The South Austin Moonlighters’ new tune “Deltaman” was born from Lonnie Trevino Jr.’s commute back and forth between Austin, Texas, and his newfound home in New Orleans, Louisiana, and the particular peace he found in the Gulf Coast’s Atchafalaya basin. “On one of those drives, I came up with the story of snow-capped mountains melting; the water flowing into the rivers becoming muddy and dirty in the Mississippi, then reaching the Gulf of Mexico becoming clean again, and how this was a great metaphor for life,” says Trevino. “We start innocent & pure, we go through life making some wrong decisions becoming dirty and/or muddy, and then at the end of our life, when we make right with our maker, we become clean again.” Trevino brought that idea to his songwriting friend Amy Hooper who went straight home and wrote the first draft of “Deltaman.” Trevino loved it immediately, added a chorus, and sent it to the rest of the Moonlighters—Chris Beall, Daniel James, and Hunter St. Marie—who insisted they bring it into the recording studio. Glide Magazine premiered the song on Monday, calling it a “song that finds the band fusing a Southern blues sound with a laid back rock and roll groove. With its sharp guitar licks, soulful harmonies, and straightforward, driving drum beat, the song feels like a musical journey of sorts that feels like a proper road song."
Sonically, “Deltaman” is drenched with deep south grease. Throbby, tremolo-driven guitars and muted, thumpy bass tones growl under the song’s harmony-laced verses before falling into “Deltaman’s” four-on-the-floor choruses. Each solo section finds the band shifting keys for a different mood—thanks to producer Steve Berlin’s suggestion—before ending the whole new album with a ringing chord and one more refrain of “bury me downstream.” “We thought it was the perfect way to end the record just based on the story and having been through the ringer these last few years,” says Trevino. “It’s nice to know we’ve made it through to the other side with this album.”
“Deltaman” is the latest single from the Moonlighters’ upcoming album, From Here To Home—due out on June 30th. Produced by Steve Berlin (of Los Lobos fame), From Here To Home is an album of rebirth and acknowledgment. It’s a recognition of where The South Austin Moonlighters have been, and a peek at all of the exciting places they are going and want to head towards in the future. Take the title track for instance, which is a song that Beall and Trevino Jr. wrote together. It’s a tale of finding oneself on the road, not necessarily lost, but unmoored. Despite this estrangement, the group finds power in the songs they write, carrying them through another day. “From Here To Home is a journey back to rediscovering why we started doing this in the first place,” Trevino Jr. says before his co-conspirator helps him complete the thought in a way only the closest of collaborators can: “Because that's the only thing we want to do–make joyous music.”
Fans can hear “Deltaman” today at this link, check out the Moonlighters’ previously-released singles “Box of Memories” and “Make A Livin’” at their respective links, and pre-order or pre-save From Here To Home ahead of its June 30th release here. The South Austin Moonlighters return to the stage today for a Waterloo Records in-store performance in Austin. A full list of tour dates can be found below or at thesouthaustinmoonlighters.com.
From Here To Home Tracklist:
Nashville
Make A Livin’
Long Time Coming
Box Of Memories
Faded Into Gray
Hearts In Parallel
From Here to Home
Then Away Farewell
It’s Only Money (That Makes The World Go ‘Round)
Deltaman
Catch South Austin Moonlighters On Tour:
June 16 - Austin, TX - Waterloo Records In-Store Record Release
June 24 - Austin TX - 3Ten - Album Release Show
July 1 - Houston, TX - McGonigel's Mucky Duck
August 3 - Estes Park, CO - Listening at the Legion
August 4 - Telluride, CO - Mountain Village Summer Concert Series
August 5 - Silverton, CO - Columbine Roadhouse Gatorfest
August 6 - Antelope Butte, WY - Festival TBA
August 11th - Dallas, TX - Morton Meyerson Symphony Center (Los Lobos support)
