Calexico and The Cave Singers

Traveling troubadours, fierce as hawks, Calexico and The Cave Singers executed one triumphant live show at the Crystal Ballroom last (last) Saturday, September 27th. This shit got real the moment The Cave Singers, polka folk pioneers hailing from Seattle, took the stage. They opened their set with some mad tambourine action in seeds of night off their most recent album /Innovation Songs/. Note, I say MAD tambourine action because lead singer, Pete Quirk’s tambourine was down to two functioning symbols. Nonetheless, it made for a beat that made you want to shake your feet. There was even some incessant shouting during Dancing on Our Graves. Touché I say. Once done, they packed up their gear and due in part to my convenient proximity to the stage (it was worth it to get to there early) I was able to edge in some chitchat. I learned from guitarist, Derek Fudesco that the black barstool chairs, which accompany them to every live performance, were bought at Value Village three for four dollars. What a steal! I also learned that Quirk is honored to be my inspiration for taking up the melodica, a free reed instrument similar to an accordion.

(here's one of those bargin chairs)

Ladies and gentlemen, now for the main event, Calexico, an eclectic alt-country group from Tucson, Arizona. The stage was set, a middle-aged man’s jam basement with two too many guitars and an incredible ambiance. When they finally took the stage I wondered, are there not only two of them? But sure enough founding members, Joey Burns and John Concertino were accompanied by an assorted group from all corners of the globe. Paul Niehaus, Jacob Valenzuela, Martin Wenk, and Volker Zander together come from Spain, Germany, and some remote American town. Here I’ll claim that all songs preformed that night, especially Two Silver Trees off their new album /Carried to Dust/, were transcending, even tear jerking, like the score to a spaghetti western. Their performance was truly testament to how fluidly they combine the traditional music of the American southwest with folk rock and add in world influences from Eastern Europe. However, standing alone in excellence was the whimsical Calexico bass (standup and electric) player, Volker Zander. If only you could have seen the intense eagle eye gaze of concentration on said musician’s face. Imagine an angry mariachi band member with a bone to pick and that bone is his bass. I swear he didn’t change that fixed gaze for the entire show. Lastly, Calexico wrapped up with a second encore, which may or may not have been necessary. They exited with a just for kicks attitude and one distortion peddle still throbbing. Truly tenacious troubadours. And like any good troubadours, their instrumentation was what wooed the most. Everything from the steel-peddle guitar to the accordion were utilized. Twelve guitars, washboards, horns, egg shakers, foot tambourines, foot organs, bass peddles, vibraphones, maracas, whistling, and keyboards galore! Extraordinary, even a little ostentatious really (I mean that only in the best of ways). I’ll end with a plea, that one must see these traveling troubadours.

I liked the disco version better, Monique