Night Moves

Night Moves signed to Domino a decade ago, when John Pelant and Micky Alfano were fresh-faced post-grads barely old enough to take a legal drink. They’ve since made some very good records, their cosmic country grace fueled by a seeming enchantment with strains of international psychedelia. The legendary producer John Agnello must have been very surprised to hear from Night Moves again. Way back in 2015, Night Moves recruited Agnello to produce its second album, the kaleidoscopic Pennied Days. The process, to put it politely, was fraught. Agnello, the credentialed veteran, feuded openly in the studio with Pelant, a then-new bandleader trying to heed friends’ admonitions of being overproduced and eschew industry expectations of so-called sophomore slumps. But later, Pelant wrote “Feel Another Day,” a languid country-rocker about a roller-coaster of constant dejection. He could imagine its arcing harmonies, careworn acoustic guitars, and keys that traced the melody like a mobile spotlight. He knew Agnello could get those sounds and help sculpt the song as he imagined it. Night Moves and Agnello reconvened in a fabled rural studio and made more than “Feel Another Day." The Redaction EP is a 14-minute, four-track playground of instant hooks, gorgeous textures, and Agnello’s sharp production. More dense and magnetic than Night Moves have ever before been, Redaction is a testament to growth and maturity—and, of course, the almighty sacrament of a well-made rock song.