Middle Distance Runner

What We Say:

MDR is an indie-rock outfit from Washington, D.C. whose five members combine their different talents to create a multi-layered sound that seamlessly blends their disparate influences.  In addition to indie-rock, their sound has elements of heavy rock and shoe-gazing layered beneath the accessible surface.

Singer Stephen Kilroy and drummer Erik Dean usually build the lyrical and melodic framework of a song, and are followed into the studio by guitarists Allan Chappelear and Jay Smith.  Chappelear does his best to bring out a grittier side of the pop tendencies of Kilroy and Dean, while Smith fills the sonic holes with ambiance.  Bassist Tony Acampora provides his thumping backdrop to the song, completing the tapestry of styles that comprises Middle Distance Runner’s sound.

After an extremely successfull and busy CMJ the boys headed out to SXSW and then back on a co-headlining tour with Eulogies (dangerbird records) in support of the release of their new 7-inch single “The Unbeliever”. The band heads out on their first national tour alongside the announcement that Engine Room Recordings is set to release the band’s second full-length “The Sun & Earth” on October 20th 2009.

What They Say:

“Insanely catchy rockers”  – Spin

“Middle Distance Runner could be on the verge of something big.” – Paste

“MDR’s sound clearly draws on mid-’90s British rock — think pre-OK Computer

Radiohead, Blur, Oasis — and exudes a confidence and professionalism that many

young bands lack.” – Washington Post