The Defining Sound of Dream Pop
Midnight City is the standout track from M83's double album Hurry Up, We're Dreaming. It captures the feeling of a late-night drive through an urban landscape. While the hook is famous for its synthesizer lead, the vocals by Anthony Gonzalez play a crucial role in grounding the ethereal soundscape.
To sing this track effectively, you need to balance a detached, robotic verse style with a passionate, shouting outro. It requires less operatic range than Queen, but demands immense control over your head voice and breath support.
AI Coach Tip: Watch Your Reverb
The original recording is drenched in effects. When singing into the app, you won't have that cushion. Focus on sustaining your notes cleanly without wobbling pitch, especially on the line "Waiting for a ride in the dark."
Phase 1: The Verses (0:00 - 2:00)
The song stays in B minor. The verses ("Waiting in a car...") sit in a mid-range that is comfortable for most Tenors. The delivery should be almost spoken but melodic. Keep your tone light and avoid using too much chest resonance here.
The Trap: It’s easy to sing this too aggressively. Pull back the volume and focus on the rhythm and the "cool" factor of the delivery.
Phase 2: The Pre-Chorus Building
As the song progresses, the vocal layering increases. You will need to switch into your head voice for the "Ooh" background vocal lines that float above the main melody. The AI Coach will look for pitch accuracy in your upper register here.
Phase 3: The Outro Belt (3:00 - End)
This is the climax of the song. The repeated line "The city is my church" requires a significant shift in energy. You need to belt this out, moving from the light mix of the verses to a full chest-dominant sound.
To hit the high notes in this section without straining, engage your diaphragm and push the sound forward into the "mask" of your face. This will give you the necessary projection to cut through the heavy synth instrumentation.
Frequently Asked Questions
The highest belted note in the main vocal line is around a B4, but there are ad-libs and falsetto cries that reach up to F#5.
Yes. The verses are actually quite low in the Tenor range. If the outro is too high, use the Singing Coach AI app to transpose the track down -2 or -3 semitones.
The famous "doo-doo-doo" hook is actually a manipulated vocal sample! You can try to sing it, but the app primarily scores you on the lyrical verses and the outro.
