Calexico performed their 2003 album Feast of Wire at the Powerstation in Auckland. Photo / Leonie Moreland
Calexico performed their 2003 album Feast of Wire at the Powerstation in Auckland. Photo / Leonie Moreland
US indie-rockers Calexico returned to Auckland on Sunday night to perform their 2003 magnum opus Feast of Wire for its 20th anniversary.
The band, formed by and centered around singer and multi-instrumentalist Joey Burns and drummer John Convertino, toured the album in New Zealand on its original release and the Auckland stop on the tour was at the now-legendary (and now demolished) Kings Arms.
This time, following shows in Wellington and Christchurch, Calexico’s third and final performance here was at Auckland’s Powerstation.
The gig saw the band play the bulk of songs from Feast of Wire, with some band and fan favourites for the encore.
Never easy to categorise, Calexico’s music is a blend of indie-rock, Mexican mariachi music, soundtrack-style jazz and Americana country-folk.
The band’s name, taken from a small south Californian border town, is portmanteau of California and Mexico and goes some way to giving an idea of their cross-border sound, which as well as typical rock instruments utilises steel guitar, accordion, trumpets and xylophone.
The band is based in Tuscon, Arizona, just 100km north of the Mexican border, and Feast of Wire is an album drenched in the terroir’s influence.
This tour coincided with the release of a 20th anniversary remastered edition of Feast of Wire, which also includes bonus live material.
Calexico were supported for their three New Zealand concerts by Kiwi singer-songwriter Ebony Lamb, who, with guitar in hand, performed a stripped-back set of songs accompanied solely by bandmate and bassist Phoebe Johnson and some minimal electronic backing.
Ebony Lamb performs at the Powerstation in Auckland. Photo / Leonie Moreland
Despite Feast of Wire being two decades old, Calexico performed the songs with a vigour that belied the album’s age and an enthusiasm suggesting an enduring love for the tracks.
At the beginning of their set, Burns wished the album happy birthday to a whoop from the crowd.
With a grin etched pretty much permanently across his face, the stylish singer gestured to the crowd to draw appreciation for the songs and band performances alike while apparently being in awe himself of just how good they were - akin to a chef tasting his own food and being astonished at the result.
The interpretation of each track took on a level of improvisation that kept things interesting for those that have lost count of the number of times they have listened to the songs over the past 20 years.
A version of Not Even Stevie Nicks morphed into a cover version of Joy Division’s Love Will Tear Us Apart which transformed the usually gentle ballad into a rock epic with Burns using guitar effect pedals to create sonic static to raise the fervour.
The rollicking Guero Canelo created a fiesta atmosphere, with a maraca-wielding Jacob Valenzuela engaging the crowd in a call-and-response audience participation to up the celebratory vibe.
The jazz-noir of Crumble brought a sultry moodiness and Calexico’s brilliant cover of the Arthur Lee and Love track Alone Again Or was another highlight, as it always is.
Calexico's Martin Wenk gave a notable performance in multi-instrument ability. Photo / Leonie Moreland
In a display of multi-instrumentational dexterity that bordered on braggadocio, Martin Wenk played the accordion and trumpet and lent backing vocals in one track.
And you know you’re witnessing a surfeit of instrumental proficiency when a xylophone solo receives a raucous ovation.
