We’re focusing on Peningo Riders today, an Indie Americana band from New York that creates the kind of genuine sound you’d want to use as the background music for a lengthy drive along the coast. I’m excited to draw your attention to their most recent musical creation, “Duck That Jeep,” which was released on December 12. Hold on tight as I dissect the grit, the melody, and everything in between that makes this release exceptional. It’s a track that demands more than a casual listen.

The song begins with the evocative hum of a busy crowd, drawing you into the space before a vocal performance so clear it almost sparkles cuts through the background noise. The intro not only begs for your attention, but also takes it over with a guitar melody that is, to be honest, more catchy than it deserves to be. It’s the kind of high-stakes musical handshake that guarantees you’ve already decided to listen to this song repeatedly by the time the first verse begins.

To truly grasp the theme of the song, listeners and readers will need A brief crash course in “Jeep culture” and the surprisingly wholesome lore behind the title. In the ambiguity and hopelessness of 2020, in the COVID- 19 pandemic, a Canadian woman unintentionally started a worldwide phenomenon known as “ducking” when she put a rubber duck on a stranger’s Jeep to make them smile. Although the gesture originated north of the border, the United States is where it found its spiritual home because, after all, few things say “Americana” like a Jeep. With the narrator urging a fellow driver to “duck” their rig and pass on that silent, yellow-plastic baton of cheer, the Peningo Riders in this story embrace that common heritage.

In terms of production, Peningo Riders has succeeded in condensing a century’s worth of rock royalty into a single, unified vintage. Eddie and Russ have taken the gritty soul of The Allmans and the Dead, added a dash of Marley’s rhythm and a Zydeco kick, and finished it off with the high-octane stadium energy of Journey and Foreigner. The song feels like a masterclass in musical genealogy. It’s a daring musical concoction that firmly establishes itself in the contemporary Indie Americana scene while paying homage to the heyday of rock ‘n’ roll legends. Instead of merely copying their heroes, they have successfully combined these influences to create a unique, powerful sound that is both nostalgic and surprisingly unique.

Peningo Riders has done a fantastic job of treating their art like a puzzle rather than a product, which is really refreshing to me as a curator who lives and breathes intentionality. For the astute fan, the single’s cover art is a visual scavenger hunt that goes beyond the lyrics. It features a man, woman, and child in a Jeep, with the man holding a guitar and a group of people running joyfully beside them. The “Easter eggs,” however, are where the true magic is. If you look closely, you’ll notice that the Jeep has precisely eleven rubber ducks placed strategically on the hood, windscreen and bumper, as well as an American flag hidden inside, a nod to the vehicle’s status as a classic American icon. These aren’t merely ornamental elements; they represent the innumerable times our narrator’s rig has been “ducked,” acting as a visual representation of the very cycle of silent joy that the song honors. It’s a world-building masterclass that demonstrates that these guys are truly practicing artistry throughout, not just creating music.

Through an unyielding mixture of passion, determination, and the raw edged energy that surrounds them from their legendary mentors, Eddie and Russ establish themselves as story men at heart and performers to their very marrow. As Peningo Riders, they bring to listeners not merely songs, but strikingly deep and emotional portrayals of the American experience in all its colorful beauty, with irresistible characters and all the emotions that put them in motion. There’s an undeniable charisma oozing from “Duck That Jeep” that leaves me at a loss for words with their craft. Rare is the band that manages to balance such high-octane technical skill with a soul that feels so grounded, and frankly, the minute this stopped playing, I was reaching for my watch in hopes it will hurry along whatever this artist  does next.

Stream “Duck That Jeep” on Spotify

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