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
Two Silver Trees
Calexico Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Traces sweeping out across the static night
You are draped in white like the blossoms of the tree
Looking down a glass elevator
At your father signing the papers for
Two silver trees, two silver trees
Two worlds in need, two silver trees
Branches falling down
From sources underground
False identities
Stranded in each single seed
False sense of warning no poisoned cup
Just deception crawling up like a snake
Decay of the blossoms and roots well hacked
Spoil the hidden waters dying at the base of
Two silver trees, two silver trees
Two worlds in need, two silver trees
[Chorus]
The song "Two Silver Trees" by Calexico is a hauntingly beautiful piece about the fragility of relationships and the consequences of deceit. The opening lines refer to code breakers who are tapping lines and tracing out codes across the static night. This suggests the idea of secrets and hidden messages that people exchange with each other, but also implies how fragile these messages can be, as they are transmitted across an ephemeral medium.
The second verse of the song is particularly striking, as the singer describes someone draped in white like the blossoms of the tree, watching her father sign papers for two silver trees. The image of two silver trees, representing two worlds in need, is a powerful one, evoking the idea of connections and divisions between people. The chorus speaks about branches falling down from sources underground, false identities, and stranded seeds, suggesting how the past can weigh heavily on the present and complicate relationships.
The final verse of the song describes the decay of the blossoms and roots, which have been hacked away, and the hidden waters that are dying at the base of the two silver trees. This suggests the idea of a relationship that has been poisoned from within, with the consequences of deception and betrayal causing it to wither and die. Overall, "Two Silver Trees" paints a vivid and powerful portrait of relationships that are complex, fragile, and prone to decay.
Line by Line Meaning
There are code breakers with lines well tapped
There are people skilled in decoding obscure messages
Traces sweeping out across the static night
Evident signs extending throughout the silent darkness
You are draped in white like the blossoms of the tree
You are clad in white resembling the soft petals of a blooming tree
Looking down a glass elevator
Observing from a transparent lift
At your father signing the papers for
Witnessing as your father puts pen to paper for
Two silver trees, two silver trees
Two gleaming trees, two gleaming trees
Two worlds in need, two silver trees
Two worlds that require help, two gleaming trees
[Chorus]
A recurring set of lines
Branches falling down
Limbs descending to the ground
From sources underground
From hidden roots beneath the surface
False identities
Misleading personas
Stranded in each single seed
Trapped in every individual offspring
False sense of warning no poisoned cup
Misleading sense of alertness, no actual toxin
Just deception crawling up like a snake
Only trickery slithering in like a serpent
Decay of the blossoms and roots well hacked
Deterioration of the delicate flowers and the disturbed roots
Spoil the hidden waters dying at the base of
Contaminate the concealed wells that are withering at the foot of
Two silver trees, two silver trees
Two gleaming trees, two gleaming trees
Two worlds in need, two silver trees
Two worlds that require help, two gleaming trees
[Chorus]
A recurring set of lines
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: JOEY BURNS, JOHN BURNS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@bradycath
These guys are awesome musicians and super genuine people, have had the pleasure of meeting them a few times.
@crnilabud33
Đcalexico
@bigfunkytx
i like the sound these guys produce. very crisp and haunting. i love it!
@BattingMyLashes
Two Silver Trees is a metaphor for the two Twin Towers during 9/11… the imagery and way that this band created this song even down to that haunting feeling everyone gets just perfectly fits the subject. 12 years and counting, I’ll always love this song. It’s ironic a song about 9/11 is one that I listen to that reminds me of music and nostalgia of my teenage years. ❤️
@freddricos
2 stinking arabs u mean ??
@terrafirma91
I never heard of these guys until today. I like their "trance" style. There's a certain haunting mellowness in this song. Why don't we hear of innovative groups earlier? Why are all the outlets so controlled, so as to only allow certain select groups public exposure? I'll give these guys 5 Stars.
@Filbunkish
Calexico is great as always! Saw them live last night and it was amazing. They played for over two hours and it never got boring.
@bockjh
I love this group. Maybe you should start with one of the earlier recordings because the mariachis are not to be missed. What talent!
@Imissthepostoffice
I love the band, Calexico. A co-worker introduced me to them. We live in Chicago. I spent a lot of time at the Tucson VA, before my Father's death. I visited the Hotel Congress. Sorry to have missed the live performance of such an awesome band. Dad, WWII, was my main concern at this time. Calexico is a very fine band, one of my very favorites. I love the clip of the old airplanes. I drove by there daily to find dad a decent pair of shorts that he could wear. :-)
@mimoscorpse
I have been hearing this song on an AM radio station in Montreal quite a bit the past few weeks, it immediately grabbed my attention. The first time I ever heard them was a few years ago when their cover of Alone Again Or came out, that song was really pretty, but this....it's captivating.