Night Moves riff their way through love, the future, and space

On Pennied Days, the group’s eagerly awaited second album, they stretch their warm, melodic sound in new and exciting directions while never losing the strong hooks and glitzy guitar that serve them so well.

Evoking previous generations of rock has always been an easy road for a band to take but groups like Night Moves or fellow Midwesterners Twin Peaks do so in a way that is free of irony and instead built around a deep understanding of their sonic predecessors.

Besides the instrumentation, which is strong throughout, singer John Pelant has a perfect voice for this brand of emotive, dusk-lit rock. He conveys the urgency of moody tracks like “Denise, Don’t Wanna See You Cry” and showcases excellent range on the standout “Hiding in the Melody”.

In terms of subject matter, Pennied Days isn’t going to break much ground, but Pelant and the rest of the band have a great time riffing their way through themes like love, the future, and space.

Pennied Days is an album anyone who has ever been in love with rock music should listen to, and it has the kind of universal appeal that should mean big things for Night Moves down the road.