SILVERADA: Silverada

Formerly performing and recording as Mike and the Moonpies, the new album from the freshly renamed Silverada is a hook-laden collection of well-crafted honkytonk songs likely to get repeated plays in your collection.

The overall sound hearkens more to 1990s Nashville (think vintage Brooks & Dunn or Tim McGray) than contemporary country; Silverada’s music is also clearly informed by country rock—and there are times a hint of Poco or early Eagles comes through. But Zachary Moulton’s pedal steel definitely pushes the vibe closer to country than country rock.

Lead singer-lead composer Mike Harmeier has a knack for writing lyrics with a natural flow. Consider “Load Out”:

Who I am is who I’m gonna be
My character is my commodity
You can’t hear what you can’t see
So I came back to town

Set ‘em up, knock ‘em down
Another one-night stand in a one-horse town
Same old song on a brand-new set of strings

It’s interesting on that track, too, how guest accordionist Justin Soto’s part is written almost as one might use a fiddle—yet it works and adds a nice richness to the mix.

An absolutely gorgeous melody frames a typical country-western story on “Anywhere But Here”—but if the lyrics are a bit formulaic, it’s a well-crafted formula.

Whether the new set of songs and a name change can push this veteran band into country stardom remains to be seen, but all the ingredients for success are present on this release.

Silverada plays October 10 at Moonshine Flats, 344 7th Avenue in downtown San Diego.