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Calexico's School of Philosophy

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By: Sarah Hagerman







Convertino & Burns - Calexico




Considering the myriad of musical projects that surround him, Calexico's Joey Burns (guitar) sounds infinitely relaxed on the phone from Tucson. He draws out his sentences in a leisurely but extremely thoughtful manner. So much so that a couple times I begin asking another question, thinking he has finished, and almost talk over him, punctuating his thoughts. My journalistic faux pas doesn't seem to bother him. Even the way he describes his day is very go-with-the-flow.



“Today I'm downtown in Wavelab Studios," he says. “We had lunch nearby, and we ran into a friend, Salvador Duran, who worked with us on the Iron & Wine/Calexico EP [In the Reins, 2005], and then we were like, 'Come and hang out in the studio, have a glass of water, have a beer.' And then we were like, 'Hey, why don't you sing on this track.' And then our trumpet player [Martin Wenk], who I was trying to get a hold of earlier today, he showed up."



“So, you know, the music it just naturally finds these moments and when you find those there can be this spark of spontaneity that [hesitates briefly, finding the words]... It's heart and soul. And we kind of carry that into all the avenues of music, all the on goings of touring and collaborations we get involved with," continues Burns. “It kind of goes back to that aesthetic, that openness."



Openness has been at the heart of Calexico's approach from the beginning. First playing together in Los Angeles in 1990 with Howe Gelb in Giant Sand, Burns and John Convertino (drums, percussion) relocated to Tucson in 1994 as part of that group. They later set off as a duo after stints with Friends of Dean Martinez and then as session musicians. Originally called Spoke (also the title of their 1996 German release, re-released in 1997 by Touch and Go/Quarterstick), they would soon change their name to Calexico, inspired by a road sign for the California bordertown. They have evolved into the present lineup of six, although Burns and Convertino still form the core. Even if you don't own a single Calexico record, you have probably absorbed some little piece of this band through osmosis - from the I'm Not There soundtrack to the background music of This American Life to an assortment of collaborations and side projects too numerous to mention here.



The name Calexico itself is evocative of both the colorful jumble of barrios and border crossings and the vast hush of the Sonoran Desert, with its saguaro cacti, coyote howls and red angular mountains. Music journalists with paper cuts from thumbing thesauruses have used phrases such as “Spaghetti Western soundtrack-inspired lo-fi," “sun-baked Southwestern sonic textures" and “mariachi post rock" when describing Calexico's music, especially regarding their earlier work. Although Burns and Convertino's collective is proudly rooted in the Sonoran space and the crisscross of Americana and Mexican musical forms for sure, they cast a much wider geography. Calexico records beg for deep, repeated listening. You can hear strands from various parts of the world woven in each song - pick up on one and follow the trail of fibers. Their rich wash of sound is music as passport.



Calexico by Gerald von Foris




“It's come from [our] natural interests for sure," explains Burns. “Like whether you get turned on to Manu Chao or Amadou & Mariam. Or through traveling, being at the Diaspora Music Festival, the free world music festival in London. It's more different neighborhoods and their ethnic music groups putting on a show. It's not a big corporate production. It's very homespun, and we got to see some incredible music. Our favorite group was from Ethiopia but they live in London. It was really exciting to see, to hear that music played live. You're hooked."



“It's like the same feeling you get when you first hear your favorite bands when you are young," he muses. “It's fresh. As a musician you are always looking for new sounds rather than always going back to the same classic rock, which is probably what has propelled us to go and search out new music. If you look at bands like Beirut or Devotchka, and those are just a couple of examples, but these are bands that show there's an influence that's well beyond the borders of the United States. Hey, there's a lot of immigrants here, and they bring with them their music, their culture, which is what makes this place great. And we pick up on that vibe, which is inherently American."

“It's funny how that works," I say.



“It is funny how that works!" Burns exclaims. “We recently played the Newport Folk Festival and we got asked how we felt about bringing our music to a folk festival. And I go, 'Well, we're interested in all sorts of music from around the world.' Other countries don't call it American folk music; they just call it American roots music. Every place has their own rendition of folk, and, once again, I think that's an interesting perspective once you step outside of the American mainstream."



Continue reading for more on Calexico...







 
There's a lot of immigrants here, and they bring with them their music, their culture, which is what makes this place great. And we pick up on that vibe, which is inherently American.

-Joey Burns

 
Photo of Calexico by Gerald von Foris



“Playing festivals like Bonnaroo or Telluride or all sorts of festivals in Canada whether they be called 'Folk' or 'Jazz,' like Montreal Jazz Fest - their lineups are all over the place. It's not being so strict," he continues. “So, I think what people are responding to is this natural desire to want to mix it up, to have variety. I'm really glad to see that is starting to take place in some of the bigger festivals, and not just Bonnaroo, but some of the other ones as well. That shows promise, you know?"



Calexico


There is certain hope in keeping things diverse. But, there is also that lingering fear of the great bland arm of American popular culture pulling up the grassroots. When asked, Burns described what he witnesses on a global scale, not just a musician, but as a traveler.



“I think as soon as you step outside of the United States border things drastically change. There is awareness [of American popular culture], but there is also preservation of different countries' cultures that make them unique. They are not about to just buy into a corporate program that's going to make everything become homogenized. People are very serious about their culture, and that's inspiring. Of course, they support the arts a lot more in other countries, especially in Europe, than we do here at home."



The concept behind Calexico's latest release Carried to Dust (released September 9 on Quarterstick), originates in a challenge faced by American artists. Their fifth full-length album is, as Burns explained it, a story of an L.A. writer during the 2007 Writers' Strike. The protagonist takes a spontaneous road trip out east, finds a pre-marked map at a swap meet and follows the route it lays out for him to a cabin. From there, he travels on to local thrift stores, picking up old issues of National Geographic and stopping at roadside diners to listen to folks' stories along the way. The experience renews his creativity. I found it noteworthy that the writer's rediscovered inspiration is born out of a slightly romantic “light out for the territory" reaction to the conflicts of the digital age.







“I could identify with the writers that were having a hard time sorting out the digital rights for creative property," Burns says. “I guess musicians are kind of further down that road, maybe not so fortunate, but it's a tricky question, it's a tricky debate. You know, we all have to think about our future. There's some really interesting arguments that have been broadcast on NPR about digital creative property. I think everyone can identify with that. We want to keep doing this, but where will it lead? Every time you do a new album it seems like technology has changed. These questions are important to bring us back to square one and come full circle."



Convertino & Burns - Calexico


Burns went on to emphasize Calexico's support and encouragement for the live taping community.



“I think in general our live shows [Calexico is on tour now, dates available here], especially in Europe, are pretty well known for being dynamic and exciting, at times very spontaneous. There's a lot of guests that show up that aren't planned, so I think that word has gotten out. Most of our tapers have started out, I think, in Europe, although there are some in the States. There seems to be a growing community of people who are getting more involved with music and live shows and recording. That's exciting that people are that excited about something that they want to be a part of it and get involved. We encourage it [taping]. We have a friend of ours who coordinates it and is part of a recording community. His name is Jim Blackwood and he has a website called Litterbox Music Services. He is not only a taper but an archivist - for Calexico, Giant Sand and Victoria Williams. He's been a big fan of the Grateful Dead since he was a young kid and he also does a morning radio show here in Tucson called Your Morning Brew. He was the one who really encouraged us to make available free live recordings of a show [a bounty of live Calexico can be found here]."



From digital rights to a story of a singular journey where the larger world drifts in, the album's concept is also immediately reflective of Burns' own process as a writer and of the inspiration he, Convertino and their extended musical family receive from traveling. Always interested in stories, I inquired after some of the tales that inspired the songs on the new album.



“Both John and I have been talking about some of the references to water and the ocean on this record, which is unusual for a band that lives in the Sonoran Desert," he reflects. “But, we both spent a great deal of time living on the coast, and it's still a part of us. Then having traveled to South America we went to Chile, to the coastal town of Valparaiso, which up until the Panama Canal was built was receiving a fair amount of business. But after the Canal it started becoming more of a stop on a trade route, and this town slowly and surely started drying up a bit. It's kind of preserved like an old ghost town, where they still have this fabulous elevator system that enables people to travel up these very steep hills, kind of like a cable car in a way, but it's a box like an elevator."



Continue reading for more on Calexico...







 
I think in general our live shows, especially in Europe, are pretty well known for being dynamic and exciting, at times very spontaneous. There's a lot of guests that show up that aren't planned, so I think that word has gotten out. Most of our tapers have started out, I think, in Europe, although there are some in the States. There seems to be a growing community of people who are getting more involved with music and live shows and recording. That's exciting that people are that excited about something that they want to be a part of it and get involved. We encourage it [taping].

-Joey Burns

 
Photo of Calexico by Gerald von Foris





“There's this imagination you sense when you go [there]. You see life from a different perspective. Visiting one of Pablo Neruda's houses, he used old porthole windows, you know the round windows from ships. He had that included in the architecture of his house. So, we were just hanging out [in Valparaiso] and really enjoying this place, and it felt so comfortable being there and yet we'd never been there before. Sometimes you have those great experiences when you are traveling, you feel like you could stay there."



Joey Burns by B. Wallace


This is all evoked in the track “House of Valparaiso," which features Sam Beam (Iron & Wine). One of several members of the Calexico collaborative community that appears on this album, Beam slips in between Burns' main vocal line, as the lyrical snatches of “waves rolling off the coast" and “driftwood houses" flow over swelling trumpets and guitars.



Neruda died twelve days after the 1973 American-backed military coup in Chile overthrew democratically elected socialist President Salvador Allende and put Augusto Pinochet in power. Many Chileans saw his death as a symbol of their country's despair. This dark history also came to bear on the song “Victor Jara's Hands." Burns' friendship with Spanish guitarist Jairo Zavala helped illuminate the story of Jara, a singer-songwriter, theater director and activist who was kidnapped, tortured and eventually executed at the hands of the military.



“I just love [Zavala's] take on some of these songs. They kind of have this acoustic feel but it's not necessarily American. It's definitely not Mexican. It could be South American influenced, but it's just sort of floating there on the horizon beyond category's reach," enthuses Burns. “His insight really helped me get into the songs even further and he even helped co-write 'Victor Jara's Hands.' He told me about his own experiences with hearing Jara's music and knowing stories about his death. Just his country's perspective about what happened in Chile in the early '70s. You know just the fact that protesters and activists were being kidnapped and never being seen again, it was a strong message to take because there was a lot of criticism for anyone that would protest the Iraq War or the Bush administration over the past eight years. So, it kind of resonated with me and it kind of inspired me to write some of these songs like 'House of Valparaiso' or 'Victor Jara's Hands'."



These necessary political questions, like questions of environmental ethics, have figured in Calexico's work from the get go. Eco-concern is vividly displayed in the song “Man Made Lake," which paints a startling picture of a lake made of “cell phone trees." As Burns points out, the environment, particularly, “is a theme that's always run through our work since 1996 when we started putting out songs. There's been that kind of westward expansion and the question of, 'At what cost? Is this benefiting everyone and everything?'"



Burns & Convertino - Calexico


As much as there are questions on this album, there are also moments of perspective. Take the meditative sigh “Slowness," which features, “a duet with Pieta Brown, who's from Iowa City. That was inspired by a night hanging out with my girlfriend and driving outside the city limits, out to the desert, and losing a hubcap. And, of course, it was pitch black and we didn't have a flashlight, so we were trying to find it by starlight. Then, we just gave up and realized how beautiful it was just being out there in the middle of nowhere. It gave us a chance to sit back and know that there's a bigger picture."



The spirit of collaboration and community on this album and the far reaching map it draws, both sonically and thematically, place its focus firmly on that “bigger picture," peering through a porthole to the vastness.



“I got a nice letter the other day, not from a musician but from a fan of music," recalls Burns. “This woman was saying how much she appreciates just the aesthetic. I thought that was a really nice compliment because it wasn't so much about the music but more about the mindset and maybe a philosophy of openness. And I think that was one of the nicest letters we've got in a long, long time."



When asked what keeps driving him and Convertino after all these years, his response is joyously simple.



“Good food, good drink, good friends - basically, the same thing that was getting us going well before we started this project. We have a good group of friends, whether they are in the van, part of the whole studio experience or scattered. They live in all sorts of places all over the world, but it keeps returning, it keeps renewing itself. The community expands and it's an exciting thing to be a part of. Just to help others out, lending an ear or a cello part for someone's record. It's the same positive experience you share. That keeps you going."



Calexico is on tour in England now and will be back in the States at the end of the month; dates available here.

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