seeing her enjoy our music. Also listening back to our catalogue and seeing how we’ve changed over time is very inspiring and makes me excited to write more music to continue our musical narrative!
We know a lot of your music is inspired by the sounds of the 60s, 70s, and 80s. Who are some artists and bands that inspire your music from the 90s and early 2000s?
Some artists we love and listened to growing up from the 90’s and 2000’s were Limp Bizkit, Janet Jackson, RHCP, Teenagers, Air, Royksopp, Daft Punk…I mean there are too many to name. I don’t think they necessarily inspired us directly but they started us on our musical journey so we have that era to thank!
“Bang My Line” is inspired by smooth, coastal grooves. But when a lot of people think of “West Coast funk” they think of G-funk. If you could produce a track for one of the rappers who pioneered the G-funk era, who would it be and why?
Hands down Warren G…“Regulate” was such a smash and he was one of the few rappers who also produced, just like his brother Dre. The spill over from disco and funk into G-funk was so inimitable and so effortlessly stylish, love it!
“One of our biggest gauges for improvement or success is our parents.”
Describe Tkay Maidza in three words.
Versatile, conviction, effortless
Tell us three things you love about Tkay Maidza.
She’s open to new styles and music, is very humble and effortlessly cool.
If you could compare “Bang My Line” to one place on earth – where would it be?
It would have to be LA. The song was written with West Coast music and scenery in mind and I can totally imagine rolling through all the different suburbs on Sunset Boulevard bumping this tune.
“Working with Tkay has brought a lot of new listeners to our sound and music which is always exciting…”
Every small decision and minute action that we’ve ever made has led us to this very moment in time. In what small ways has “Bang My Line” already changed your life?
It’s very early on but obviously working with Tkay has brought a lot of new listeners to our sound and music which is always exciting and makes me grateful for the opportunity to get to collaborate with new people in a different world of music to our own.
What are some of the small decisions and actions that led to the creation of “Bang My Line”?
Listening to music as a fan rather than as a musician, trying to discover small details in old music that make them special today and exciting on the first listen. Also trying to remove too much of a work ethic with music, rather filling it in the gaps of my day to day rather than intentionally going into the studio and forcing it.
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