# Middle Distance Runner

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{{Short description|American indie rock band from Washington, D.C.}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2025}}
'''Middle Distance Runner''' was an American [indie rock](/source/indie_rock) band from Washington, D.C.

Middle Distance Runner was founded in 1998, but the band didn't play a live show until 2005, shortly before the release of their debut album.<ref>[https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6543562 Middle Distance Runner, 'Naturally']. [NPR](/source/NPR), November 27, 2006.</ref> The group was an early success on Internet music websites, and credited [Amie Street](/source/Amie_Street) and [MySpace](/source/MySpace) with improving their visibility early in their careers.<ref>[https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/middle-distance-runner-268109/#! Middle Distance Runner]. ''[Billboard](/source/Billboard_(magazine))'', May 25, 2009.</ref> Exposure on [blogs](/source/blogs), including [USA Today](/source/USA_Today)'s Pop Candy, also raised their profile.<ref>[https://dcist.com/story/06/09/13/unbuckled-previ-6/ Unbuckled Preview: Middle Distance Runner] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220908060419/https://dcist.com/story/06/09/13/unbuckled-previ-6/ |date=2022-09-08 }}. DCist, September 13, 2006.</ref> By 2007, the group had received notice in national publications such as ''[Spin](/source/Spin_(magazine))'' and ''[The Washington Post](/source/The_Washington_Post)''.<ref>[https://www.browardpalmbeach.com/music/middle-distance-runner-6310984 Review of ''Middle Distance Runner'' EP]. ''[Broward Palm Beach New Times](/source/Broward_Palm_Beach_New_Times)'', December 6, 2007.</ref> The group's founding bassist, Tony Acampora, left the group in the mid-2000s, and by 2007 had been replaced by Ian Glinka, a former member of the group Black Tie Revue.<ref>[https://www.pghcitypaper.com/pittsburgh/dcs-middle-distance-runner-performs-at-garfield-artworks/Content?oid=1339139 D.C.'s Middle Distance Runner performs at Garfield Artworks]. ''[Pittsburgh City Paper](/source/Pittsburgh_City_Paper)'', October 4, 2007.</ref> Both their debut album, 2006's ''Plane in Flames'', and a 2007 self-titled EP were released independently.<ref>[https://www.scenepointblank.com/reviews/middle-distance-runner/middle-distance-runner/ Review of ''Middle Distance Runner'' EP], Scene Point Blank, November 8, 2007.</ref> They signed with the label [Engine Room Recordings](/source/Engine_Room_Recordings) for the release of 2009's ''The Sun & Earth''.<ref>[https://www.popmatters.com/114684-middle-distance-runner-the-sun-and-earth-2496110719.html Review], [PopMatters](/source/PopMatters)</ref><ref>[https://www.qromag.com/middle_distance_runner_the_sun_earth/ Review], QRO Magazine</ref> That same year, the group played at [NASA](/source/NASA)'s Goddard Visitor Center with space imagery accompaniment.<ref>[https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/news/topstory/images/yurinight_mdr.html Featured Image], [NASA](/source/NASA), April 6, 2009.</ref> In 2010, [CNN](/source/CNN) reported that the group was "selling out shows around the country".<ref>[https://www.cnn.com/2010/SHOWBIZ/Music/03/17/middle.distance.runner/index.html Middle Distance Runner takes success personally]. CNN, March 17, 2010.</ref>

Little was heard from the group in the early 2010s, though they performed in 2013 in the DC area.<ref>[http://m-nyc.thedelimagazine.com/category/bands/middle-distance-runner Middle Distance Runner]. The Deli Magazine, September 24, 2013.</ref>

==Members==
*Erik Dean – drums
*Tony Acampora – bass
*Ian Glinka – bass
*Jay Smith – guitar
*Allan Chappelear – guitar
*Stephen Kilroy – vocals

==Discography==
*''Plane in Flames'' (Self-released, 2006)
*''Middle Distance Runner'' EP (Self-released, 2007)
*''The Sun & Earth'' ([Engine Room Recordings](/source/Engine_Room_Recordings), 2009)
*''Secret Things'' (Self-released, 2015)

==References==
{{reflist}}

Category:Indie rock musical groups from Washington, D.C.

{{US-indie-rock-band-stub}}

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Middle Distance Runner](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_Distance_Runner) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_Distance_Runner?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.