Scroll down for reviews of the latest from Tommy Keene, Calexico, Flaming Lips, Jon Auer, Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs, Morrissey, The Oohs and Eagles of Death Metal

Tommy Keene
Crashing The Ether

(Eleven Thirty)

eleventhirtyrecords.com

"You know I'm wishing" is the refrain of the song "Wishing" on Tommy Keene's tenth album. Keene is always wishing and hoping, when he's not ruing or sifting through the wreckage of another relationship. Keene's sweet and sour power pop hasn't changed much since he first burst on the scene more than 20 years ago. He's a bit more wizened and the music a bit more raw in spots. On a lot of his songs, he takes the sunny jangle of guitars and strips away the artifice that so many of us create about relationships, finding something sadder and painfully real underneath. Even when waxing nostalgic in song, it's almost inevitable that good memories are just a precursor for the inevitable fall.

I'm not saying that Keene's music is depressing. It's not at all. It has an emotional weight that one doesn't always associate with melodic rock. This explains why he has so ably covered material like Lou Reed's "Kill Your Sons" and Mission Of Burma's "Einstein's Day". There's an edge there that separates him.

Thankfully, it's not there all the time. All pondering and brooding and no play would make Tommy a bit hard to take. He still manages to come up with songs that are beguiling and sweet sounding, like "Warren in the 60's". The song has a nifty bass-and-drum pattern over which Keene lays some shimmering guitar work. The guitar line actually sounds like something from The Hollies. The middle-eight is winsome and warm. I'm just having a hard time keying in on who Warren is -- Warren Beatty? Warren Spahn? Chief Justice Earl Warren? Having an advance copy and no lyrics is no help. All I know is that twice Keene sings "I wish we had no/Warren in the 60's." So it can't be about Warren Spahn.

My favorite songs on this album are the ones where Keene (who plays almost everything on the album) and drummer John Richardson get to stretch out, and he can really fire up his guitar. He opens the record with "Black & White New York", which starts with Richardson pounding away on his kit. The arrangement is precise, as Keene fits together his guitar parts and the bass line and works everything else in the song off of it. This song verges on psychedelic with repetitive drumming and the near drone of the melody. The last 90 seconds or so of the song are just a joy, Keene soloing over the continued heavy footed beat keeping of Richardson. Keene gets another opportunity to close out a song with a great solo on the slow "Driving Down the Road in My Mind", even double tracking his parts for a dual lead effect (without managing to sound like Thin Lizzy).

The pensive "Lives Become Lies" is a highlight on the album. This song immediately has a bit of a different texture, opening with a static keyboard line. This is also a slower jangle number, with Keene drawing out the notes on the words, in keeping with the relaxed pace of the song. The middle eight finds Keene emoting as strongly as he ever has on any record, his voice betraying a little strain. He pleads near the end to "please come back to your life" -- it's really affecting.

I'm also quite taken by "Alta Loma", which has a slightly different cast to the melody than most Keene songs. In other respects, it's a fairly typical Keene song. Heck, he probably has a number of songs with similar hooks. Yet the mood it evokes for me -- the sensation of driving on a rainy cold fall day and watching the waves break on the lake -- this is why I love Tommy Keene. The music is large and his voice sounds small trying to be heard clearly through the guitars. It's so aching and human. When Keene gets his music to this place, it becomes so special to me.

In the end, I can't say that this is a must get Tommy Keene album. You see, he has two types of albums -- really great, or just plain good. This probably belongs in the latter category. But if you haven't heard him, this would be as good as any to take a chance on, since it is so representative of what his music is about. At times, it can be very catchy. But what really matters is the moods, and they pervade on this disc.

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The Flaming Lips
At War With The Mystics

(Warner Brothers)

warnerbrosrecords.com

My first reaction to this record is that it is a bit of a disjointed mess. Coming off their two most successful records (both commercially and critically) and establishing themselves as a prime concert attraction (and spectacle), maybe Wayne Coyne, Steven Drozd and Michael Ivins had just run out of gas.

Having listened to the record for a few weeks, I won't change my opinion that this record is a disjointed mess. However, I now think this is a good thing. This disc is at turns playful and beautiful and finds this Oklahoma institution dabbling in some new sounds without ignoring the recent wonderfulness of the past. Not every album has to be a masterwork. This may be a transition record, as the band dabbles in incorporating some ‘80s funk and R & B in their sound. Or it could just be a detour.

Regardless, the Flaming Lips remain a creative force, always trying to find new sounds and textures, aided by uber-producer Dave Fridmann, the fourth Lip. You get some odd crunchy guitar sounds that sound like they were run from a toy amplifier. There's a flute solo run into a wah-wah guitar solo (on "The Wizard Turns On..."). Coyne even tries to summon up a little Burt Bacharach mojo.

Let's start there, as I never thought of the Lips as lounge lizard types. "The Sound Of Failure" actually starts off like an old Bee Gees ballad from the ‘60s...well, as close as The Flaming Lips can come to that. But as the drum beat kicks in, the primary melody of the song takes over and it's very much in the vein of classic Dionne Warwick. The lyric is a harder nut to crack, with Coyne warbling "So go tell Britney and go tell Gwen/she's not tryin' to go against them," and I have no clue how this relates to the sound of failure. But this is a lovely song that is sad and haunting, in its own way.
There are other moments of mellow magic on this album, some of which are reminiscent of The Soft Bulletin and Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robotstracks. "My Cosmic Autumn Rebellion" and album closer "Goin' On" would have fit well on those discs. "Goin' On" is a song about enduring, and the lyrics are simple and general, but sung from the heart. The song is based on a basic piano part and adds some great backing vocal harmonies in the distance. This actually has a bit of ‘70s pop-rock feel to it. "Autumn Rebellion" has the lush layered atmosphere that we've come to expect from The Flaming Lips. The burbling keyboards underneath the more stately primary keyboard lines actually bring back memories of Gary Wright. The lyrics in the liners provide a parenthetical that describes the tenor of the song -- "(The Inner Life as Blazing Shield of Defiance and Optimism as Celestial Spear of Action)". It celebrates sticking together and seeing things through. The soulful soft music is sent to a new plane by an uplifting fuzzy guitar solo. Sweet.

It's fun to hear the Lips get their musical freak on. On "The W.A.N.D.", an effects laden fuzz guitar and a swaying beat get things going. The guitar riff sounds like it's from an old Jermaine Jackson or Isley Brothers record, and it is a constant hook throughout the track. The song adds some other clever wrinkles, including scratching effects. Meanwhile, "Free Radicals" also has a prominent guitar riff, and Coyne breaks out a Prince-like falsetto. This isn't pure funk, but it's funky, in a unique way.

There are some other typically inventive rhythms on the album. "Haven't Got a Clue" has a mild mid-tempo electro beat pushing it forward. The opener, "The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song" goes back in time, backing up some "la la la" vocals with a modified Bo Diddley beat. By the way, the song has nothing to do with The Yeah Yeah Yeahs -- it poses a simple question -- if you were all-powerful, would you be selfish or altruistic? Shave-and-a-haircut and some metaphysics.

While far from perfect, this album posits a variety of directions the band could go in. Probably the biggest thing it's lacking is one absolutely killer song on par with "Do You Realize?" or "Race for the Prize". It might not be the best Flaming Lips album, but it's a worthwhile effort.

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Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs
Under The Covers Vol. 1

(Shout Factory)

shoutfactory.com

I spent my first four years after college working at the Downers Grove, Illinois outpost of the Sound Warehouse record store chain. This was an interesting period in my life, if not the most productive. But I spent four more years (after my time in college radio), immersed in music. When I wasn't trying to indoctrinate my metal liking friend Dave on great punk rock -- and I should note that he ended up playing bass for the swell pop-punk band Wax, so it worked -- I was often debating other metal heads on many musical topics.

One of my co-workers was an arty metal dude (y'know -- he liked stuff like Iron Maiden and Savatage) and took a hard line on doing other people's songs. You just don't do it. A true artist writes his own material. My position was different -- too many people write their own songs. There are so many great songs out there, why not sing those instead, unless you can write ones that are just as good. Heck, it's worked for Ray Charles, the early days of The Beatles, Frank Sinatra and Buck Owens. So it's good enough for anyone.

The most important thing is to perform good songs very well. Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs of The Bangles know a thing or two about writing a good song. Still, there are so many greats from the past that they love. These two musicologists make a winning team on an easy going album that offers no revelations, just pure entertainment.

The pair dip primarily into the ‘60s, with only a couple early ‘70s tunes in the batch. There is a great mix of pure pop with some British Invasion greatness and some proto-jangle rock. The one thing that really stands out about this album is that it reiterates that Hoffs is one heck of a singer. She has a distinctive phrasing, a pleasing range and knows when to throw in a little vibrato for effect. Sweet is solid, but Hoffs is the leader of this team, performancewise.

The two pretty much play the songs straight up. No major rearrangements here. And it basically works. For example, their take on The Mamas and Papas' "Monday Monday" may not quite match the classic original, but it isn't far behind. Sweet's lead vocal shows him at his best, and then Hoffs takes care of the background vocals -- this probably has the best blend of their voices on the whole record. I can safely say that this is the third best version of the tune ever -- the best version is the smoking punk rock cover by M.I.A. (the Cali band, not the Sri Lankan hip-hop artist).

Another strong track is "Different Drum", the Mike Nesmith classic that provided Linda Ronstadt (as part of The Stone Ponys) her first hit. Hoffs sparkles in her treatment of the song. Unlike Ronstadt (or Nesmith) she doesn't have a country music cry in her voice, and the song has a couple spots just made for that. Nevertheless, she nails it in impressive fashion, finding the right mix of defiance, independence, tinged with a bit of melancholy that serves the lyrics so well.

Sweet gets to tackle two Neil Young songs, "Cinnamon Girl" and "Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere". Based on his recordings, had Sweet fluffed either of these tunes, a Congressional investigation would be in order. Sweet's excellent performances on both leave Congress more time for their lengthy vacations away from Washington D.C. Sweet's performance on "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue", however, doesn't quite hit on all cylinders. His low key voice seems to get swallowed up a bit. And the version of "The Kids Are Alright" could use a bit more punch.

This is made up for with some forays into sublime pop songs that may not have been big hits in America, but should have been. It's a real treat to hear Hoffs take on The Zombies' "Care of Cell #44", and The Marmalade's "I See the Rain" is a corking opener. Equally great are the versions of The Beach Boys' "The Warmth of the Sun" and The Left Banke's "She May Call You Up Tonight".

Based on my scorecard, I'd give Sweet and Hoffs a B+. While not every song kills, most of them are fine. I would suggest a tour and preliminary work on Volume 2 are in order.

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Jon Auer
Songs From The Year Of Our Demise

(Pattern 25)

pattern25.com

I'm not sure exactly what to make of this. The Posies were one of the great power pop bands of the late ‘80s and early ‘90s. With their brilliant harmonies, gold woven hooks and smart lyrics, they married great ‘60s British pop with a modern take on the power pop sound. Yet, they never made one flat out great album. Moreover, their recent reunion album was pretty weak, sounding like a collection of half baked ideas.

Yet Jon Auer and Ken Stringfellow seem to be at the peak of their creative powers. The evidence for this is found on their solo discs. Stringfellow already has two excellent full length discs out under his name. And now, finally, Auer has a full LP to his credit. There's no two ways about it -- it's the best work he's ever done.

In one hour, Auer builds on his best work with The Posies, creating a collection of downcast pop songs that are beautiful, sad and resonant. As is often the case with the best of these moody bad relationship records, it manages to strike familiar unhappy memories that we all have. Yet, while traveling into uncomfortable territory, the melodies provide the necessary uplift to make this record a pleasure to listen to rather that a chore.

In Josh Emmons's splendid debut novel, The Loss Of Leon Meed, the title character comes to the conclusion that the only thing we truly have in life is loss -- relationships, family and tangible objects could all go at any minute. A great deal of this album fits perfectly with that theme. In addition to busted romances, there are also songs that touch upon death and family rifts. Auer's lyrics are direct, with just a little bit of imagery and flourish in spots. There's no need for dense wordplay, because he is not holding back his emotions.

Musically, a lot of the album seems like a modern update on ‘70s singer-songwriter material. This is evident early on, as a warm inviting acoustic guitar part starts off "Bottom of the Bottle". It shimmers like a track from Bread, and the melody of the song is in keeping with that. As the song unfolds, Auer sings about a former friend (or lover?) who is battling her demons with alcohol. Auer really captures what it's like trying to support someone with a substance abuse problem, vacillating from being supportive ("we all told you how great you were/and we can't believe that can't be sure.") and scolding ("I hear you're sorry/and I hope it's true."). Affecting.

Another song in this vein is "My Sweet Unknown". While, like a lot of material on this record, this could have been recorded by The Posies, the arrangement of this song and the performance have a slightly different cast. A good comparison would be moodier Sloan songs like "The Other Man". This song really has a Southern California rock feel, especially when it hits the outstanding guitar solo. Heck, this could have been an AOR staple back in the day.

I'm quite sure that "Four Letter Word" would not have sounded like this if it had been done by The Posies. This is a waltz, with a stately piano playing in the same tempo as the drums. The song varies the marital melody with a second, softer melody. This song comes from the same place as Auer's "The Hate Song", but without any snottiness (opening line: "It's hard to say who's the one to blame/I guess it'd be you now."). Yes, Auer is pissed off and bitter at an ex, but he's channeling his anger. The song is tense and during the bridges, it really explodes, Auer's voice soaring.

The tension is sometimes delicate, but it pervades most of the album. From the opening number, where Auer sings "I'll call you when we're six feet underground," to the kiss off of a sibling on "You Used to Drive Me Around" to the put down "Jesus can't hold no damn candle to you" (on "Daytime Lullaby"), there's a lot of negativity. It's balanced by rays of hope, found on songs like "Wicked World" (a pretty acoustic song) and "Sundown" ("I'll believe if you believe"). Sometimes, he's somewhere in the middle -- on "The Likes of You", Auer pines for a woman and would give anything to have her back.

The title song closes the album. It's a slow building song, with a repetitive rhythm and melody that Auer adds layers to, then stripping things away to leave just his voice and some percussion -- the sadness and exposed nerves highlighted, for better or worse. The hook is a simple ascension of the melody, all the more compelling with Auer singing the words: "And I want you to know/how I loved you so."

This album is a wholly involving emotional experience. It seems that solo, both Auer and Stringfellow are more willing to expose themselves and go out on a limb as songwriters and performers. While I'm always glad when they work together, but I really look forward more to the times when they are working apart.

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Eagles Of Death Metal
Death By Sexy...

(Downtown/Rekords)

Downtownrecordings.com

These Eagles may be a lark for Josh Homme, but the end result is fun old-fashioned rock and roll. Homme and frontman Jesse Hughes stomp and boogie through more blues based silliness, and while this is eminently disposal, it is fun through and through. So no wonder they wanted to make a second album.

This is mostly Hughes's show, though some songs show the influence of Homme's style as the leader of Queens Of The Stone Age. However, the primary influences at work here range from ZZ Top to Steve Miller Band to Canned Heat to T. Rex. to any opening act for an arena rock band during the mid-‘70s. The best tracks on this album are marred only by the fact that they don't have the classic hiss that accompanied most 8-track tapes.

Hughes has a keen ear for the type of guitar riffs that were made to be blasted out of the open windows of an AMC Gremlin with racing stripes and an ashtray overflowing with Winstons and maybe a roach or two. Like the 4/4 cruising brilliance of "Shasta Beast". Hughes's thin falsetto is an unlikely vehicle for a series of sexual brags, but double tracking and a boogieriffic chord progression (with Homme's unspectacular but sure footed drumming) carry the day, as Hughes tells his sweetie: "Your momma and your poppa always hassle me/get ya home by midnight, but it's 10 to 3" and later drops the bomb: "I wanna pick your lock and break your chastity/I got the combination and the master key."

Much like the Queens, Hughes finds a way to sneak a little bit of melody into the rocking. "I Gotta Feeling (Just Nineteen)" finds a snatch of it in the chorus. The song rides fuzzy guitars and verges on being funky. It's a salacious ditty that suggests Jim Dandy fronting T. Rex, with Keith Richards guesting on guitar. This come on features some silly backing vocals and an unwavering confidence, both in the lyrics and the strength of this riff. Who needs middle eights, when you have your rock just right?

All boogie and no relaxation would be fun, but it's alright to ease up a bit from time to time. The Eagles head to the back porch on a couple tunes. Album closer "Bag O'Miracles" is an acoustic bottleneck guitar hoedown, complete with pickin', grinnin' and whistlin'. It almost makes you want to break into Queen's "39" or Van Halen's "Could This Be Magic?". A similar vibe is created on "Solid Gold", though it applies some slide guitar plinging to an industrial strength drum beat and rubbery bass line.

Meanwhile, on "Chase the Devil", the boys go all psychobilly, with Hughes doing his best Lux Interior imitation, full of hiccups and reverb. This song shows that there are only a few degrees of separation between The Cramps and White Zombie, and it's a bit better to sound like the former than the latter. The most Queens-like track follows, the rumbling "Eagles Goth". The rhythm guitar part and drums could come off of any Queens record, but add the droning guitar part that later surfaces and the hellish backing vocals -- well, it could be a QOTSA outtake. Which is fine with me.

Whether Hughes and Homme can keep pulling this rabbit out of a hat on a long term basis remains to be seen. But should that matter? The point of this music is being pointless and happy. Anything that punctures the climate of seriousness that has infected rock and roll for decades is welcome. Particularly if it does not involve a shirtless Justin Hawkins.

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The Oohs
Llamalamp

(Oohszone Layer)

theoohs.com

From the punny title (by the way -- if there is ever a release of early demos from this Springfield, Illinois, I suggest it be called Primal Oohs) to the mysterious psychedelic intro snippet to having the first full song quote the opening riff of "Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band", I was fully set for another fun house ride with The Oohs. I'm not saying that these guys are fluffy or insubstantial, but rather, The Oohs have flash and dazzle and can show off with the best of them, knocking off some crazy perfect harmonies or throwing in a clever arrangement that is like icing on the icing on the cake.

However, the showier tendencies of the band take a back seat on this album. At first, I actually missed them. A few plays of this disc quickly won me over. If the last Oohs album had a bit of a New Wave cast, this album focuses on solid ‘70s-style craftsmanship. On some tracks, they seem to be following in the footsteps of artists like Chicago and Ambrosia. This may not be everyone's cup of tea, perhaps. But if you like a good soft pop track, The Oohs have some to turn you onto.

Like the silky smooth "More Than Meets the Eye". Brian Curtis plays a bevy of keyboards, while Frank Huston sings intently, and even adds a few bluesy guitar licks before and after the final chorus. This is a slice of soulful pop that would have slotted in somewhere between Hall & Oates and Boz Scaggs on a 1977 radio playlist. I could also say that about "To Be in Love", where The Oohs' harmony vocal abilities get a real showcase. The song mixes light R & B inflected pop with a definite ‘70s Beach Boys feel. The vocal interlude that serves as a middle eight is simply sublime. Other songs in this vein include "One Step Closer to Nowhere" and "Settle For Human". Both these songs are ace soft rock, the latter featuring two strong hooks, in a bridge and chorus that are extremely memorable.

The band adds a psychedelic Eastern music vibe (which fits the groovy cover art) on "Strange World". This full band composition mixes verses that are reminiscent of Paul McCartney's "Old Siam Sir" with more of those smooth harmony vocals. On "That's What She Said", The Oohs fashion a crackerjack old school power pop number -- it's like Fountains Of Wayne meets Fools Face, with a pithy rock and roll chorus and yet another fabulous middle eight. This is followed by the jaunty piano driven ditty, "What Have You Done to My Girl", with Brian Cutright finding a melody that evokes The Beatles and Emmit Rhodes. Heck, even the drummer can sing, with Jim Engel equal to the task on "I Will Love".

I could go on, as this album is chock full of great songs. On album number three, The Oohs really crystallize as a band, and while, as I've noted above, their songs often trigger thoughts of other artists, they don't sound like them -- it's just a similarity. They have really found a style that fits that considerable talents and sounds so natural and effortless. While there's always room for improvement, The Oohs could stay in this place for a while, and I wouldn't mind.

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Morrissey
Ringleader Of The Tormentors

(Attack)

sanctuaryrecords.com

After a seven year layoff that last until last year, Morrissey has moved more quickly in kicking out the followup to 2004's *You Are The Quarry*. While long time side men like Alain White and Boz Boorer are again along for the ride, he also gets some new blood on the team. He collaborates with Jesse Tobias on a few songs, and hired veteran producer Tony Visconti to man the boards. Visconti, who has worked with T. Rex, David Bowie and Sparks, among others, is well suited to this disc, which finds Morrissey working with strings and children's choirs. Visconti has a classical background and can chart out strings and arrangements.

However, Visconti had to step aside on one song, and I'm sure he didn't mind. On "Dear God Please Help Me", Morrissey turned to a legend -- Ennio Morricone. The Italian soundtrack master wrote and arranged the strings on this tender ballad. This song is a true mix of the sacred and profane, as Morrissey croons over somber music, aching with lust and asking for the help of a higher power, because "I am so very tired/of doing the right thing." This song is both empathetic and slyly humorous, the lush and ornate music making the desperation of wanting to get laid have sufficient gravity.

Morrissey sings to the Lord with better intentions on "I Just Want to See the Boy Happy". This is a classic slice of Morrissey guitar pop, with pensive verses ascending to a passionate chorus. The song is utterly straightforward, taking on a dying man's wish to see his son (or grandson) have a good life. The band's performance is spot on, particularly hired gun Matt Chamberlain (ex-Filter, Smashing Pumpkins, et al.) pounding away on the drums. The Michael Farrell trumpet solo at the end adds a nice extra element to the drama.

Of course, with Morrissey, drama is inherent and expected. It infuses "The Youngest Was the Most Loved", which revisits a favorite theme of Mozz's -- how someone can do evil. Here, rather than the playful tone on his classic "Last of the Famous International Playboys", Morrissey's attitude is one of curiosity and horror -- "we kept him from the world's glare/and he turned into a killer." He's aided in the chorus by an Italian children's choir, singing along to "There is no such/thing in life as normal." That sentiment encapsulates a lot of Morrissey's work. At first, I thought the choir was a bit over the top, but I've changed my mind about that, and I think it works very well.

All in all, this is not a great album, but it's not just a rock great coasting. Any Morrissey album stands or falls primarily on the strength of the music, since the lyrics are usually pretty strong. On this effort, the tunes are solid, although there are no total knockouts. On the other hand, only a couple of tunes are totally forgettable. A couple of songs are mixed affairs. "The Father Who Must Be Killed", features a memorable chorus, though the playing could be a bit more urgent, to match the lyrics. And the first single, "You Have Killed Me", is a relaxed effort, though it may have the weakest lyrics on the album.

The biggest disappointment with this record is that he didn't go further in exploring strings and horns with Visconti producing. While this doesn't get stuck in a guitar-bass-drums rut, more could have been done here. Still, although it's not a prime effort, it shows that Morrissey is really back. Maybe the next one will be great.

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Calexico
Garden Ruin

(Quarterstick)

quarterstickrecords.com

The sixth full length Calexico album finds them, to the chagrin of some fans, I'm sure, moving towards a less idiosyncratic and more accessible sound. The distinctive Southwestern flourishes, particularly the dramatic horn parts, are barely in evidence, and some of the music on this album is simply low key and sweet. However, this isn't to say that Calexico is no longer capable of creating powerful music, it's just that they are finding different ways to do so.

I love how this album is sequenced, as it begins with the more accessible songs, and then gets more challenging throughout. Early on, the whispery vocals of Joey Burns and the happy melodies invite comparisons to Clem Snide, and especially Iron And Wine, who hooked up with Burns and John Convertino for a terrific EP in 2005.

The opener "Cruel" has a seemingly positive happy melody, but the secondary melody is more in keeping with the lyrics. Burns sings poetically about the dog eat dog world, and the march to make money at the expense of the environment: "Even the horizon is gone/weather flees underground/future's left to wallow in fortune's waste." This song sweetly stings, and the band weaves a musical spell adding an array of instruments to support the strong composition, such as a Hammond B3 organ, pedal steel and trumpets.

The somewhat cryptic lyrics of "Panic Open String" also seem to have environmental concerns. The tune sounds combines the quiet touch of Iron And Wine with aggressive acoustic guitar strums that give it a bit of anthemic heft. The song is almost a musical equivalent of the movie *Brazil* -- the verses describe a drab reality and future, and the soaring refrain is like a fantasy, a happy respite. This is a song where death and immortality is seen as the greatest hope one can have. The music almost convinces me.

If anything, the following track, "Letter to Bowie Knife" has an even stronger contrast between the lyrics and the music. The invigorating acoustic strums are augmented by electric guitars and the chorus of the song has a bouncy chord pattern that sounds like Neil Diamond, circa 1968. Whatever the poor bastard in the song did, he feels he's irredeemable. So while he's being asked to "come home" all he can say to that "it's too late." Fatalism never sounded so fun.

The band unleashes further fury on "Deep Down". Here, Burns sings about sending out troops for a unjust war. Ring any bells? This song builds up, as Burns refers to times "[w]hen numbers matter more than the heart" and it's important to "push this through" even though "deep down you know it's evil." Burns, Paul Niehaus and Martin Wenk all play electric guitar on this track and the playing gets more furious as the track goes on, Convertino driving things alone. In some respects, this song reminds me of some recent Wilco work. It's a bracing display of anger at the architects and supporters of the Iraq War.

As the above examples show, even if Calexico is not rehashing their trademark sound, they still make music that really resonates. Maybe the devices they use are more common to the rock world, but the talents of Burns and Convertino still make the sound stand out. They still can lay on the Mexican accents. "Roka (Danza de la Muerte)" has the reverbed twang guitar and south of the border horns that everyone expects. This song is a musical film noir, with vocalist Amparo Sanchez adding her distinctive tones on the chorus. The song itself is pretty compelling, and there's a lot of interesting things going on in the back of the mix. This is very cool. The band shows that it's trilingual on the quiet "Nom de Plume", which sounds like a Southwestern Tom Waits, with French lyrics to boot. The album closes on a very strong note, with the cautionary "All Systems Red", another swipe at the current state of America, with Burns aching to hear the chimes of freedom "ring again." This song unfolds into an expansive stirring piece of music.

I'm not enough of a Calexico fan to ably rank this album. I can say that this is an album that only gains in power with each listen, with a very strong emotional atmosphere. It's excellent.

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