Los Lobos played an excellent gig at Montalvo Arts Center in Los Gatos at their outdoor garden theater last weekend. The opening act was a local bay area band, Will Bernard, whose band played a nice jazz / funk / fusion set which was at its best was melodic and inspiring and at its worst made me think of a porn soundtrack loop that had gone awry. At any rate, no matter how good an opening act, people were there for one reason: Los Lobos.
If you're stilling asking yourself "Aren't those the guys who did La Bamba 25 years ago?" yes, you're right. In fact the band has been playing, touring and recording for 30 years with their original line up and continues to put out great new material. From their first album "Will the Wolf Survive?" to their most recent "The Town and the City" they've pushed the boundaries of latin rock and subtly evolved their sound to keep it relevant. In short, there's a lot more to Los Lobos than La Bamba.
The band came on about quarter after 8:00 pm and continued for just under two hours with a mix of traditional mexican folk music, roots Rock 'n' Roll, and some new songs from their latest CD. Highlights for me included the salsa-styled "Chuca's Cumbia" and the haunting "The Valley"with Dave Hildago's growling Telecaster nicely offset by Louie's gently rising rhythm guitar. (See the video below from YouTube for a live rendition.) They also played a nice Grateful Dead style cover of "Not Fade Away / Bertha" which was much appreciated by the audience.
It was also good to see Louie Perez step from behind the drums to add a third guitar along with Cesar Rosas for much of the show. The result was a richer, more textured sound that worked equally well for traditional Mexican folk songs as well as the newer material. The band has gotten tighter over the years, if a little wider in physique, but they sure can rock. Cesar Rosas remains the coolest guy to ever where shades and say "Right on, brother." The vocals were excellent, primarily shared by Dave and Cesar, who also traded off lead guitar.
My only disappointment was the selection of Neil Young's Cinammon Girl as the encore. Short of Neil Young coming on stage, I would have much rather heard more Los Lobos material, like Mas Y Mas. The band is continuing to tour throughout the summer. If you get a chance, check it out. It's a great show, even if they don't play La Bamba anymore.
- Amazon: The Town and the City, Will the Wolf Survive?
- Los Lobos: Official Site, Tour, Bios
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