Mynd Reader released their new EP Sunday Drive, a six-song acoustic EP pairing reworked songs from their self-titled debut with new material. With the EP, they’ve also released a new music video for focus-track “Soundtrack of Life,” an upbeat, soulful track preaching that life’s soundtrack goes on and on, while delving deeper into the themes of mortality and celebration through music.
Listen to Sunday Drive HERE
Watch video for “Soundtrack of Life” Below:
Mynd Reader is a roots-rock band featuring acclaimed drummer and band leader, now deft songwriter, Brian Sachs. Sachs’ remarkable second-act story fuels every song, a second chance that is justly deserved.
Sachs’s near-miss at success with 1990s New York band The Authority, followed by decades away from music — gives the songs their weight. Sachs rediscovered his creative calling decades later, and with Mynd Reader is proving it’s never too late for the redemption of rock and roll.
Brian Sachs shared, “This EP came about completely unexpectedly. We never expected to be writing and playing music… after walking away from music for 25 years, Tonin and I came together just because of our love of music. Neither of us were songwriters and we never had any intention of writing songs… simply creating for the joy of creation… and much to our surprise, songs started arriving, telling the story of Love, Joy, Fear, Loss and Loneliness… and what connects us in our humanity. We both never dreamed any of this was possible… Sunday Drive is proof that it’s never too late to come home.”
On focus-track “Soundtrack of Life,” Sachs continued, “I have so many songs in my life that have become my best friends, and they will remain after I’m gone, telling the soundtrack of my life. This song is about the soundtrack of each of our lives and the songs that are always there for us.”
The new EP marks a rare event: a legendary mixing engineer in the form of Michael Brauer (The Rolling Stones, Coldplay, My Morning Jacket) produced and mixed the project.
Mynd Reader previously released singles “Still Uncertain” and “Straight on Through,” already gaining support from American Songwriter, Songs Behind The Music, New Noise Magazine and more.
The band is playing upcoming shows including stops in Boulder, Chicago and more. Further information and tickets can be found at https://www.myndreadermusic.com/tour
Photo Credit: Lisa Siciliano, Dog Daze Photo | High res download HERE
Brian Sachs, Colorado-based, New York City-born-and-bred acclaimed drummer and musician had a taste of, and a legitimate shot at, the big time with his 1990s funk-rock band The Authority.
The band’s relentless work ethic, groove-laden songs, and upbeat live shows made them one of the city’s most popular bands, sharing stages with Phish, Blues Traveler, and Dave Matthews Band, and grinding out over 200 shows a year. However, a confluence of unfortunate luck and circumstances derailed The Authority as it was breaking through. First, manager Bill Graham died in a tragic accident; then a potential deal with Ice Cube derailed, along with additional circumstances; it all fell apart.
When The Authority split, Sachs packed up his life in New York and headed west to Boulder. There, he built a successful business and full life that included spending many nights at shows at places like Red Rocks, yet something was always missing: playing music in his own band.
Years earlier, Sachs had crossed paths with multi-instrumentalist Tonin — the two played together briefly before Tonin moved on to other projects, but Sachs never forgot his playing, and their paths kept crossing occasionally over the years. In 2022, following a season of profound personal change, the two reconnected. What started as impromptu jam sessions in Sachs’s basement turned into a shared decision to form a band inspired by ’70s rock. They called it Mynd Reader.
Sachs and Tonin write the band’s songs together — Sachs never expected songwriting “to be his thing”, and the collaboration surprised them both. When singer Shelby Kemp joined, the group quickly coalesced into a cohesive unit; his raspy, powerhouse vocals showcased the band’s ability to craft relatable, catchy tunes rooted in blues and roots rock. Bassist Zach Jackson rounds out the lineup, anchoring the rhythm section and adding his own vocals. Sachs marvels not only at the songs, but at his own place at the center of them.
“For a drummer to write a song about love playing two chords on a guitar, I can get fired from any band really quickly with that!” Sachs quips.
To mix the self-titled debut, Sachs reached out to Michael Brauer, the Grammy-winning engineer whose credits include the Rolling Stones, My Morning Jacket, Coldplay, Aretha Franklin, and James Brown.
Between Sachs and Tonin’s confident compositions and Kemp’s vocals, their debut album standout “Falling Down” wasn’t just a statement of intent; it revealed the band’s musical prowess.
That same partnership was the inspiration for Mynd Reader’s new EP, Sunday Drive — six songs pairing acoustic reworks from the self-titled debut with new material, bridging the gap ahead of the band’s next studio album, due summer 2027.
This time, Sachs asked Brauer to both produce and mix — a rare move for Brauer, who hadn’t produced a project in years. “It’s like two old-timers came out of retirement,” Sachs jokes of the reunion.
As Sunday Drive is released, Sachs can’t help but be grateful the band is thriving creatively.
“I’m scared that one day the songs will stop, and I live in fear of that,” he says. “These songs are coming; I don’t know where they’re coming from, and I just hope they keep coming. It’s like the songs chose us; they chose us for a reason, and our point in all of this is to honor the songs.”
“This thing is bigger than I ever anticipated,” he continues. “It’s bigger than me. Something’s going on; I could feel it in myself. It was the prayer and redemption of rock and roll.”
TRACKLIST
- Still Uncertain
- Soundtrack of Life
- Straight on Through (Sunday Drive Edition)
- Simply Avanti (Sunday Drive Edition)
- Radio Warning (Sunday Drive Edition)
- Mourning Light (Sunday Drive Edition)
TOUR DATES
Oct 16 – Denver, CO – Goosetown Tavern (with San Leandro)
Oct 17 – Boulder, CO – Paradise Found Records
Nov 6 – Champaign, IL – Cowboy Monkey
Nov 7 – Carbondale, IL – Hangar 9
Nov 8 – Chicago, IL – Chop Shop (with The Samples)
