Calexico had its origins in 1990 when Burns, who was studying music at the University of California, Irvine, met up with Convertino, who was playing drums with Howe Gelb in Giant Sand. Burns joined them, after first playing upright bass on a European tour.
Giant Sand moved to Tucson, Arizona in 1994. John and Joey formed the Friends of Dean Martin (later the Friends of Dean Martinez) which scored a record deal with Sub Pop. However, the pair split up with Bill Elm, the co-founder of The Friends of Dean Martinez in 1996. The band subsequently became a kind of indie rhythm section for hire, working with the likes of Victoria Williams, Barbara Manning and Richard Buckner before forming Calexico.
Calexico first recorded Spoke in 1995 for German independent label Hausmusik with a limited edition of 2,000 copies. At that point the band was still called Spoke and the album was technically self-titled. After the band signed with Quarterstick Records (a subsidiary of Touch and Go Records) and changed their name to Calexico, Spoke was reissued by that label in 1997. Burns and Convertino also collaborated with Gelb and Lisa Germano on the album Slush released under the name OP8 that same year.
Their second album The Black Light was released in 1998. This was a concept album about the desert of Arizona and northern Mexico and received excellent reviews, with the critic from the Wall Street Journal rating it as one of the best records of the year.
The band built their profile by touring as support acts for bands such as Pavement, the Dirty Three and Lambchop. Calexico has regularly played festivals such as the Bonnaroo Music Festival, the Hurricane Festival and All Tomorrow's Parties. The Road Map album was a limited recording released in 1999 for sale only at Calexico's live shows.
Calexico released its third album Hot Rail in May 2000 featuring the addition of horns and violin to their sound. The duo was busy in 2000 as they also appeared on a Giant Sand record called Chore of Enchantment as well as a tour only record Travelall.
At the end of 2000, Burns and Convertino joined with two French friends Naïm Amor and Thomas Belhôm to record "Tête A Tête" (Wabana Records, 2001) released under moniker ABBC (Amor/Belhom/Burns/Convertino). Calexico released two collections of rarities during 2001. Even My Sure Things Fall Through collected outtakes from previous albums, B-sides, remixes and material previously unreleased in the US. The album also featured Mariachi Luz de Luna who frequently played live with the duo. The Aerocalexico album was sold exclusively at their gigs in 2001.
The Scraping live album was released in 2002. Their next studio recording Feast of Wire was released in 2003 and made the charts for the first time appearing on Billboard's Heatseekers and Independent album chart. They made their first video for "Quattro (World Drifts In)" which was a single from Feast of Wire. They released a live DVD in 2004 called World Drifts In: Live at the Barbican. The song "Güero Canelo", from Feast of Wire, was featured in Michael Mann's Film, Collateral, starring Tom Cruise and Jamie Foxx, in which the band appears.
Calexico contributed the song "Burnin' Down the Spark" to Nancy Sinatra's self-titled album in late 2004. The album featured artists who cited Sinatra as a musical influence. The song was released in the UK as the second single from the album in early 2005.
In 2005, Calexico joined up with Miami-based band Iron & Wine. Howard Greynolds of Overcoat Records was responsible for bringing the two bands together having previously been responsible for Tortoise and Will Oldham recording together. The In the Reins EP was released in September 2005 and received a positive reception with an MSNBC review giving it honorable mention. It also made an appearance in the Billboard 200 album charts, becoming their first recording to make the album charts, and No. 12 on the independent charts. In October 2005, they commenced a US tour with Iron & Wine to promote the record.
Released in 2006, Garden Ruin is Calexico's fifth studio album and was produced by JD Foster. The sound strays slightly from earlier works, focusing less on the horn section, and placing more emphasis on guitar and vocal tracks, giving the whole album a more mainstream sound.
In 2007, Calexico was invited by Arcade Fire to record a cover of their "Ocean of Noise." This recording was used as the B-side for Arcade Fire's "Intervention" single, originally released on vinyl on May 21, 2007. Also in 2007, Calexico recorded a revamped version of the Bob Dylan song "Goin' to Acapulco" for the Dylan biopic "I'm Not There". The song featured Jim James of My Morning Jacket on vocals and was featured on the soundtrack of the film.
Several of Calexico's songs, usually their shorter instrumental pieces, have been used as interstitial and background music on Public Radio International's This American Life. Their songs "Ballad Of Cable Hogue" and "Service And Repair" were featured in the 2001 German comedy movie Lammbock.
Their sixth studio LP is called 'Carried to Dust', featuring Sam Beam of Iron & Wine, Douglas McCombs of Tortoise and Pieta Brown. It was released in the USA via Touch & Go Records on September 9, 2008. The album enjoyed solid reviews, with hometown paper the Arizona Daily Star praising the band's "ability to sweep you into its world, taking listeners to the American Southwest. This is one of the reasons Europeans love Calexico and others in this country are beginning to come around."
On October 16, 2008, a three-song live acoustic video performance premiered on LiveDaily Sessions, featuring Joey Burns performing the songs "Two Silver Trees," "Writer's Minor Holiday" and "Man Made Lake".
In 2009, the song Banderilla was featured in an episode of AMC's Breaking Bad.
In 2010, a new album of Calexico was released: the soundtrack of the documentary "Circo". The band also spent part of 2010 touring with Arcade Fire along the west US coast.
In May 2011, their song "Slowness" was dedicated by Gabrielle Giffords to her husband astronaut Mark Kelly as the wake up song aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour on its final flight.
Algiers was released 11 September 2012 on ANTI Records and CITY SLANG (Europe).
In April 2014, the band began referring to a new album on Twitter in posts from Mexico City, Coyoacan, Mexico, and Athens, Greece. Edge of the Sun was announced on 27 January 2015, and released on April 14, 2015. The album features guest appearances by various artists such as Sam Beam (Iron & Wine), Ben Bridwell (Band of Horses), Gaby Moreno, Carla Morrison and members of the Greek instrumental group Takim.
The current members of Calexico are:
Joey Burns – vocals, guitars, bass, cello, piano, keyboards, accordion, percussion, vibraphone
John Convertino – drums, percussion, piano, keyboards, vibraphone, marimba, accordion
Paul Niehaus – steel guitar, guitars
Jacob Valenzuela – trumpet, keyboards, vibraphone, vocals
Martin Wenk – trumpet, guitar, keyboards, accordion, glockenspiel, vibraphone, theremin (occasionally harmonica & French horn)
Volker Zander – standup bass, electric bass
Live tour 2013:
Joey Burns - vocals, guitars
John Convertino - drums, percussion
Sergio Mendoza - Keyboards
Jairo Zavala - bazouki, baritone guitar, vocals
Jacob Valenzuela – trumpet, keyboards, vibraphone, vocals
Martin Wenk – trumpet, guitar, keyboards, accordion, glockenspiel, vibraphone (occasionally harmonica & French horn)
Ryan Alfred - bass, vocals
Sirena
Calexico Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Sorrow fills the oceans wide
Calling you close, promising love
Letting passion navigate you
Into the arms of Sirena
Into the eyes of Sirena
Into the heart of Sirena
The old ones warn, stay away
Her love is sweet, but sorrow too great
Dreams of leaving her curse for good
Rise from the sea as flesh and blood
Still the wind carries her voice
Fills all thoughts, sways your choice
Drawn the fear, capsize the heart
Till all passion navigates you
Into the arms of Sirena
Into the eyes of Sirena
Into the heart of Sirena
Dancing like ghosts over the waves
Safe in the harbor of her embrace
Bebe mi vino de amor
Besos de kerosina
Volvierdo el mar en infierno!
To save this sad, tragic soul
Sorrow's worse than the tide's pull
Sinking deeper, gasping for love
Till desire navigates you
Into the arms of Sirena
Into the eyes of Sirena
Into the heart of Sirena
Dancing with ghosts under the waves
And into the arms of Sirena
Into the eyes of Sirena
Into the heart of Sirena
Caught in the rip tide, smashed on the reef
Joining the mass of bones underneath
The song Sirena by Calexico is a hauntingly beautiful track that tells the story of a seductive siren who lures sailors to their demise. The lyrics speak of a desperate attempt to save oneself from the overwhelming sadness that fills the ocean, caused by the siren's cursed love. The singer calls for her love, promising passion and attempting to navigate his way to her. However, the lyrics also warn of the danger of her love, which goes beyond just the sweetness; the siren's curse is too great, and one must guard against falling prey to her seduction. The singer is ultimately drawn to her, like so many others before, and they dance with ghosts haunting the shore.
The lyrics also use Spanish to intensify the passion and danger of the tale, as the siren is given the name Sirena. The words Bebe mi vino de amor, besos de kerosina, volvierdo el mar en infierno translate to English as Drink my wine of love, kisses of kerosene, turning the sea into hell! This vibrant language, combined with a hypnotic melody, make for an alluring, yet terrifying track about the dangers of being so reckless with one's heart.
Line by Line Meaning
To save this sad, lonesome cry
Desperately seeking a way to end this sorrowful, lonely outburst
Sorrow fills the oceans wide
The immense sadness is all-consuming and inescapable
Calling you close, promising love
Beckoning you to come near, making grand promises of love
Letting passion navigate you
Allowing intense feeling and emotion to guide you
Into the arms of Sirena
Being enveloped in the embrace of Sirena
Into the eyes of Sirena
Being lost in the captivating gaze of Sirena
Into the heart of Sirena
Being consumed by the alluring charm of Sirena
Dancing like ghosts, haunting the shore
Moving in a ghostly way, creating an eerie presence on the beach
The old ones warn, stay away
The elderly caution to stay distant from Sirena
Her love is sweet, but sorrow too great
Although her love seems sweet, it comes with too much pain
Dreams of leaving her curse for good
Fantasizing about permanently escaping from her curse
Rise from the sea as flesh and blood
Emerging from the ocean as human, not just myth
Still the wind carries her voice
Her voice is carried on the wind, continuing to lure people in
Fills all thoughts, sways your choice
Overwhelming every thought, influencing every decision
Drawn the fear, capsize the heart
Arousing fear, overturning the heart's stability
Till all passion navigates you
Until all intense feelings drive your actions
Dancing like ghosts over the waves
Gently moving in a spectral manner atop the sea
Safe in the harbor of her embrace
Finding security within the warmth of her loving touch
Bebe mi vino de amor
Drink my wine of love
Besos de kerosina
Kerosene kisses
Volvierdo el mar en infierno!
Turning the sea into a hell!
To save this sad, tragic soul
To rescue this sorrowful and disastrous spirit
Sorrow's worse than the tide's pull
The sadness is even stronger than the force of the tide
Sinking deeper, gasping for love
Moving further down, starved for affection
Till desire navigates you
Until intense longing propels you forward
Caught in the rip tide, smashed on the reef
Trapped in the current, violently crashing onto the coral
Joining the mass of bones underneath
Becoming part of the pile of bones beneath the sea
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
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