One band I’ve criminally neglected to mention on The Muffin for a long time is The Moondoggies. I got a chance to see them perform on the same bill as my boys Local Natives a while ago and was instantly smitten with their wanderlust sound. The four-piece group, made up of singer/guitarist Kevin Murphy, bassist Robert Terreberry, drummer Carl Dahlen and key master extraordinaire Caleb Quick, hails from Seattle and, in the words of their label, are “a serious band with a silly name.” I actually don’t think the name is that silly, especially when you consider the potential for collabos with Snoop Dogg (formerly Snoop Doggy Dogg) and Too Short (presently Short Dogg) – but that’s neither here nor there…
Now, it seems to me like there’s a mini-throwback movement in indie music today. Bands like The Felice Brothers, Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeroes and Mumford & Sons all craft tunes that conjure up smokey images of days past, and The Moondoggies’ melodious mixture of gospel, blues and rock tends to do the same for me. Harmony-laden tracks peppered with boozy guitars and healthy doses of killer keys definitely reveal influences from the likes of The Birds, The Band and The Dead – but The Moondoggies are more than a band yearning for yesteryear, and the sounds on their album, Don’t Be A Stranger are fresh as well as familiar. Oh, they’re also catchy as hell.
I’ve got two Moondoggies tracks for the bakery today. When you listen to ‘Black Shoe‘ just picture yourself driving in a convertible at sunset somewhere south of the Mason-Dixon line on your way to some whiskey-soaked destination. Imagine you get to the bar, down said whiskey when all of sudden ‘Bogchiel Rain Blues‘ crackles to life over the jukebox and the greatest bar-singalong of all time starts….I would write more, but I’ve just convinced myself that I need a drink on the ASAP. The Moondoggies: Train Tested. Muffin Approved.
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The Moondoggies – Bogchiel Rain Blues
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Don’t Be A Stranger is available now on Amazon and wherever good music is sold.
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So I was picturing myself, as you suggested, driving in that convertible….three hours later, I woke up from this dream-like illusion hammered off whiskey.
This is some great music!
Speaking of this style of music by April we’ll have both a new Midlake and Dr. Dog albums. Awwww shit.
But on the real, even if it is a day dream, you shouldn’t be driving while drinking whiskey.
definitely dig