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Calexico
Carried to Dust
Review By Chris Drabick
In a lot of ways, it’s all about the road for Calexico, both figuratively and literally. Joey Burns and John Convertino have explored border music, as their name suggests, throughout a huge portion of their career. The figurative road next took them to a poppier town, as Garden Ruin was the most straightforwardly “American” record for the Tucson duo, and retained little of the Tex-Mex flavor of career highlights like Hot Rail. Literally, Burns and Convertino have made their living as road dogs, and followed the road from town to town to greater acclaim and bigger audiences on each swing. Next, the road has led Calexico to a well-worn path, as Carried to Dust discards the pop move of its predecessor for a return to the band’s signature sound.
The move is a welcome won, as Burns and Convertino sound at home on highlights like “The News About William” and “Slowness,” which stands as perhaps the band’s finest ballad. The arrangements fall to the familiar, with mariachi horns spicing the fine “House of Valparaiso” and “Victor Jara’s Hands.” Dust also stands as perhaps Calexico’s most collaborative record to date, as Iron & Wine’s Sam Beam returns (their joint In the Reins is a career highlight for each), and Tortoise’s Doug McCombs and Iowa folkster Pieta Brown also contribute. The end result is that, even if this isn’t the road less traveled, Calexico has returned to the highways and byways that serve them best, and Carried to Dust is much better for it.
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