The Mavericks Play MPAC Tonight

The Mavericks are back after a seven year hiatus. The country-steeped garage band with a Cuban American lead singer perform at the Mayo Performing Arts Center tonight, August 16, 2013 at 8 pm. Tickets are $39-59.

The Mavericks emerged from Miami with their sultry debut that was equal parts innocence, intensity and vintage influences. But time has a way of melting when you're busy living life - and two decades has passed since their polyrhythmic brand of post-modern country has given the world "All You Ever Do Is Bring Me Down," "Here Comes The Rain" and "Dance The Night Away."

With their new album, time melts once again and the band that defied definitions, blurred genres and made everybody feel good, is back. The "most interesting band in the world" has captured the infectious energy and robust sound from their live shows on their first release in seven years, In Time. Whether it's the Buck Owens-influenced "Dance In The Moonlight," the panoramic Orbison-esque "Born To Be Blue," the horn-punctuated retro noir "Back In Your Arms Again" or Tejano-esque "All Over Again," the Mavericks have once again found the way to make soul music and sole music.

For Raul Malo, the lead singer with the rich supple voice that's second to only Roy Orbison in its ability to convey lonesome, desire and vivre; drummer Paul Deakin and multi-instrumentalist Robert Reynolds; as well as longtime collaborator keyboardist Jerry Dale McFadden and seasoned guitarist Eddie Perez, life has made them richer in terms of experience, playing acumen and a sense of their own musicality. It has also deepened the connection between them in a way that heightens the singular chemistry that made the Grammy-winning band one of the most exciting live acts in any musical genre.

The ferocity of their playing, the singularity of their intent - and yes, the copious sense of exuberance infuses every note of the album. "Our relentless pursuit of fun and our selfish notion of pleasing ourselves has always driven us," Deakin concedes. "But pleasing ourselves creatively has also always worked for us, created an immediacy that makes us true to the songs. We don't create for a niche or a genre, but to capture the spirit - and that's always been our strong point."

"The fans have always understood us," says Malo. "We made them feel good - and that was something then, as now I think, people wanted. Life is so serious; even for a moment, let's forget and enjoy!"

Mayo Performing Arts Center, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, presents a wide range of programs that entertain, enrich, and educate the diverse population of the region and enhance the economic vitality of Northern New Jersey. The 2013-2014 season is made possible, in part, by a grant the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts, as well as support received from the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, F.M. Kirby Foundation and numerous corporations, foundations and individuals. The Mayo Performing Arts Center has been designated a Major Presenting Organization by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts.