Orquesta del Desierto Album Reviews

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Orquesta del Desierto (2002)
Dos (2003)

Orquesta del Desierto (2002)

6

Shadow Stealing / After Blue / Waiting for That Star to Fall / Make Fun / Globalist Dreams / Mary Strange / From This View / Smooth Slim / Scorned Liver / Alicia's Song

What is it with these supergroup-projects that makes 'em often fail in advance? I mean, it all looks swell on paper, imagining all these creative minds spurring each other on, challenge each other to come up with the most brilliant ideas, twists and turns and then put it to practise and record a mindblowing record. Even though Orquesta del Desierto is a kind of super-band (if you're familiar with the particular scene, that is) featuring members from Kyuss, Hermano, Goatsnake/earthlings? and Fatso Jetson, among others, the title-less debut lacks the consistency, cohesive vision and, well, quality, to be satisfaction-guaranteed. It starts off swell though, with its two strongest songs: "Shadow Stealing" immediately sets the tone with a swift introduction on drums and the addition of exotic congas (or something like that - I'm not a percussion buff). Next: acoustic guitar and an electric one that almost sounds like a sitar. It's certainly something different, a colourful merger of folk, rock and world music. Then Pete Stahl adds his eccentric, almost ecstatic vocals, and we're off for a propulsive 4 minutes of desert-folk, music to accompany you during long car trips. The addition of horns gives the song something of a Calexico-meets-Herb Alpert vibe and God knows that's just okay. Less joyous, but nearly as impressive, is "After Blue," an ominous piece of sun-drenched voodoo. When those drums kick in after the lengthy acoustic first part, the songs really blooms (despite its repetitive structure), especially because of Stahl's passionate vocals. From that point onwards however, the album loses its thrust and it's not because the songs are downright bad or anything. No, it's just that they fail to make the focused impact that "Shadow Stealing" and "After Blue" had. It all sounds good, the combination of acoustic and electric guitars, the addition of horns, percussion and harmonica - the impeccable playing will evoke images of barren landscapes and setting suns in a cactus-ornamented skyline - but the songs themselves aren't very memorable, even though some definitely have their merits: the circular guitar pattern of "Waiting for That Star to Fall" is a nice addition to Stahl's almost poetic ramblings, the falsetto vocals and careless vibe of the silly "Make Fun" do turn it into a slice of insubstantial, but irresistible enjoyment, and "Mary Strange" does develop a comfy, jazzy groove, but somehow you get the feeling something's missing from these songs, something you'd remember them by. "Scorned Liver" and "Smooth Slim" were convincing when I saw 'em play these songs last summer, here they have less luck disguising their lack of substance. A few songs ensure that there's enough variety on the album ("From This View" has an enjoyable, exotic chorus, album closer "Alicia's Song" is quite pretty in its delicate sparseness), but overall they're hardly as much fun as they are on paper. Luckily, circumstances ensured that the whole thing did click on the much better sophomore album, which should be your first pick to get a taste of the band. This one can wait for a while.

Dos (2003)

8

Life without Color / Summer / Above the Big Wide / Someday / Quick to Disperse / El Diablo un Patrono / What in the World / Over Here / Sleeping the Dream

Dos What a paradox: while you think you might have a very good idea of what this band sounds like, just based on who’s in the band (like many people obviously do/did), it’s in reality one of the most eclectic, non-conformist albums the “scene” (let’s call it “desert rock,” for clarity’s sake) has ever spawned. The project had already been going on for a few years – originally with Alfredo Hernandez (ex-Kyuss, Qotsa, C’hé), Mario Lalli (Fatso Jetson, and the scene’s godfather, so to speak), Pete Stahl (Scream, Wool, earthlings?, Goatsnake) and Dandy Brown (Hermano) – but never really materialized into a new band. On Dos, Orquesta’s second album, these people are joined by guitarists Mike Riley and Country Mark Engel and two drummers. Again, all this promises lots and lots of decibels, but that’s hardly the case, as Orquesta has more in common with the Mexicali of, say, Calexico, than the massive roaring of the classic stoner/desert bands. Recorded at the already legendary Rancho de la Luna, Dos immediately impresses with a natural, broad and very clean sound that still manages to contain all the warmth you’d expect from an album recorded in the high desert. While the addition of horns in the title track may you remind you of Calexico or the lush L.A. psychedelica of classic Love, the remainder of the album serves as both a sonic equivalent of a ride through the desert, as well as a race through music history, from the Santana-styled percussion, the grandiose Led Zeppelin-gone-acoustic-vibe, early ‘70’s pop, soul, R&B, to even jazz and Latin flourishes. It all amounts to a rather unique sound that’s enforced by the peculiar combination of musicians, with especially Pete Stahl’s vocals repeatedly stealing the show, not because of their technical perfection, but uh, just them being “different”. A great showcase for the band at its most exotic and colourful is the bright opener “Life without Color,” an impressionistic celebration set to the soundtrack of the American Southwest (and no, I’m not talking about Herb Alpert here). Although the album never gets that sweaty and feverish again, there’s a certain sensuality to these songs that, indeed, makes it a great album to listen to during the summer months, the undisputable example being the appropriately titled “Summer,” one of the prettiest songs of 2003. Propelled by layers of electric and (mainly) acoustic guitars and gentle percussion, it sets the tone for Stahl’s vocals, which contain both melancholy and optimism and the result is an addictive slice of sun-drenched pop you can’t get out of your head. The band also rocks, but when it does, it does so without the trademark tribal drumming, fuzz and detuned guitars. Instead, you get a cool propulsive vibe (“El Diablo un Patrono,” the album’s swiftest song), a slightly awkward atmosphere (the Western-meets-folkrock of “Quick to Disperse”) and even a swingin’ R&B-tune (the lightweight “What in the World,” another fine showcase for Stahl’s phrasing). Not all the songs are as straightforward, as chief Dandy Brown has been experimenting quite a lot with psychedelic sound effects and unusual arrangements during songs like “Someday” and the instrumental “Over Here,” but luckily this never results in misplaced indulgence or aural diarrhoea. In fact, the album’s most complete track (and I’m not talking about immediate appeal, because “Summer” wins in that case), is the extended album closer “Sleeping the Dream,” a nostalgic, minimalist semi-drone, with sober backing (some percussion, piano, muted acoustic guitars) and Stahl’s passionate vocals. Dos doesn’t represent a groundbreaking revolution, but it fulfils the intention Brown & Co. were thinking of when they started out making a collaborative effort that would display themselves and their peculiar surroundings in a way some people may not have expected, but all the more should be impressed by. With Dos, Orquesta del Desierto has proven once again that colouring outside the lines can be so much more fun.