Midnight Blonde garners a faithful following
By Matthew Keough/ mkeough@cnc.com
Thursday, March 16, 2006 - Updated: 10:29 AM EST



 

 

Although their taste in music doesn’t really gel with what many of their friends  listen to, Gia  and Deveney  are gathering a following.
 

    The two-woman ensemble, known as Midnight Blonde to a growing fan base, has been performing in high school talent shows and benefits throughout Medford for more than a year. The two 12 year olds also recently produced a CD entitled, "Devangia," in which they play all their own instruments for 16 original tracks.
 

    The girls’ unique sound and musical prowess has caught many unaware.
 

    "The biggest disadvantage these girls have is that people just can’t believe they are the ones playing the instruments and making the music," said Mike Allen, the girls’ musical mentor and Brooks School music teacher. "They’ll hear them and they don’t believe they’re doing it."
 
    Not that Allen can really blame that initial reaction, especially since the two girls, who look as if they would barely be able to balance their guitars for a full set on their petite frames, have only been playing and performing for only a year. Before then, the girls could not even play the instruments heard on their CD.
 
    But it’s all true, said Allen, who remembers how the musical journey from Gia and Deveney to Midnight Blonde began.
 
    Allen said during his music class at the former Hervey School, he had students make a group CD for their yearly project. And when he saw a spark of musical enjoyment in a student’s eyes, Allen said he always extended a hand to help that student proceed with their musical ventures.
 
    And no student had taken him up on the offer, Allen said. Until 2004.
 
    It was then both Gia and Deveney, as well as two other students, came forward for Allen’s guidance. Allen called those early efforts "rusty" at best.
 
    While Gia had long wanted to be a performer and had some formal violin lessons, both she and Deveney had little to no experience when it came to recording the music they wanted, and neither girl even played guitar.
 
    "The headline of your article should be ’Midnight Blonde: the future of rock and roll,’" said Allen, watching a performance from a homeless benefit where Midnight Blonde played last year.
 
    In the home video, Gia plays bass and sings lead vocals while Deveney provides back-up vocals and plays guitar. Although the girls are usually accompanied by a guest drummer during a performance, the heart of Midnight Blonde belongs to them.
 
    Deveney said her style is defined by what she calls a "million" bracelets that her adorn her left arm, while Gia marks her style with a tiara. Since they began performing, the two have manufactured a number of signature moves such as when Gia falls to her knees and then plays a few riffs as she lays on her back.
 
    "It makes you feel good, and you get really into it," said Gia about her signature move, which she said came to her, like much of Midnight Blonde’s best work, in a moment of inspiration.
 
    Rocker chicks
 
    Originally called Deathbunnies, Gia and Deveney changed the band name when they sensed controversy over the name. But they pay homage to their former name with an original track on their debut CD.
 
    During an intense recording period last summer, which Allen nostalgically calls "The Devangia sessions," he said he expended the same amount of energy he usually puts into his own band, simultaneously creating an album of original compositions and schooling the girls on the music business.
 
    "I don’t even care about the music industry, just them making good music," Allen said. "But if they break out someday, they’ll know how to play the game."
 
    A possible future in the music industry wasn’t at all what the two friends bargained for when they signed up with Allen. And then there were the growing pains.
 
    "When I told them that they would have to learn an instrument, I said it would be painful," Allen said. "But these girls are just so determined. Deveney learned how to play very quickly, and as soon as I saw Gia play the bass, I knew it was for her."
 
    Allen said the girls kept returning each week for more lessons until their jam sessions soon gave way to 22 original compositions. Allen described it as an "intense" experience, but added that the more pragmatic and musical minded Gia worked beautifully with Deveney, whom Allen said is more gutsy and perseverant.
 
    "She’s the rocker," Allen said of Deveney.
 
    Through his mentorship, Allen has not only taught the two the basics of playing their instruments, but also schooled the girls on the ins and outs of editing their music with the newest digital technology, such as Pro Tools.
 
    "My goal is to basically take myself out of the equation so that one day, they can do this without me," Allen said.
 
    With the CD now cut and available, Allen called the result a visit to "Planet Devangia."
 
    The compositions are a mixture of life experiences, but mostly come from the girls’ imaginations, which seemingly know no bounds. Allen said the CD is really a trip inside the girls’ universe, a place of first crushes, Harry Potter characters and other things that make up their middle school world.
 
    "They’re 12 so there’s not a whole lot of life experience there," Suzanne Greene said, of the album. "But they are both very creative."
 
    Future chart-toppers
 
    Both Deveney and Gia carry around worn journals which contain scattered lyrics, ideas and melodies for their songs. Gia said she has even carved out some space in her journal for a Broadway musical she hopes to write.
 
    "I have these, like, very vivid dreams that I write about when I wake up," Gia said as she recounted the plot of her future work, which she hopes to be in the vein of one of her favorites, "The Rocky Horror Picture Show."
 
    But for now the girls are content balancing their honor roll grades with their burgeoning musical career. Deveney is all set to begin her soccer season while balancing her longtime passion of ballet dancing, while Gia continues her work as a peer educator and sign language tutor.
 
    But both girls say they are committed to their music and have pledged to follow it wherever it takes them. And for Allen, just knowing he started the girls on their journey is payment enough.
 
    "When I say these girls are the future of rock and roll, I’m being a little bit sarcastic but I’m also very serious," Allen said. "Because they are so young, only 12, they literally are the future. But if they keep on performing and working like they are, they will be successful one day."
 
    For the fans
 
    Looking for the latest performance date for Midnight Blonde? For more information on the girl band or to order their debut CD, "Devangia," log on to www.midnightblonde.com.