Mesmerizing melodies journey through retro sonic landscapes, In the Middle explores the idea of a game of survival if one were to step into the maze of one’s mind in “Brain Games.” Visually stimulating, they step into the state of audio-visual interaction, taking listeners to a multi-dimensional ride with many surprising encounters. The recurring melodic motifs seem no coincidence, while it intrigues you to delve deeper into your own thoughts, it also evokes new ideas and perspective. Beyond its luscious, addictive sonic view, there seems to be a deeper game, one only you could see. “Brain Games” is definitely a track that haunts you and intrigues you to come back. Like an ever-changing maze, there’s always a deeper secret left for you to uncover.

World-building through songs is an interesting, and “Brain Games” gives you the first sonic taste of the world inside one’s brain. Logical and sensuous. Clarity runs the risk of overthinking. Inspiration comes with each new realization, but the mundane and the ordinary sits in most of the day. There are so many areas to explore in the audio-visual world of “Brain Games.” Sits with it, and you’ll find your brain relating to it.

The titular single marks the first release from In The Middle’s upcoming debut album Brain Games. Brain Games is a multi-faceted project, where In the Middle combines their love for music with comics. To accompany the concept album, they will launch a comic book that dives deeper into the lore of the album. If you love music and at the same time enjoy comic books, Brain Games will definitely bring you a lot of fun.

Punk Head: I love the idea of world-building through an album of songs. I’d love to know more about it! Base on the first release “Brain Games,” whats can fans expect from the rest of the album?

In the Middle: Thank you! Fans can definitely expect to hear a lot of different genre influences in the remainder of the album. What’s pretty cool about a concept album is that there’s so much cohesion within the storyline already that it gave us a bit more room to experiment with different sounds. We really feel like there is something on this album for everybody because of that. There’s also a lot coming up in the remaining comic book chapters that take fans through the lore of the album, and there’s a big twist at the end that we think will really shock people.

PH: How did the idea come to you? And did it evolve through time?

In the Middle: The idea definitely evolved over time, and while we knew we wanted our first album to be a concept album, it took a while for that idea to come to life. It’s hard to say the exact moment when we came up with the idea for “Brain Games,” but there were definitely a few big moments where a song would come together and inspire a major part of the storyline. We’ve been building this fictional world for a few years now and it’s slowly come together in a way that we couldn’t have imagined when we first started.

PH: What are some challenges you faced while making the album?

In the Middle: We wanted to create a cohesive storyline that people could really dive into and get lost in. If we had unlimited resources, we probably would have made an entire movie for this album, but as an independent band we had to adapt to what we had. We chose to tell the story in the form of a comic book because we felt it was the best way to tell the whole story in a creative and engaging way that fit within our abilities.

PH: What are you most excited about this project?

In the Middle: What we’re most excited about is seeing everybody’s reactions to the album and interacting with fans. We’ve had so much fun online interacting with people over music, theories on the album, and even memes. We can’t wait for live shows and meeting fans in person.

PH: One message that you’d like to share with your fans and listeners out there.

In the Middle: Thank you! You all are what keep this project going and we appreciate the support endlessly. There‘s so much to come with this album and comic book, and we’re thankful that you’re here with us.