BONNIE AND THE MERE MORTALS ON STAGE AT THE PITTSBURGH HONKY-TONK.| PHOTO BY SEAN COLLIER

For half an hour or so, the scene on March 29 at the Bloomfield Liedertafel looked a lot like every Friday night at a Western Pennsylvania fire hall or VFW. Small groups gathered around low tables; individuals lined up at the bar to buy cheap beer and mixed drinks in plastic cups.

If you looked closely, you might’ve noticed some clues that this was actually the early moments of Pittsburgh Honky-Tonk, a monthly celebration of community and country music. There were, after all, more cowboy hats, ornate boots and high-waisted jeans present than you’ll find at the average Moose Lodge. Otherwise, though, an average Friday night.

Then, everything changed: Suddenly, a dance lesson erupted.

PHOTO BY SEAN COLLIER

Maggie Millward, an instructor with 412Step — billed as “Pittsburgh’s all-inclusive line dancing, waltzing and 2-stepping community” — took to the stage and began teaching a line dance to the growing crowd. She explained the easy-to-follow steps, encouraging wallflowers and enthusiastic dancers alike.

In the tentative steps — not to mention the new, unscuffed boots — it was clear that we were not out west. But once the music began and the crowd started swaying, you could close your eyes and mistake this Pittsburgh hideaway for a roadside bar deep in the heart of Texas.

“I’ve found that if you keep an open mind, there’s a version of [country music] for everybody,” says bandleader and founder Jon Bindley. “You can find the joy and the camaraderie in it. Some of it is not taking it too seriously, but part of it is also respecting the genre and the history.”

Bindley and his band, Bindley Hardware Co., have become flag bearers for Americana and western music in the Pittsburgh region. The frequently sold-out crowds for Pittsburgh Honky-Tonk — which from its 2018 inception until earlier this year was called Honky-Tonk Jukebox — indicate that there’s a much larger appetite for traditional country sounds than the Steel City’s classic-rock reputation would indicate.

“I think there’s a fundamental American heartstring that’s plucked when you hear country,” Bindley says. “It’s like Dolly Parton, when you hear her voice — or Johnny Cash, or Elvis. There’s every kind of story in country music that you can imagine, and there’s every kind of person, too. If you look for it, everyone actually is a part of American country music. I think people get fooled into thinking otherwise.”

The set list at Pittsburgh Honky-Tonk includes songs from all eras, from mid-century tunes that have become standards to contemporary hits, with plenty of original turns from Bindley and his rotating cast of bandmates mixed in. He says the evening is about more than specific songs, however, citing community as a key component — as well as the fancy footwork.

“I think, from the beginning, we said — and advertised — ‘We want to dance.’ An older cohort of people really started that in the beginning; people who took swing dancing and country swing,” he explains. He adds that some younger audience members can be reluctant to dance with a stranger, but says they often come to realize that a quick dance at a country-and-western show can be, essentially, a handshake.

Although there’s more than one couple that met on the Honky-Tonk dance floor and ended up married.

Bindley, who was raised in Pittsburgh and spent time pursuing music in Nashville, ceded hosting duties for the March show to frequent collaborator Molly Alphabet, as he does every March for an all-women show tied to Women’s History Month. Instead, he posted himself at the door, selling tickets and greeting frequent guests.

It’s not just this night that he’s in the trenches; he books and plans the shows himself, eschewing promoters in favor of a DIY approach. “Inviting people to a show when you’re not in charge of things is like having a dinner party but you don’t get to decide where the chairs are — or what you’re serving,” he explains. “If you send an email about a problem with your ticket, it goes to me.”

Perhaps that hands-on approach has maintained the show’s scrappy, underground feel even as the crowds have grown. Shows are split between the Bloomfield Liedertafel and the larger Spirit Hall in Lawrenceville, which will host the June 27 show. An all-ages version for younger cowpokes, “Honky-Tonk Juicebox,” is also set for June 14 at the Liedertafel.

By the time the band launches into Shania Twain’s “Man! I Feel Like a Woman!,” the once-hesitant crowd is confidently stepping and kicking around the floor. Tables are pushed aside, and wallflowers become dancers, never quite getting every step right but making up for it with enthusiasm.

Bindley smiles at the full room. “I don’t even know that I can take that much credit for it,” he says. “It’s sort of been a little bit of ‘If you build it, they will come.’ I’m not superstitious, but I recognize that there’s always been a magic to this event.”