Honky Tonking on a Tuesday with Mike and the Moonpies
I usually save my honky-tonking for the weekends but if Mike and the Moonpies are coming to town well then I guess I can make an exception. Finally back into the flow of hitting the road heavy, the band came to Charlotte, NC and they treated us to a performance filled with tracks from their latest album One to Grow On, and more. Tagging along on this leg of the tour, fellow Texas music makers the Vandoliers, were a welcome addition and helped us NC folks for one night in October feel like we were in the heart of Texas.
A unique band and opening set to say the least the Vandoliers are not really what is going to come to mind when you think of country music. In one sense they are, but before too long you will realize “this is a little different”. A mix of traditional country, punk, and Americana I was mesmerized by their sound. As an avid music listener, the genre is an aspect of music that I really enjoy learning about, and seemingly there is a never-ending list of genres and subgenres to explore.
New to me is “Cowpunk”, and that is a perfect summation of the Vandoliers. Sure, there are plenty of acts that have merged the sounds throughout the years but I can really appreciate the unique merger that the Vandoliers bring to the sound. Live, they were just fun. Lots of personality, energy, and a real sense that they were happy to be there and performing for us, provided a wonderful atmosphere. With music that just makes you feel good, they helped establish a mood that would only get better as the evening progressed.
Since everything is bigger in Texas I guess it made sense that the opening set from the Vandoliers was a little over a full hour feeling a bit more like a co-headlining set, but make no mistake this crowd was ready for Mike and the Moonpies. Taking the stage to raucous cheers the band immediately dove into the opening track from One to Grow On, “Paycheck to Paycheck”. The track itself is the epitome of their sound and since it’s the first time most of us have had the chance to catch them live since its release, it was a welcome introduction to their performance this evening. Never taking their foot off the gas or the steel guitar pedals the band blazed through a set carrying the packed house at Amos’ Southend with them delivering crowd favorites from their catalog and a few welcome covers along the way.
I gotta say, it was good to see a crowd of this size out for a night of good music on a random Tuesday night in October. You could see the joy on the faces of the crowd and it was clear that all the musicians were having a great evening. Nights like this one are what live music is all about.
Click Here for the Full Gallery of the Evening!
If you happened to capture any shots of the night, feel free to tag us on social media at Shutter 16 Magazine and throw in #Shutter16 and #TwitFromThePit for the world to see.
Catch Them On Tour:
10 Nov
GUITARS ROCK N’ COUNTRY BAR Joplin, MO
11 Nov
Louisiana Grandstand presents: Mike and the Moonpies @ WDC Theater Shreveport, LA
19 Nov
John T. Floore Country Store Helotes, TX
25 Jan
Mile 0 Fest 2023 Key West, FL
21 Feb
Outlaw Country Cruise 2023 Andover, FL
01 Apr
Cluny Newcastle Upon Tyne, United Kingdom
02 Apr
Omeara London, United Kingdom
03 Apr
Bodega Nottingham, United Kingdom
04 Apr
Retro Bar Manchester, United Kingdom
05 Apr
The Bullingdon Oxford, United Kingdom
08 Apr
Merleyn Nijmegen, Netherlands
10 Apr
Der Aa-Theater Groningen, Netherlands
11 Apr
Music Star Norderstedt, Germany
12 Apr
Folk å Rock Malmö, Sweden
13 Apr
Pustervik Göteborg, Sweden
14 Apr
Belleville, Oslo Oslo, Norway
15 Apr
Bryggarsalen Konferens, Event & Konsert Stockholm, Sweden
16 Apr
Hotel Hulingen Hultsfred, Sweden
19 Apr
Kulturrampe Krefeld, Germany
20 Apr
NOCHTWACHE Hamburg, Germany
21 Apr
Privatclub Berlin, Germany
22 Apr
Real Music Club Lauchhammer, Germany
23 Apr
Krøsset Oslo, Norway
24 Apr
Kulturbrunnensaal Rheinfelden, Switzerland
