Hot Country Knights Channel Garth Brooks on “Midknight Rodeo”

Hot Country Knights made its triumphant return on Friday (May 26). 

The ’90s country-inspired group led by Doug Douglason (Dierks Bentley’s alter ego) released two new songs, “Herassmeant,” a tongue-in-cheek duet with Douglason and former flame Darla McFarland (aka Lainey Wilson), and the Garth Brooks-reminiscent “Midknight Rodeo.” 

“The Knights are back, baby,” Douglason said in a release. “Being off the road since the Big V (virus) has really made us reflect on what we had taken for granted. When you have a chance to really get to the core of what these songs are about, it’s just a raw appreciation for the most satisfying parts of life. I don’t expect anyone to get it on the first six or seven listens, this is deep-thinking stuff.”

On “Midknight Rodeo,” Hot Country Knights exemplify this “deep-thinking stuff.” The song borrows the feel of Brooks’ 1991 country-fueled hit “Rodeo” and amps it up a notch with a driving beat and plenty of R-rated metaphors. 

Midknight rodeo-deo-deo, midknight rodeo
I think you know what I’m talkin’ about when I say midknight rodeo
Ain’t talkin’ ’bout bulls, horses and clowns, spurs and latigo-oh-oh
I’m using innuendo
When I say midknight rodeo-oh-oh-oh-oh, whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh

Might get a little dirty
If you know what I mean
Might ride all night long
If you know what I mean, I mean
We won’t be in no arena
With a big ol’ crowd
Girl, it’s just a metaphor
For crying out loud

“Midknight Rodeo” highlights Hot Country Knights’ satirical lyrics and feel-good music. The band, which first served as openers on Bentley’s 2019 trek, will return to the road this summer on the singer’s Gravel & Gold Tour. 

The six-piece outfit includes members of Bentley’s touring band, who also perform under different personas. Hot Country Knights feature lead bass player Trevor Travis, lead guitarist Marty Ray (“Rayro”) Roburn, keytar/fiddle player Terotej (“Terry”) Dvoraczekynski, steel guitarist Barry Van Ricky and percussionist Monte Montgomery. 

“The goal was not to make this a parody album,” Bentley told American Songwriter in 2020 of the group’s debut THE K IS SILENT. “The fact is that this is a band that has been around 30 years and they are trying to make it and they think these songs are amazing. To have a few serious songs mixed in is what keeps the album from being too on the nose of being funny.”

Bentley and Jim Beavers return as producers for the follow-up to Hot Country Knights’ 2020 debut THE K IS SILENT.

Photo Credit: Jim Wright/Courtesy of The Green Room PR