Monday, February 13, 2017

EP review: The Mezcaltones

The Mezcaltones have been together for a handful of years and over the past couple they have developed an enthusiastic fan base at the Tamworth Country Music Festival. The reason for that is that they turn on professional, exciting, entertaining live shows that mix up covers and original material, instrumentals and songs, and never let the audience get bored.

Although the Mezcaltones aren’t strictly country music people – their style is Tex-Mex rock with a dose of Western swing – they share something fundamental with country music artists: an interest in their audiences. That’s why their shows are so good - they are put together with the intention to keep toes tapping and heads nodding. The band members are, to a person, experienced musicians and performers who have refined their skills until they are exactly on point.

The Mezcaltones’ eponymous debut EP captures that live experience: the mix of covers with original material; the driving, upbeat tempos; the lead vocals from Col Porter that a perfect fit for the band’s sound, and the general sense of the whole enterprise being a good time to record as much as it is to listen to.

The EP is seven songs’ worth of material that is guaranteed to bring a smile. If you never make it to a show, rest assured you are getting the next best thing – and turn it up loud.

The Mezcaltones is out now.

www.the-mezcaltones.com


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