Portland-based band Midnight Breakfast. Photo by MJ Gautrau

Midnight Breakfast is a six-piece, Portland-based indie-soul act you can see live Thursday at Portland House of Music.

The band got its start a few years ago by covering pop and funk tunes.

Early in 2021, Midnight Breakfast released its debut self-titled album of original songs, recorded during COVID lockdown. Standout tracks include the breezy, piano-based “If You Comfort Me,” the ballad “I’ll Make You Happy,” and the funky, horn-laced tune “Bittersweet.”

The EP “Bleeding Red” came next in 2023 and follows in the footsteps of its predecessor. Songs like “Ghost” and “Underwater” show off the band’s funk, soul and jazz tentacles.

All of Midnight Breakfast’s music features the full-bodied, clear-as-a-bell soprano vocals of lead singer Jennifer Shevlin-Fernandes. The rest of Midnight Breakfast is Myles Kelley on keys, guitarist Evan Dickson, bassist Benjamin Flanagan, drummer Reggie Kolman and saxophonist Loren Pinkham.

Shevlin-Fernandez said during an interview that the band is hoping to release new music within about a year. The show will feature some of it. “We’re really looking forward to debuting some new music that delves into new themes and emotional territory.”

Shevlin-Fernandez also loves that the Midnight Breakfast show will be opened by local funk and rock band Skosh and Rhode Island dance and funk act Guess Method. “Collectively, we bring a lot of funky energy, so it’s going to be a really good night of dancing,” she said.

Tickets are $8 for the 21-plus show, and you can buy them at portlandhouseofmusic.com.

Filmmaker Tom Bell and Ray Sapirsteinn on euphonium during the making of “An Extraordinary Place.” Photo by Roger McCord

DON’T TOUCH THAT DIAL

Last year, local filmmaker (and former Press Herald reporter) Tom Bell made a 30-minute documentary about University of Southern Maine community radio station WMPG.

The film is called “An Extraordinary Place,” and it continues to pick up awards on the national and global film festival circuit, including best documentary at Toronto Indie Shorts, best editing at the Courtyard Independent Film Festival (Naples, Italy), and Best Human Interest Documentary at the Jersey Shore Film Festival.

Most recently, “An Extraordinary Place” won best short at the Maine International Film Festival and Best Maine Made Film at the Maine Outdoor Film Festival, both in July.

Bell spoke about the essence of “An Extraordinary Place” in a press release from the Maine International Film Festival.

“Our film is about a quirky little radio station in Portland but really a lot more – it’s about community and the love that the volunteer DJs have for music, the station and each other. WMPG could be anywhere in the world, but it’s here in Maine, and it’s incredibly meaningful to receive awards from two prestigious film festivals close to home,” said Bell.

“An Extraordinary Place” features interviews with volunteer DJs and WMPG staff, in-studio band performances, and footage from some of WMPG’s 50th anniversary celebrations from 2023. Many of the DJs have been with the station for  years, and in some cases decades, and are fiercely dedicated to it. They include Rosita Reyes, Matt Little-Farmer, Ice Ingram and Bobby Shaddox (DJ Shaxx).

WMPG development director (and host of “The Morning Beat,” which airs 6:30-8:30 a.m. Wednesdays) said the film will be shown on Maine Public Television. Linton hopes to find out the date soon and will share it on the station’s social media pages.