Album Of The Week: Moon & Stars

Moon & Stars Album Cover

Artist: The Mavericks

Producers: Raul Malo & Niko Bolas

Favorite Song: Without A Word

Least Favorite Song: A Guitar And A Bottle Of Wine

Rating: 8/10

Moon & Stars was released in 2024 by Raul Malo and his band, The Mavericks. This was their first release since their fully Spanish album, En Espanol, in 2020.

The whole reason I gave this album a chance is because I saw The Mavericks open for Dwight Yoakam on The Cosmic Roundup & Rodeo 2025 Tour. I was blown away by their performance and it made me realize why they have had such a passionate fanbase for over three decades. This led me to look into their most recent album Moon & Stars.

The album did a good job of grabbing my attention immediately with the first two songs. "The Years Will Not Be Kind" has a dark, mysterious mood to it, while the second song, "Live Close By (Visit Often)," originally a KT Oslin song, is more upbeat and driving. It gave a bit of contrast and kept me wanting to know what was coming next.

"Overnight Success" and "The Name Of The Game" are both upbeat and bouncy which makes them very memorable and catchy.

"Here You Come Again" is headlined by Max Abrams and his wonderful saxophone lick that repeats through the whole song. It matches Raul Malo's passionate and longing vocal perfectly which is why this song is my runner-up behind only one other.

"Without A Word" takes the cake for my favorite song on Moon & Stars. The opening begins with a trumpet solo, which is very misleading. I believed it would be very trumpet heavy, but it is actually led by a rocking guitar doubled with saxophone. This track has my favorite vocal as well. Raul Malo shows off his range throughout the song.

Despite many songs being wonderful and brilliant, there were a few that didn't strike my fancy. "Moon & Stars" featuring Sierra Ferrell and "A Guitar And A Bottle Of Wine" were the only two that did not make it to my Apple Music library. I thought these two were a bit boring and missing something.

Overall, this album was great. I am very much a fan of The Mavericks. I hope they release new music and keep touring. I now want to dig even deeper into their catalog and see what else this group has to offer.