Black Midi

Black Midi (stylised as black midi) were an English experimental rock band from London that formed in 2017. Their most recent line-up consisted of lead vocalists and multi-instrumentalists Geordie Greep and Cameron Picton, along with drummer Morgan Simpson. Between 2017 and 2021, the band also included guitarist Matt Kwasniewski-Kelvin. Following his departure, the trio were frequently joined by multi-instrumentalist Seth Evans and saxophonist Kaidi Akinnibi, both as session musicians and during live performances. Their name is derived from the Japanese electronic music genre black MIDI, though their own music has no obvious relation to it, instead incorporating styles such as math rock, progressive rock, post-punk, and avant-jazz. Part of the Windmill scene, the band began on producer Dan Carey's record label Speedy Wunderground, through which they released their debut single, "bmbmbm", in 2018. They released their debut studio album, Schlagenheim, produced by Carey, on 21 June 2019, through Rough Trade Records. It received critical acclaim, entered the top 50 of the UK Albums Chart, and was nominated for the 2019 Mercury Prize. An anthology album including several recorded jams and spoken-word tracks, The Black Midi Anthology Vol. 1: Tales of Suspense and Revenge, was released on 5 June 2020 exclusively to Bandcamp. In January 2021, founding member Matt Kwasniewski-Kelvin went on hiatus from the group for mental health reasons. The band's second studio album, Cavalcade, was released on 26 May 2021. Their third studio album, Hellfire, was released on 15 July 2022. The band entered an indefinite hiatus in August 2024, as each member focused on other work; Greep released his solo album The New Sound, Picton formed a new group, My New Band Believe (who released their self-titled debut studio album in 2026), and Simpson began working with jazz musician Nala Sinephro and rapper Little Simz, appearing on their...