Published on Aug 19, 1997
It’s like going from a wide stretch of starlight desert range in
the midnight hour to a smokey blues bar where the lights are turned
down low and the beer is flowing aplenty. That’s the best way I can
describe the change that Los Lobos underwent from their heralded
1992 album
Kiko to 1996’s
Colossal Head.
Kiko made about every critic’s best-of list for 1992. It was
a beautiful, mythical album that put any claim that Los Lobos were
only that
La Bamba song band back in 1987 to rest. As great as
Kiko was, I thought there were times that the album was
over-produced. Any hint of over-production is non-existent on
Colossal Head. After working on the soundtracks of
Desperado and
Feeling Minnesota, the band recorded
Colossal Head in six short weeks.
Los Lobos’ rich 20-year history with each other has paid off. In
their history, they’ve managed to weave R&B, hippie rock ala
the Grateful Dead, straightforward rock and the sound of a great
local bar band effortlessly into their albums. While
Colossal Head may sound like it was recorded in a basement,
not a studio, the inspiration is there in every single track.
The album kicks off with the murky “Revolution”. The soft,
muddled bass of Conrad Lozano perfectly plays off of David
Hidalgo’s blues-inspired vocals. The album then kicks into a full
out jam session with “Mas Y Mas,” an instant staple to Los Lobos’
smoking live shows.
The traditional Hispanic sound of “Maricela” is about the only
song on
Colossal Head that fits with Los Lobos’ heritage. The rest
of the album feels as if the band took a road trip to Chicago and
New Orleans and took in some serious blues acts. The instrumental
closer, “Buddy Ebsen Loves The Night Time” would sound perfect in a
dirty Chicago blues bar. The rest of
Colossal Head is far harder to categorize. From the
experimental steel guitar slide of “Everybody Loves A Train” to the
pensive ballad “Little Japan,” Los Lobos brings in Hispanic, blues
and deep-grooving R&B almost seamlessly.
In an album that’s packed with highlights, “Manny’s Bones” is
the standout song of the lot. Louis Perez lays down a funeral-type
percussion march as Hidalgo and Cesar Rojas play a swinging, bad
ass guitar refrain. The chorus sounds something like a sing along
Irish wake song. “…and let the water take him to his home.” The
water imagery that Los Lobos can give the listener is
astounding.
Colossal Head is in many ways superior to their acclaimed
Kiko. Instead of taking the full production approach, Los
Lobos took a risk and made an album that seemed to pride itself on
its imperfections. While it may not be their most groundbreaking
album, all you have to do is go to one of their concerts and see
the people that this album would attract:blues lovers, Phish
followers, Latin music enthusiasts and fans who just want to dance
their asses off. Pretty damn impressive accomplishment if you ask
me.