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Mystery plays a key part to several of these tracks including, "Bend To The Road". "House of Valparaiso" features Iron & Wine's Sam Beam singing backup in a Tex-Mex ballad. Considering the album's length, there is much to admire here from hushed pop songs to lush instrumentals. Exploring musical genres on both sides of the border has always been one of Calexico's strengths.
Bravo, Calexico. "Slowness" crosses the border to deliver a country duet. On the album opener, "Victor Jara's Hands" mariachi horns accompany the tribute to the fallen Chilean activist. Calexico returns with their strongest effort since "The Black Light." Joey Burns and John Convertino have recruited the same players from that album and the new record is a pleasure to hear. Calexico also explores different elements of sound throughout the album.
"El Gatillo" sounds like it could be an Ennio Morricone outtake from some forgotten western.
Nothing prepared me for this. It may seem to have an identity crisis at times as it roams from style to style, but the current is always in the same direction. But you also don't get lost in a conversation you can't understand, as happens in Feast of Wire. This album has both.
That slowness has indeed never gone away. I was hooked the moment I heard Slowness and it was over after that. It's got everything you loved about In The Reins, Feast of Wire, and Garden Ruin, and it blends it all together to reveal unexpected pleasures. It is by far my favorite album of 2008. As a fan of Calexico, I have always followed and enjoyed their work. Previous work had struggled with this issue - mood and style vs substance. You never lose sight of the band, which happened at times with Garden Ruin.
A mountain of delight. I have been digesting this album for some time, and it has yet to diminish its stature in my eyes. The mood of the southwest is pervasive, but does not overpower a set of songs strong from start to finish. It's simply the most mature, enjoyable thing they've produced.
Meanwhile, "Carried To Dust" is highly recommended. It all results in a dreamy state of affairs that I just can't put down. This is the 8th album in the band's rich history since 1997 but it's the first album I've discovered after hearing/reading so much critical acclaim on this that I just had to seek this out, and you can rest assured it won't be the last album I'll be listening to from these guys. range) songs (with 2 short instrumentals) that make their point, and then the band moves on. In all this is a great album that deserves all the critical acclaim it has gotten. I can only hope to see these guys live at some point, what a show that I suspect it would be. "Carried To Dust" (15 tracks; 45 min). The album consists of a slew of short (in the 3-4 min.
There are of course no 'hits' on here, but plenty of highlights: the opener "Victor Jara's Hands" sets the table; "Man Made Lake" ends in a searing electric guitar solo; "Inspiracion" is a Spanish-song little ditty with great Mexican horns; "House of Valparaiso" features Iron & Wine's Sam Beam on vocals; and so on. Hopefully they'll be either at Coachella or Bonnaroo, both of which I'll be attending this year. Let me state upfront that I am a late-comer to the Calexico fanfest. brings a mesmerizing mix of indie-folk-electric-country-Latin sounds, and even these descriptions don't do full justice to the band. There are really no weak tracks on here, period.
I find myself listening to this record over and over again without growing tired of it. This is a very easy record to listen to with its pop sensibility and musical depth. I just have to figure out which record to get next. I had always seen the name Calexico while reading No Depression and various web sites, but I had never heard them. Amazon put this download on sale so I bite and I'm so glad that I did. These guys have their own thing going on which is refreshing in today's musical climate.
I checked a few clips, and remember some of the songs They are mesmerizing.Their style is what it is. Not outstanding, but excellent. I happened to have seen them, live, in Omaha, NE, and I was unaware of this album. Eclectic for sure, but their own.
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