Up-and-coming Malaysian alternative indie band Midnight Fusic have cited a wide variety of international and local predecessors as their musical influences: the 1975, Foster the People, Michael Jackson, Bad Suns, Rex Orange County, Arctic Monkeys, The Neighourhood, Hujan, and Noh Salleh. The introspective funk-tinged psychedelia of their recent second single “Lovesick” - which was billed as a prequel to their debut single “Heart of May” - nevertheless glides over a very similar aesthetic terrain as Australian band Paper Kites’ sophomore album twelvefour (2015), which was deliberately written entirely between the hours of midnight and 4 a.m.
The quartet - lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Raja Arif Aizudin, lead guitarist Adrian Danial, bassist Firdaus Azmi and drummer Muaz Rabbani - shot their music video for “Lovesick” in a similar time frame (2 - 6 a.m.) in an abandoned (and allegedly haunted) house in Bukit Damansara. Bathed in a haze of neon lighting, it reenacts the relationship woes that inspired the song’s lyrics (while ignoring the love triangle aspect):
“The song is basically about me. I was left in confusion once in a very, very toxic relationship that I could never [leave] because I [did] not have the guts to do it. I was too attached to the relationship to the point where I got mentally beaten up.” (Raja Arif Aizudin, The Daily Seni)
The track is a catchy and compelling juxtaposition of youthful romantic blues (‘Yeah I'm lovesick/ But now I'm sick of love, sick of love, sick of love’) with a smooth, melodic and dexterous fusion of dream-pop and indie rock. It serves as a kiss-off (‘It's too late/ You're on your way/ To disarray’) and a torch song, with a meditative guitar solo finale in place of a neat ending. “Lovesick” makes for a very promising start for the four 18-year-old self-professed night owls and will undoubtedly fuel the anticipation for their upcoming debut EP via Sony Music Malaysia.
