Midlake | Core of Nature
Midlake’s “Core of Nature” from Goethe to folk-rock—how Tim Smith borrowed two lines from German poetry and created a meditation on nature’s unknowable depths during the band’s 2010 folk reinvention.
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Story Behind “Core of Nature”
A Library Book and the Poetry of Limits
“Core of Nature” began the way many Midlake songs do: not with lyrics, but with a book of poems. Tim Smith, browsing a collection checked out from the library, found himself drawn to two lines by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe that captured something he’d been circling around artistically. Smith recalled, “I don’t know much about Goethe, I just had a book of his poems from the library. A lot of times, I’ll use poetry to start coming up with a melody, because I don’t write the lyrics first, I always start with the music and then see what sounds right coming out of my mouth.”
What made these particular words different was their finality. Smith explained his creative process: “I can’t come up with it out of thin air, so a lot of times, to come up with an idea for a melody, I’ll sit at the piano or guitar with a book of poetry and start singing the words, then I’ll go back and replace them with my own lines. But that line was just so great, I realised I was never going to top that.” The Goethe couplet became the anchor—the philosophical core around which everything else would build.
The Folk Awakening of The Courage of Others
“Core of Nature” emerged during one of Midlake’s most deliberate creative shifts. After four years away from public view following their 2006 breakthrough The Trials of Van Occupanther, the band had spent months absorbing British folk-rock from the ‘70s. As bassist Paul Alexander explained, the band “was ready to move in a new direction” but needed time to internalize the music they were discovering. The album’s entire aesthetic—acoustic textures, modal chord progressions, nature-focused lyricism—reflected this new obsession.
On “Core of Nature,” these influences crystallized. The song encapsulates a philosophical theme running throughout the record: the impossibility of fully understanding the natural world. It’s Midlake wrestling with limits, with the boundaries of human comprehension, all wrapped in fingerpicked guitars and sparse arrangements.
“Core of Nature” Recording and Production Details
The New Midlake Studio and Analog Thinking
For The Courage of Others, Midlake moved into a new studio space they’d built themselves, equipped with an Otari RADAR 24 hard disk recorder (replacing their previous Roland setup) and a Soundcraft GS12 console. The band shared engineering duties more equally this time around, with each member experienced enough to mic their own instruments properly. This collaborative approach meant “Core of Nature” captured live band interaction rather than overdubbed layering.
The production philosophy was deliberately organic. Rather than treating the studio as a digital playground, the band approached the RADAR “just like a tape machine,” with minimal editing and no monitor in the control room until late in tracking—they relied on looking at each other and the console to maintain cohesion.
Matt Pence and the Echo Lab Mix
After recording in their Denton, Texas studio, the band brought in Matt Pence to mix the album. As Paul Alexander noted, they wanted a professional mixer because “there’s a lot we don’t know” about mixing, and they needed someone who could work intimately with their perfectionist approach. Pence, a drummer and producer who owns The Echo Lab studio in Denton, handled the mixing at his facility, while mastering was completed at Sterling Sound by Dave McNair.
The arrangement featured contributions that gave “Core of Nature” its haunting texture. Violin work from Fiona Brice added classical undertones, while Tim Smith handled vocals, acoustic guitar, flute, recorder, piano, and keyboards. The song never feels crowded despite these layers—instead they breathe together, creating space around Smith’s plaintive delivery.
Notes About “Core of Nature” by Midlake
Release Date: January 25, 2010 (single), February 1, 2010 (album)
Duration: 4:56
Genre: Folk Rock / Alternative Rock / Indie Folk
Album: The Courage of Others (3rd studio album, track 4)
Songwriters: Tim Smith, Paul Alexander, Eric Nichelson, McKenzie Smith, Eric Pulido
Producer: Midlake
Mixing Engineer: Matt Pence
Label: Bella Union
Poetry Source: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832)
Midlake “Core of Nature” Era Band Details
Album Details
Album: The Courage of Others
Release Date: February 1, 2010
Label: Bella Union
Producer: Midlake (self-produced)
Recording Location: Midlake Studio, Denton, Texas
Mix Engineer: Matt Pence (Echo Lab)
Mastering: Dave McNair at Sterling Sound
Format: Standard CD, limited edition LP (45rpm, 180 gram vinyl in collectible box set with bonus CD and DVD)
Critical Reception: Mojo Magazine Album of the Month
Album Concept: Folk-rock influenced shift inspired by 1970s British artists and nature-based lyricism
Band Members/Personnel
Tim Smith - Vocals, acoustic guitar, flute, recorder, piano, keyboards, songwriting
Paul Alexander - Bass, electric guitar, bassoon
Eric Pulido - Acoustic guitar, electric guitar, 12-string guitar, dulcimer, autoharp, percussion, backing vocals
Eric Nichelson - Electric guitar, acoustic guitar, 12-string guitar, autoharp, percussion
McKenzie Smith - Drums, percussion
Fiona Brice - Violin
Jesse Chandler - Harpsichord
Max Townsley - Additional electric guitar
Matt Pence - Mixing engineer, producer role
Album Production Notes
Self-produced by the band with extensive pre-production listening to 1970s folk-rock
Recorded on Otari RADAR 24 hard disk recorder with Soundcraft GS12 mixer
Band shared engineering load rather than using single engineer
Minimal monitoring and editing philosophy—no visual reference during initial tracking
Four-year gap between this album and The Trials of Van Occupanther (2006)
Album marked deliberate departure from electronica-influenced early work toward acoustic folk-rock
Featured guest vocalist collaborations on other tracks alongside instrumental focus
Interesting Facts About “Core of Nature”
The Goethe Philosophy and Smith’s Songwriting Method
Smith’s approach to “Core of Nature” reveals something essential about how The Courage of Others came together. He wasn’t trying to write a song about nature’s inscrutability—he found words that already captured it perfectly and built everything else around those two lines. This method mirrors the entire album’s approach: rather than forcing their influences into shape, Midlake allowed their recent obsessions with folk music to guide them toward what felt authentic. The Goethe quote functions like a conceptual north star, grounding all the album’s various meditations on solitude, limitation, and humanity’s relationship to the natural world.
Folk-Rock Homage Without Pastiche
What makes “Core of Nature” work where similar attempts often fail is that Midlake isn’t copying 1970s folk-rock—they’re speaking its language fluently. The flute work, the fingerpicked guitar patterns, the reserved vocal delivery, the minor-key melancholy: all of these are genuine expressions of where the band’s ears had taken them. As one reviewer noted, the band “recalls Sandy Denny” in their vocal approach and maintains thematic and musical continuity with their previous album while pushing deeper into acoustic territory. Yet the song remains unmistakably Midlake, proof that influence and originality aren’t opposites when executed with conviction.
Common Questions
Q: What is “Core of Nature” by Midlake about? A: The song explores the unknowable aspects of nature and the limitations of human understanding. Built around a Goethe quote about nature’s core being beyond mortal comprehension, it reflects on solitude, acceptance, and one’s place within natural cycles rather than attempting to master or fully understand them.
Q: Who wrote “Core of Nature”? A: The song was written collectively by all five band members: Tim Smith, Paul Alexander, Eric Nichelson, McKenzie Smith, and Eric Pulido. However, Tim Smith is credited as the primary songwriter who adapted the Goethe lines and shaped the core melody and lyrical concept.
Q: Why did Midlake use Goethe’s poetry in this song? A: Tim Smith discovered the Goethe couplet while browsing a library book and found the lines too perfect to improve upon. Smith typically uses poetry as a starting point for melody, then replaces the borrowed words with his own—but in this case, he felt the Goethe lines were so strong he kept them as the song’s foundation.
Q: How does “Core of Nature” fit into The Courage of Others album? A: “Core of Nature” is the fourth track and represents the album’s philosophical core. It’s emblematic of the entire record’s themes: humanity’s struggle to understand nature, the search for meaning within natural boundaries, and the peace found in accepting life’s limitations rather than fighting against them.
Q: What instruments are featured on “Core of Nature”? A: The arrangement includes acoustic and electric guitars, flute, recorder, violin, keyboards, piano, and percussion, all layered to create a sparse, folk-influenced production. Tim Smith’s flute playing is particularly prominent, adding an ethereal quality to the instrumental sections.