Joe Breenfinds Giant Sand and Calexico maintaining a consistently excellent standard.

GIANT SAND

proVISIONS

YepRoc Records

Howe Gelb appears in many guises, but the common thread that runs through two decades of his work, either solo or in Giant Sand, has been his ability to produce weird and wonderful music, often at the same time.

Gelb is the spiritual father of the border sounds that have blossomed in Tucson, Arizona, in recent years, led by Calexico (see below). Indeed, the principles in that band, Joey Burns and John Convertino, were once in one of the many line-ups of Giant Sand.

The only constant is Gelb and the only constant with Gelb is change. Here the music is at once intimate, melodic, sublime, obscure, challenging, evocative. Shimmering and twanging guitars, echoey piano, chunky basslines, deep knowing vocals, colourful lyrical fragments, and edgy rhythms all combine to create a desert highway sign that says master maverick at work.

www.giantsand.com

JOE BREEN

Download tracks: Without a Word, Out There, The Desperate Kingdom of Love

CALEXICO

Carried to Dust

City Slang

Comparing and contrasting Giant Sand and Calexico is inevitable, given their shared history and location, and the fact that their inspiration comes from the fertile border rhythms of rock'n'roll, country and mariachi.

While Howe Gelb rides out mysteriously into the desert night, John Convertino, Joey Burns & co seem more measured, more assured, more a real band. Calexico have been solidifying into this formidable outfit for some time, holding on to sound-defining aspects (border horns, Burns's tasteful guitar) that were hallmarks of early albums Hot Railand The Black Light.

They've also retained the noir artwork of that period, but their songwriting has become broader in its range and its influences, without compromising on quality. Mexican rhythms such as Inspiracionstill spice the mix, but songs such as Red Bloomsand Victor Jara's Handsshow a band moving beyond their safety zone.

www.calexico.com

JOE BREEN

Download tracks: Victor Jara's Hands, Inspracion, Bend in the Road