A couple of months have passed now since the release of Silverada's self-titled album, but it's clear that this new music is continuing to resonate with people everywhere. In front of a packed house on a Sunday night at Charlotte's Amos Southend earlier this summer, the freshly renamed group formerly known as Mike and the Moonpies took the stage, and as soon as the opening riff of "Radio Wave" reverberated throughout the room, the crowd was engaged and the energy was palpable. It was their first time in town since the name change, and the first time many of these fans were hearing the new songs live, just over a month after their release. But as the audience sang every word right back to the band, it was clear nothing fundamental about the beloved Texas outfit had changed, besides their name, of course, and perhaps a renewed sense of self that provided a necessary restart for the band 17 years into their campaign. A clean slate, if you will. A few hours prior to this moment, as fans were already beginning to line up outside the venue in hopes of securing a front row spot to one of the greatest shows in country music, frontman Mike Harmeier, bassist Omar Oyoque, and drummer Taylor Englert settled into a couch in the venue's green room and discussed the whirlwind of the bands recent months,
Silverada , and what might be next. For anyone who may not be familiar with the events that led to this point, Mike and the Moonpies had long been revered as one of the preeminent honky-tonk bands not only in their home state of Texas, but in the entire genre of country music. Beginning with their debut album
The Real Country , the band released seven studio albums, two live albums, an EP, and a handful of singles between 2010-2023, simultaneously honing their craft through endless hours of practice and 200+ live shows per year. With a uniquely country sound that has always been bolstered by thoughtful lyricism that resonates with anyone who listens, they have earned their fanbase organically across the country, and in the process, have gained a reputation as an absolute force of a live band. This past January, though, at one of the scene's biggest events in Key West's Mile 0 Festival, Mike and the Moonpies surprised everyone by officially announcing that they'd be changing their name to Silverada. The unexpected news, quickly followed by a
Rolling Stone feature and self-titled album announcement, was met with its fair share of speculation surrounding the impetus for the change and the trajectory of the band. But with the release of
Silverada this past June, it's safe to say that any concerns surrounding the new moniker, whether they were ever warranted or not, were put to rest. Lead singer and songwriter Mike Harmeier explained:
"The best thing about having the record finally out is that, for people who thought whatever about the name change, there's something to attach to this now. There's a product here. You can judge us for whatever when you just heard there was a name change... Well, here it is. Give me your criticism now." To anyone who thinks that may sound like a bitter rebuttal to feedback on the name change, it's quite the contrary. That is the sentiment of a band that has never been more confident in their music and the direction in which the they are headed. In fact, the name change signified an important moment for Silverada that allowed the group to set themselves apart from the growing number of Texas bands that were gaining popularity with their barroom honky-tonk sound. Bassist Omar Oyoque chimes in:
"It provided a really nice platform for a clean slate. Before, everybody was writing about, and some still do, the Texas barroom honky-tonk. But there's more to us than that. Hell yeah, we can sit and crush a 90 minute set of honky-tonk bangers because that is where we come from. But where we come from, while it's part of who we are, it's not entirely who we are. So this album is a nice clean slate." In that spirit, the band had been considering a name change for about as long as they can remember, but the timing this year is no coincidence. Once they had this album ready, the decision had been made clear. The three year gap between
Silverada and their prior album
One To Grow On , marks their longest stretch between studio album releases. A songsmith who prefers to do his handiwork in seclusion, which can be difficult to come by for a husband and father, Harmeier began writing these songs shortly after the prior release, finding the solitude to do so by hunkering down in his backyard studio with a drink and his guitar in the evenings after spending time with his wife and son during the day. But when it came time to record the project, and the band had the opportunity to put forth their instrumental prowess in creating the sonic aspect, it wasn't necessarily the lyrics that prompted all that would ensue for the band thereafter. It was their outlook on the process that prompted a new sense of sonic freedom.
"I didn't want anybody to be chasing anything that we had done before. Don't think about any record you've ever heard before... Play whatever services the song best and to your best ability. And that's what we came up with. That's why it's a really eclectic record." If you haven't acquainted yourself with the
Silverada project yet, the product of the countless hours that culminated, for the most part, in sessions at Yellow Dog Studios in Wimberley, Texas is a cohesive 10-track record that maintains the essence of what Mike and the Moonpies built their fanbase upon, but pushes their sound into something that warranted the aforementioned clean slate. In an effort to drive home the notion of a new beginning, they went the self-titled route for the album name as opposed to naming it after a title track, but perhaps strategically, you don't have to dig beyond the first song to understand the ethos of the project and the essence of it all. Titled "Radio Wave," the album's lead track was released as its fourth single just a couple weeks prior to its release, and while allegorical by design, it emphatically sets the stage for the rest of the record if you listen to the lyrics and peel back that first layer.
"That's what the record means to me. Once we had that song, it was like okay, now I know we can choose to do whatever we want to do. Once we did that, it opened the door. We can accomplish sonically what we want to do, and then we'll just chase down the rest of it. But we had to do that song in order to make this work." Once "Radio Wave" was complete, the other nine tracks fell seamlessly into place. Family and life on the road, and how the two lifestyles coexist are common themes on the record, but there's truly something for everybody, not just sonically but thematically as well.
Silverada Tracklist
"Radio Wave" "I wanted to get away from the more derivative, straightforward songwriting. And me dealing with that, that's what this song is about. I'm trying to evolve as a songwriter... Writing things that people can take their own meaning from, figure out what it means to you." - Mike Harmeier https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_0NDRvUT80
"Anywhere But Here" "Eagle Rare" "Doing it Right" "Stubborn Son" "I write about my dad and my kid, man... And I think when I'm writing these songs about my dad, I'm also kind of writing about what our relationship is at the time. I just tend to write that song voer and over again. And this one, I think it's the most like, that's my dad. The lines in there are very specific to that man. Those songs write really is because it's just stating facts." - Mike Harmeier
"Let's reemphasize what Willie Nelson said - Three chords and the damn truth. the formula's there man, and we do it" - Omar added. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=So5WAEDc_Lw
"Wallflower" "Stay By My Side" "We had cut it a couple of times at the Yellow Dog in Wimberly, and we really just couldn't get it. I was never stoked on the versions we were cutting. So we just started to throw it in the live show a bit on that tour... and we just kind of started to find a groove. Which is weird, because normally a song like that would never work in the show. But I think the lyrical part of the song, people really attach to. So we found that out, and this guy who runs a bunch of stuff in Macon (GA), like the Capitol Theatre and Grant's Lounge, he's been booking us there for a long time, and he's always wanted us to go over and tour Capricorn. So we called him and said, 'Hey man, can you get us in their to record this thing?' They had like two hours that day, so we left a couple of crew guys to load in and we went over there and cut it in an hour." - Mike Harmeier on recording "Stay By My Side" at the iconic Capricorn Sound Studios. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WEum2a6S6A
"Something I'm Working On" ft. Brent Cobb "I am a huge fan of Brent's. I met him eight years ago or so in Steamboat, Colorado. He had come to MusicFest, and I saw him walking down the hall. I was obsessed with his record at the time - I was always listening to it - so I walk up to him in the hallway to introduce myself, but he stops me first and knew who I was. So I was like, 'Oh, we're buddies now, man.' So we've hung out a lot since then. We were in the studio making the record, and he happened to be playing Gruene Hall one of the notes that we were recording. He was only about 20 minuted from the studio, so i just texted him. i didn't write the song for him to sing on it or whatever, but we had cut it and it was the perfect thing for him with that 'southern dialect' line and stuff. I hit him up, and he basically played his sold out show at Gruene Hall then got in the van with his entourage and showed up at the studio at 3am. We cot that vocal, we got hammered, and then he left and went back on tour. Then we had this Brent Cobb collaboration." - Mike Harmeier "Load Out" "I know the people, every line is somebody I know. ['Load Out'] goes out to all of our road dogs, even whoever's on the show with us, you know what I mean? We all get the song, everybody understands it, so it's become a pretty popular thing with other bands as well. I hat to put a road song on there." - Mike Harmeier "Hell Bent For Leather" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wC2TpxNY9s&pp=ygUfaGVsbCBiZW50IGZvciBsZWF0aGVyIHNpbHZlcmFkYQ%3D%3D As you can gather from listening to the record, the song content on
Silverada is heavily inspired by the band's experiences, relationships, and life on the road. But the music they listen to, both together and individually, has a major influence on their sound as well. Omar explains:
"We all have different, eclectic backgrounds. I'm into heavy metal, Mike is into Wilco and stuff like that... Taylor listens to all kinds of stuff. Cat likes classic country music and traditional sounds, and Zach is also a metalhead and does a bit of everything. So when we're in the studio, we all bring these different ideas in there." The harmonized guitar tone on "Anywhere But Here," the band explained, is like something you might hear from Restless Heart. The funky bass line on "Wallflower" was inspired by Omar's appreciation for ABBA and disco music, while the guitar solo in the song features a riff that may sound similar to something from rock band The War On Drugs. Everything on the record is completely original and unique to Silverada, of course, but as massive music fans themselves, they've internalized all different types of music, and it shows in the sonic diversity of this project, as they've managed to strike a chord of nostalgia in their sound while trailblazing something that is their own. With
Silverada out in the world and their current tour about halfway through, what's to come for Silverada isn't exactly set in stone. But one thing is for sure - This band is not straying away from the moment, and their latest work is a monumental project within the astronomical trajectory of Silverada as a band. Acknowledging that anyone enjoying the ascension that they have is constantly checking off goals and adding new ones in pursuit of a never ending finish line, the band members mulled over their ever-changing goals and what they want to do next. Omar adds, before explaining that it's all relative:
"The goal is success. But when you reach one goal, the finish line just keeps getting pushed. You can get a world class musician and he still practices his instrument, you know? There's always room for improvement, and we dedicate ourselves to that." There are a few milestones the band hopes to check off in the near future, though, specifically mentioning that playing Red Rocks and an Austin City Limits taping are on the shortlist. And both of which are certainly within reach. When it comes down to it, though, Mike had a simple response that both Omar and Taylor echoed, encapsulating the band's outlook moving forward.
"We just want to do cool shit. We want to do stuff that makes stories, man. That's rock and roll." And they're well on their way.
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