Calexico is one of the most notable bands to come from Arizona. For many, its music — which is sometimes called “desert noir” — is synonymous with the Southwest. It blends styles like Americana and folk, with cumbia and mariachi — making it a reflection of the cultural milieu of the borderlands.
In just over two decades, the Tucson-based band has found a unique place as a group that makes music that is simultaneously personal and political. The lyrics on Calexico’s latest album "The Thread That Keeps Us" serve as a post-2016-election reflection explored through individual stories.
Calexico’s frontman Joey Burns, along with bandmate Sergio Mendoza, visited us in Phoenix just ahead of the kickoff of their summer tour. The Show spoke with Burns about the politics of our region, how the desert landscape shapes Calexico's sound and storytelling through music.
Calexico performed for KJZZ in The Reading Room at Valley Bar. They are performing June 1 at The Van Buren in Phoenix.
JOEY BURNS: As a musician, I'm more about being open. I'm open to other kinds of music, other kinds of language, other kinds of culture, regardless of borders or walls or differences or definitions, even so as a band. Then, when we started touring, and we brought with us some members of mariachi band from Tucson, Mariachi Luz de Luna, and when we came back to Arizona and we played a show at Nita’s Hideaway with our friend Charlie Levy, I didn't realize just how symbolic the gesture was, because I was leading from my heart, which is, you know, a musical thing.
But somebody from the Arizona Republic had commented, “gosh, if only our politicians could be as open minded, maybe we would get a lot more things done, and maybe we could move forward and come together.”
So I think that regardless of, you know, the current state of politics, or what have you you know, I think that it only makes me feel that much better about what I'm doing and that I probably shouldn't leave Arizona at this time. I probably should stay here and continue to be a source of positive influence, if that's even possible.
LAUREN GILGER: All right, Joey, why don't you play a song?
BURNS: OK. Now, Sergio Mendoza and I are going to play a song called “Under the Wheels.”
[MUSIC]
GILGER: So Joey, it doesn't sound like you meant to be overtly political on this album, but there are some stories that definitely bring up those images. I want to talk about it. The title of the album, “The Thread That Keeps Us.” Are you looking for connection in a society that feels really divided?
BURNS: Yeah, I think that we are always looking for connection. And in regards to whether or not things are political or not, I think that politics and society and all these issues, environmental as well, they're all just around us. They surround us. You can't escape it. And as much as we like to live under our rock here in Arizona, especially in the summertime, you just, you can't escape it.
It is all around us, and that's what makes us who we are. And I think we're, we're also asking “who, who are we, you know, like, you know, what makes this place so special?” You know, Arizona, or even the United States, and we can't take it for granted.
GILGER: So, let's talk about the ways in which that sort of manifests in your music. A lot of people would say you sound like the desert in a way, like, there's this sort of dusty, kind of open quality to it. How do you make that happen? Like, how are you conscious in any way, this effort to sort of sound like the landscape you're from?
BURNS: No, not really. I think maybe some of that is the fact that there are instrumentals, and then, of course, it feels sort of like a soundtrack. But, you know, also the instrumentation we've chosen over the years and we've kind of stuck to for the most part, or, you know, some of the old Western shirts that we've kept around in our closets, they kind of connect us to this tradition, and it is a tradition.
It's sort of an identity of the Southwest. There's a, you know, a literary, there's an artistic, there's a cultural, there's a lot of really interesting things that come from this area. And of course, most importantly, you have the environment, which is truly amazing, but maybe there is space in the music that could be a factor, but not really. I think it's just maybe a certain way we approach music. And the drummer of our band, John Convertino, really is quite talented as a drummer, and his using brushes in a way in which he does gives sort of a dusty feel, I think, on some songs, or, you know, maybe the fact that there are combinations of things in the music, the approach, the esthetics, the approach in which we kind of bring sounds and production together. Maybe it's evocative, but it's nothing that I'm really counting on or thinking about or even planning, I'm just trying to write a good song.
GILGER: All right, Joey, why don't you take us out on a song?
BURNS: OK, we're gonna conclude our beautiful session here with the song “The Town and Miss Lorraine.”
[MUSIC]
GILGER: That's Joey Burns of the Tucson-based band Calexico, playing for us in the Reading Room at Valley Bar.
If you’re in a band or know of one you’d like to hear on air, send us a note at [email protected].
