Hot Mondy are looking a little dustier than when we last saw them. The five-piece Halifax-based outlaw country band has left the east coast and headed well into the west for a romantic tale of dessert-faring vagabonds and bagmen with a video video for “Desert Moonlight.”
Compared to the dance number of Hot Mondy’s recently released debut single “Pale Embers,” “Desert Moonlight” is the difference between Dirty Dancing and Road House. Max Sarmento isn’t quite the Patrick Swayze bagman you’re looking for, but the video is brilliantly put together by director Brad Tobler (Stranger Things, Free Guy) of Imagine That Films and cinematographer Gareth Taylor. It’s a little cinematic feature all on its own, built around a soundtrack.
“‘Desert Moonlight’ is a pulpy roadhouse epic that tells the story of a bagman who does his work under the cover of night,” explains the band, with Matt Rhind singing the lines, “I make the drop, take my brick of cash. Back on the road to make another dash.” Shot over three days outside of Los Angeles, it practically makes for an arid Breaking Bad cold open.
Combining some delicious lyrical storytelling and tapping a stellar film team is just the tip of the iceberg on “Desert Moonlight.” Hot Mondy also worked with multi-JUNO Award-winning producer Michael Phillip Wojewoda, who worked for months to get the sound on Hot Mondy’s Pale Embers EP just right. The band also added the contributions of Wintersleep’s drummer, Loel Campbell, and Grammy-nominated strings arranger, Drew Jureka, to their most recent single.
Despite a few hiccups during the last year that briefly left the band wondering how to finish their latest EP, Hot Mondy are still powering through with fresh work that should result in a new ten-songs follow-up album in 2022.
“Hot Mondy’s music is familiar yet original, satisfying but unpredictable,” adds the band. “With a love of writing, groove, production, and storytelling, the music will take you on a journey that you’ll want to return to again and again.”