Radio KBwD is on the Air

This band is a repeat from one of our first KBwD features. Another discovered-by-accident find (or, if “by chance”… aren’t they all?). Their mix of C&W, mariachi and Ennio Morricone feeds our Border/Spaghetti Western jones. This clip was taken from right here in town at Canes down in South Mission Beach and it is a more scaled-back and subdued version of one of favorite songs from these guys.

Ladies and Gentleman, from Tucson, Arizona…. please welcome, Calexico performing “The Ride, Pt. II”

One for One

Because of our distaste for the whole modern movie-going experience, it would appear we chose to see the right picture in our lone foray to the multiplex. While most people qualified best picture winner “No Country for Old Men” with “that movie directed by the Coen Brothers”, our own tag was “that movie based on the book by Cormac McCarthy”. Though we have not read that specific book, we read his “All the Pretty Horses” and “The Crossing” which is one of the 5 best books we have ever read.

Nice touch having Tom Hanks throw it over to some service men and women in Baghdad introduce the nominees for best short documentary. For a town and industry that is seen as anti-military (thank g#d, they didn't have them introduce the feature length docs where "Taxi to the Dark Side" was the winner), this is a no-brainer - they should do it every year. Hanks has the credibility to not make it appear as pandering.

And what’s the Oscars without the Razzies? Eddie Murphy and Lindsay Lohan were big winners this time around.

KBwD is on the Air.

This is our 2nd installment of KBwD, a (hopefully) regular Friday feature to share some music with you all.

Ladies and Gentlemen: Calexico!

We stumbled on these guys quite by accident some 5-6 years ago when we were looking for something to do on a random Thursday night. They were playing at the Casbah and the local fishwrap gave them a nod so we went with it.

We’ve been to about 7 or 8 of their shows including at the wonderfully restored art-deco El Rey Theater in L.A. and up in Seattle (we happened to be there on business so the Calexico-head moniker does not apply) and outside of an oddly flat performance there in Seattle, their shows have all been spectacular. In addition to their core group they are often accompanied by Mariachi Luz de Luna.

They are fond of mixing the same mariachi with ranchera, country and western and Ennio Marcionne Spaghetti Western themes. When they venture beyond this, they are given to darker, moodier tones. We forget where we saw it but we read one reviewer likening their music to a soundtrack for a Cormac McCarthy story. Anyone who has read “The Crossing” or “All the Pretty Horses” and has listened to Calexico will know just how brilliant that analogy is.

OK, because it’s the Christmas season and we’re in a giving mood we went with 2 songs: “El Picador” and “Alone Again, or..”. “Alone..” was done originally by 60s L.A. icons, Love (said to be Jim Morrison’s favorite band) and was later covered by the Damned.

We hope everybody enjoys the weekend. Please be safe out there as everyone knows San Diegans can’t drive in the rain!