Customer Reviews

Convict Pool

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

not a bunch of throwaway tracks, an essential own...

Alone Again Or-cover of 60's band Love, very good, got a vintage brass/folk rock sound, very happy which underlies a darker lyric
Convict Pool-understated thundering acoustic song,very emotional sounding
Si Tu Disais-Classic Calexico cover, originally by Francois Brut (?)originally on the ltd import of Feast of Wire with Link Wrays "Fallin Rain "(why is that not on here) along with
Corona-classic song,known by many as the song from Jackass. Its a Minutemen song, but the Calexico version adds the Mariachi horns and driving sound we all love
Praskovia-probably the most elkegant Calexico song yet, a more lush version of a waltz like Mazurka or Mazurra off Spoke,I imagine counts and countesses dancing to this one
Sirena-a new classic, rhythmically like Crystal Frontier, with a nice chorus and more understated horns

Besides all this its got a nifty bonus track of the cartoon El Kabong rides Again set to the tune of Minus De Cobra

There is something about Calexico's sound that is compelling, particularly to those whose lives and musical tastes were forged in the multi-cultural crucible of the American Southwest. Perhaps it is the seemingly effortless ability of John Covertino, Joey Burns and bandmates to meld western, mariachi, and any number of disparate influences into a sound that shouts Calexico when you hear it.
Convict Pool is the third Calexico recording I've bought since first hearing them on a Lee Hazlewood tribute album several years ago and it is another winner.
Though as an EP it is brief, there are a couple of great songs here. My favorites are Si Tu Disais, Praskovia, and the magnificent guitar and horn driven Sirena. The band falls a little short in its cover of Arthur Lee's classic Alone Again Or, but their rendition is still very listenable.
It's truly a shame Calexico is not more widely known. They have adopted and built on "borderland" sounds touched on by others over the years from Arthur Lee and Love to Tindersticks, and have forged them into a distinctive blend of southwestern soundscapes which may yet come to be known as the "Tucson Sound". If that blend appeals to you, then Convict Pool seeks a place in your collection.

If you already like Calexico, you'll enjoy this EP. It's all good, solid Calexico sound. In particular, the song "Convict Pool" is majestic. I was listening to it this morning, amazed they could make so much sound from just a nylon-string guitar and a drum kit. John Convertino is one of the coolest, most interesting drummers in rock today! I also really like "Corona", a Minutemen cover. The other tracks, both covers and originals, are pretty standard Calexico fare. The El Kabong video is a nice bonus, but not something you'll listen to over and over like the cd.

If you're new to Calexico, this is a good place to start, but i think the album "Feast of Wire" is significantly better.

3 1/2

Fine sampler for the quietly evolving border town band- not exclusively worthy for a first purchase, but a valued overview nonetheless.

I'm not exceptionally well-versed in Calexico, this is my first purchase. Whether that makes you consider this review "pure" or "uninformed" is up to you.

The E.P. starts off fantastic, with a cover of Love's opening song from their classic "Forever Changes" album, "Alone Again Or." I can see what all the Calexico hype is about -- the parts are all clearly and confidently played, the hybridization and novelty are original and unique. Title song "Convict Pool" follows in equally as satisfying form. "Si Tu Disais" is immediate, like the other songs well-recorded and the obvious work of skilled, craftsman-like minds. I'm impressed -- the machinery of my built-in anti-hype stance is being quietly and effectively dismantled. I could sincerely recommend this to any number of friends with a clear conscience.

It's with the cover song "Corona" that it starts to unravel a bit for me. The stop-start beginning, impassioned horns and steel guitar swoop a little too close to genre parody, yet at the same time it's entirely delightful -- like an old friend showing up and bringing a festive crowd along with him (who cares if their boom box is pumping out cliches and overstatements?) The Tejano song-stylings wear a little thin here, honestly; as a person intimately familiar with "Double Nickels On The Dime" this treatment of Corona is pretty obvious. Not to mention it falls squarely into the been-done-before category (see Overwhelming Colorfast's Spanish-language version on the "Our Band Could Be Your Life" tribute CD). My misgivings with the almost parody levels of faux-Mexicana heaped onto this song are reinforced by the Cartoon Network "El Kabong Rides Again" video short that is included on the EP as a (low resolution) multi-media extra. Mexican stereotypes are overplayed and I hope this is not a defining feature of Calexico or I'll find them insufferable.

The following song "Praskovia" attempts to divert my attention from the racial-profiling of "Corona" with a side-trip to Eastern Europe but very similar instrumentation. The novelty of teasing indie-rock out of Tejano/Gypsy music/Klezmer etc. was played out long before Zach Condon showed up on the scene and made it freshly trendy. Help -- I'm starting to get disillusioned!

Closing song "Sirena" is nimble enough to redeem the E.P. in my estimation. It's still heavily indebted to a Marty Robbins/spaghetti western vibe-smithing and everything I find disquieting about the portrayal of Mexican culture (by Americans), but I have to remind myself that Calexico backed up Richard Buckner on his superb, wrenching divorce album "Devotion + Doubt." This E.P. is of an entirely different character than that record -- uplifting and driving in it's acoustic, horn-augmented delivery, trickier to grasp in its deft, non-committal lyricism. It should be noted that this is largely a covers E.P., and a darn good one at that. There is clearly a theatrical aesthetic at work here, and I can accept that without getting too caught up in what is starting to look like an authenticity rift.

Calexico are clearly a band of great sensitivity and skill. They could work on their subtlety. In the end, the positives and negatives of the "Convict Pool" E.P. even out for me -- I do plan on playing it again, sharing it with friends, and enjoying it. I'm glad I sampled this band with this purchase, and although I'm not entirely won over I suspect I will take in the rest of their catalog at a leisurely pace. For all my critiques, I do keep listening to "Convict Pool," and that's the true litmus test.

How is is possible that every other car that goes by is not blaring Sirena on the stereo? I can't get enough of it.

If you like Alone Again Or (and I do very much), also check out the Forever Changes original and the Forever Changes Concert live version, both all-time classics. Both albums are great, too.

I downloaded only these two songs.

Also check out Calexico on Senor and One More Cup of Cofee on the I'm Not There soundtrack, a Bob Dylan tribute.

Like much of Calexico work, this album has a way of growing on you. The first time you play it, you may think, "Oh, this isn't half-bad. I'll just finish out listening to it this one time..." Then a dozen spins later you realize that you just can't stop listening. Every time around, you'll find a new inflection of the guitar, a new inspiring line. Gracefully, it will crawl into your heart and make a cozy home in there.

This album's production is not as refined as their better known albums, such as Black Light and Feast of Wire, but the rougher studio sound only makes this more charming and endearing. It adds that feeling that perhaps you are not listening to a CD, but are rather fortunate to catch Calexico in a small bar, and Joe Burns is playing his guitar just a few feet away from you. And, really, Calexico is a band that should be enjoyed live.

Yep, I'm in love with this.