Dreamy and beautiful.
“Carried To Dust” continues the Calexico tradition of moody, atmospheric records, this album, their sixth full length, is like their last, slightly more mainstream than their older records, however from ‘El Gatillo (Trigger Revisited)’ a version of one of their classic tracks from their 1998 album “The Black Light” which has a dusty feel that sounds like Ennio Morricone covering Calexico, to the brilliant new single ‘Two Silver Trees’ which sounds like a warm twilight, to the dubbed up ‘Fractured Air (Tornado Watch)’ they, as always, cover the best that Americana has to offer.
Joey Burns gentle, lulling vocals create a warm snug place to hide and musically they deliver on the shivery skin front • with goose-bumps breaking out all over on every other tune. ‘Two Silver Trees’, ‘Man Made Lake’, ‘Inspiracion’ and ‘Red Blooms’ in particular are strong, beautiful tracks. Opener ‘Victor Jara’s Hands’ named for the Chilean singer-songwriter and political activist, is classic Calexico, featuring horns, echoes and brushed drums, it’s not the best way to start the record though considering how strong some of the other tracks are • ‘Two Silver Trees’ is simply spectacular • catchy, dreamy and atmospheric • it really packs a punch. ‘Writer’s Minor Holiday’ is all fuzzy guitars and great backing vocals with a great beat. ‘Man Made Lake’ makes you go all gooey from the first chord • it’s made for a road movie • almost desolate but the piano and electric guitar warm things up towards the end.
As always this band have an eclectic mix of sounds but make each track very much Calexico; they do atmospheric and dreamy better than any other band, producing yet another album that is addictive and effortlessly cool; wrapping you up and taking you somewhere else more interesting for a while. A great addition for any Calexico fan’s collection but for newcomers, unless you like things really gentle and floaty, it might be best to start with the more off beat “The Black Light” or “Hot Rails” and work up to this one.