MAIDS

MAIDS’ original style of Midwest Disco is all about bringing people together in one place to have a good time and get immersed in waves of electronic dance pop. Whether the music is experienced through headphones or dancing at a live show, Danny Heggen and Mickey Davis have developed a homegrown, Midwestern concoction that reminds all of us that life, simply put, is awesome.

On the heels of their debut EP, Maid Up (August 2013), Des Moines-based MAIDS’ enthusiasm to create has resulted in a wide assortment of new material. The first taste of this Midwest Disco phase comes in the form of their new single, “Bandits,” produced with help from Luke Pettipoole and Brandon Darner (The Envy Corps, Imagine Dragons).

The melodic complexity is backed by a four-on-the-floor disco beat and mixed with a clean, compressed funky guitar and snarly bass providing a mix of current and retro pop sensibilities. “Bandits” evokes the sounds of many of MAIDS’ influences, such as Empire of the Sun, Blood Orange, and Arthur Russell, or perhaps even LCD Soundsystem, but one in which James Murphy was a little more clean-shaven.

This dance track with a soul is the ultimate culmination of the MAIDS songwriting process. Their songwriting process begins with Danny writing a song on guitar and sharing only the vocal track with Mickey. The outline of the song provides Mickey the opportunity to transform the tune by composing the color that surrounds the melodies and enhances the lyrical meaning, while not overpowering it. The process comes full circle when Danny and Mickey reconnect to collaborate and reconstruct the song, resulting in a humanized electronic composition that begs to be shared with every other body in the room.

Danny and Mickey first worked together in 2012, when Mickey remixed a track by Danny’s pop folk band, Seedlings. Danny was blown away by Mickey’s creativity and ability to completely transform the song in a new, fresh way. He approached Mickey about working on a covers project called MAIDS, because maids flip covers. Soon after, they began writing their own material and haven’t stopped since.

Today, MAIDS is busy producing a batch of new music. Much of the new material is sure to make an appearance in their live shows, which are increasingly being coupled with a MAIDS-style dance party DJed by Danny and Mickey to provide the concertgoer with a full night of Midwest Disco. Look to be a part of this experience soon, as MAIDS take their sound on the road.