FFWD Weekly
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| CD Reviews by Jordan Kawchuk LATIN PLAYBOYS HOUNDOG • Two new projects from David Hidalgo, the heart and soul of Los Lobos. • Both records are beautifully haunted with slow, brooding back-alley sounds. It’s a rare thing, really. Side projects and solo albums are never supposed to be as good – if not better – than the original band. But Los Lobos frontman David Hidalgo is a refreshing exception. What makes his new experiments even more tasty is the fact that Latin Playboys and Houndog are not Lobos throwaways – they’re different sounding enough bands to deserve their own records. (Are you listening Jim Cuddy?) Dose is the second release from the creative quartet of Hidalgo, Los Lobos drummer Louie Perez, engineer Tchad Blake, and producer Mitchell Froom. And like their 1994 debut, the band explores the dark side of Latin blues pop with eccentric, raw sounds. Dose sounds like a mad producer’s fantasy – microphones seem to be hanging out of windows, guitars are sick with the flu, and normal percussion has been replaced with car keys, hat boxes and hubcaps. With the exception of a couple of upbeat grooves, Dose could easily be the soundtrack to our drunken nightmares. Houndog is a bare-bones blues vacation with Hidalgo and Mike Halby (Canned Heat). Never before has a band’s name been so synonymous with their sound. Houndog sounds like it was recorded on a Southern porch when the water dish is empty and the flies won’t leave you alone. Hidalgo’s dirty fiddle is a perfect fit for Halby’s weathered voice, and at times the groove is so lazy you wonder if the songs were recorded at the wrong speed. Listening to Houndog in its entirety has a strange effect... it made me want to run out and get an old tattoo stained on my arm. My appointment is next week. If that’s not a strong recommendation for a record, I don’t know what is. 4/5 for both |
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