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When it comes to instruments, Calexico never seems to have enough. Over the course of six official albums and countless self-made tour cds, the Tucson, Arizona group has incorporated steel guitar, vibraphone, harmonica, and even accordion into its potent mix of Southwestern indie rock and '50s jazz. The band's co-founders – and multi-instrumentalists – Joey Burns (guitar/bass/vocals) and John Convertino (drums/percussion/piano) even took a mariachi band on one of their European tours. So, it's no surprise that they jumped at the chance to perform with the 71-member Louisville Orchestra on Saturday (1/30) as part of the BB&T Strings Attached Series.
“We've had strings on our records, but we've never played with a full orchestra before,” Burns said in a telephone interview. “It's something that has been talked about several times, but it's never come together until now. We use elements of symphonic music in our songs so it's a natural extension of what we do.”
The Strings Attached Series pairs the orchestra with adventurous indie rock bands. The series kicked off in November with the Dashboard Confessionals. In addition to Calexico, Saturday's show includes the Airborne Toxic Event (“Sometime Around Midnight”). Burns said Calexico's 45 minute, 7-song set will feature a combination of new songs and older, re-imagined material.
“We gave them (the orchestra) some live recordings so they could have someone do the arrangements,” Burns explained. “I was happy with the end result. There are more transitions, segues. There are elements of surprise. I think the crowd will be impressed.”
Although he is known for playing contemporary music, Burns has a classical music degree from the University of California-Irvine. That's where he first met Convertino in the early '90s. At the time Convertino was playing drums for Giant Sand, a band Burns soon joined on standup bass. Calexico began as a side project after Giant Sand moved to Tucson in 1994. It turned into a full-time gig for Burns and Convertino after a couple of years.
Calexico's latest album is “Carried to Dust,” but most of the music they've been making lately has been for film. The band's music has appeared in two Michael Mann films, “Public Enemies” and “Collateral,” and in the Bob Dylan-themed “I'm Not There.” In the latter film, Calexico backed Jim James of My Morning Jacket on “Goin' to Acapulco.” Calexico is working on several film projects, including one that involves another collaboration with James. Burns said he's a longtime fan of Louisville talent.
“Louisville is a very interesting town,” Burns said. “It's always been an important place because of all the great bands like Slint, Rachel's, and now My Morning Jacket. We've played Louisville many times and I'm excited that we get to do our first orchestral show there.”
The Airborne Toxic Event/Calexico show is at the Kentucky Center for the Arts, 501 W. Main St. It starts at 8 p.m. Tickets are $25 and up, but if you buy a $33 ticket it includes admission to Phantasmagorical at Headliners on Sunday.
Phantasmagorical is benefit for Jason Noble (Rachel's, Shipping News, and Rodan) who was diagnosed with lung cancer last year. Wax Fang, D.W. Box, Second Story Man, and other bands are donating their talents to help Noble raise money to defray his medical costs. The benefit starts at 7:30 p.m. on Sunday and admission is $10 unless you take advantage of the Calexico show deal. To attend both shows call 502-587-8681 for tickets (use the promo code NOBLE).
Photo: Joey Burns
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Michael L. Jones