If you love classic country music and honky tonk, The Merles’ new album, “Two Steepin’ in the Moonlight” is made for you. Produced by Matt Hillyer (who was the frontman of Eleven Hundred Springs) and John Pedigo, it was released on September 16th.
The Merles is a band from Austin, Texas, featuring Todd Deatherage, frontman, singer, guitarist and songwriter, Kyle Kline (bass) and Matt Winegarder (drums). “Two Steppin’ in the Moonlight” is their second LP.
From the first song till the end, this album is full of wonderful fiddle and strong pedal steel, with quality songwriting and brilliant production.
When you started listening to the record, it’s absolutely impossible to skip any song, as all of them are pure gems for all those who love traditional country music.
You’ll find beautiful ballads, as the catchy “Too Far Gone“, the splendid “In love with the neon lights” and the beautiful “Special Memories of You“, all of them with killer pedal steel.
“Rosie“, featuring Matt Hillyer, is an absolute masterpiece, with masterful songwriting, great accordion and wonderful Tex Mex vibes.
“Another Downpour” is a fantastic classic country song, with an amazing intro that instantly reminds us Eleven Hundred Springs’ style.
“Old Fashioned Kind of Love“, featuring Brennen Leigh, is a fantastic old-school country song, with pedal steel and fiddle played to perfection. While we talk about perfection, let’s listen to the fiddle on the impressive “Can’t Hardly Take It“.
You have wonderful instrumentation and particularly great guitar on “She’ll Be Doing Time” and on the catchy “The One Who Always Leaves“.
While listening to the beautiful “I Never Measured Up“, you can close your eyes and feel that you are teleported to the best part of the classic country era, in the 50’s.
Finally, the title track, that starts the record, is a honky tonk gem, particularly catchy, that you can easily listen to on repeat.
“Two Steppin’ in the Moonlight” is one of those few albums that reach the perfection, for its impressive production, its masterful songwriting and its stellar instrumentation. The Merles did a fantastic job with this one. Classic country fans will love it at the first listen and will have it on repeat all along the fall… and far beyond.
Nicolas Davelu
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