From its beautiful, spray-painted stencil artwork (courtesy of longtime Calexico cover artist Victor Gastelum) to the sounds within it, Carried to Dust recalls previous Calexico high points like The Black Light and, especially, Feast of Wire. Considering that Joey Burns and John Convertino reunited with many of the Feast of Wire players for these songs, the similarities shouldn't come as a surprise -- nor should Calexico's skill at revisiting older territory and finding new outcroppings in it. "Victor Jara's Hands," a tribute to the Chilean poet/musician/political activist who was murdered in 1973, begins Carried to Dust in quintessential Calexico fashion with intricate rhythms from Convertino and swells of mariachi horns, but the guest vocals by Jairo Zavala of the Spanish band Depedro add an extra, eloquent depth. "El Gatillo (Trigger Revisited)" returns to the rhythms and melody of The Black Light's "Trigger," but transforms them into a tense spaghetti western theme.
The thoughtful, whispery pop Calexico dove into on Garden Ruin also gets its due here; unlike that album, which was so gentle that its charms took awhile to unfold, Carried to Dust's quiet moments are often just as vivid as the flamboyant ones. "House of Valparaiso," which features Iron & Wine's Sam Beam, "Writer's Minor Holiday"'s twangy pop, and "Slowness"'s sweetly ambling country duet sound even brighter next to "Inspiracion"'s en Espanol lovelorn drama or "Two Silver Trees"' gorgeously shadowy fusion of Latin and Asian elements -- Calexico is one of a handful of groups that would think of combining Chinese guizeng, Venezuelan cuatro, and omnichord on one song and make all those sounds work together in a completely natural way. Carried to Dust also has subtler moments of innovation, such as "Bend to the Road," which expands on Calexico's southwestern jazz leanings, and "Contention City," a collaboration with Tortoise's Doug McCombs that spins toy piano and electronics into a haunting finale. Carried to Dust isn't just one of Calexico's most expansive albums, it's also their most balanced, channeling their experience and potential into a subtly dramatic, chiaroscuro tour de force.
It's hard to listen to Calexico and not imagine yourself wandering in solitude amongst cacti and coyotes outside of some dried up, deserted border town on your quest for self-realization, actualization or whatever you call "finding yourself." The rolling drums prod the tumbleweeds along and the whispery vocals canvas the star-ridden night sky. If you [...]
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On Carried To Dust, Calexico has continued their tradition of piecing together emotions, connections, and landscapes to reflect on themselves and the world around them. There may be songs that aren't my cup of joe, but they are all well written and extensively thought out compositions. All this is driven from where they are in [...]
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Artist: CalexicoAlbum: Carried To DustLabel: City SlangLink: www.myspace.com/casadecalexicoMaybe it’s the fact that in a month or so i’ll be heading into that crazy place we call Mexico but this album really speaks to me and it really shouldn’t. It’s not that I don’t like the band, the split they did with Iron & Wine was pretty good but on [...]
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It's wasn't just tumbleweeds and lizards that were carried across the horizon with Garden Ruin's stop gap musical experiments. Calexico modernized and in the process loss some of its Tex-Mex charm in pursuit of indie-rock idioms. Any good meteorologist or (urban) cowboy will tell you that loose soil erosion in one place means a deposit of it in another. Carried to Dust is that other place and ..
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'Carried To Dust' - the new Calexico album is fast arriving. Here are a couple of new tracks to give you an idea of what to expect from one seriously talented group of musicians. 'Slowness ' MP3 'Writers Minor Holiday' MP3~~
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From "Carried To Dust" - out on Quarterstick Records (9/09/08). CALEXICO, Carried To Dust (Touch & Go) Official Site | MySpace | Samples (Amazon) One of the best blends of Mexican and Texas/Arizona soundscapes you'll hear, Calexico is back. This is classic convertible Ford Mustang driving through the desert music. Picture giant cacti zooming by [...]
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Artist: CalexicoAlbum: Carried To DustLabel: City SlangLink: www.myspace.com/casadecalexicoMaybe it’s the fact that in a month or so i’ll be heading into that crazy place we call Mexico but this album really speaks to me and it really shouldn’t. It’s not that I don’t like the band, the split they did with Iron & Wine was pretty good but on [...]
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--- - |- NPR has just put a preview video of Calexico's new album Carried to Dust which is due out on September 9th on Touch and Go/Quarterstick and can be pre-ordered here. The video is very insightful on how the album was recorded and put together in their city of Tucson, Arizona. Plus you get to hear [...] ~~- Calexico
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On Carried To Dust, Calexico has continued their tradition of piecing together emotions, connections, and landscapes to reflect on themselves and the world around them. There may be songs that aren't my cup of joe, but they are all well written and extensively thought out compositions. All this is driven from where they are in [...]
More >
'Carried To Dust' - the new Calexico album is fast arriving. Here are a couple of new tracks to give you an idea of what to expect from one seriously talented group of musicians. 'Slowness ' MP3 'Writers Minor Holiday' MP3~~
More >
Great 3 song session from the band in the Sonoran DesertLink here: ( MOG wont' support the 18mg file!http://sessions.ticketmaster.com/34.htmlLive Session posted on Ticketmaster:Calexico - Calexico is undeniably one of the most influential—not to mention busiest—bands in indie music, so we leapt at the chance to have frontman Joey Burns come in to perform a rare solo set for us on the heels of
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It's hard to listen to Calexico and not imagine yourself wandering in solitude amongst cacti and coyotes outside of some dried up, deserted border town on your quest for self-realization, actualization or whatever you call "finding yourself." The rolling drums prod the tumbleweeds along and the whispery vocals canvas the star-ridden night sky. If you [...]
More >
It's wasn't just tumbleweeds and lizards that were carried across the horizon with Garden Ruin's stop gap musical experiments. Calexico modernized and in the process loss some of its Tex-Mex charm in pursuit of indie-rock idioms. Any good meteorologist or (urban) cowboy will tell you that loose soil erosion in one place means a deposit of it in another. Carried to Dust is that other place and ..
More >
At the Calexico show a couple weeks ago, the band threw a few lines from Bob Dylan's Silvio into the middle of "Victor Jara's Hands," turning the song a little sideways with a borrowed and entirely new vibe. It's a trick I've always liked - not exactly a cover song, but a bit of an homage. Calexico just borrowed the "Silvio" chorus, weaving it seamlessly with their own song. I've seen other
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If there's one album I haven't given the full attention it most likely deserves, it has to be Calexico's Carried to Dust. I've really only listened in parts or used it as companion music while I work. Mostly, I've been waiting to get it on vinyl (Stinkweeds was sold out when I went for it, which [...]
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 "Carried to Dust")
