Giant Sand, “Heartbreak Pass” (New West, 2015)
From his base in Tucson, for 30 years Howe Gelb has been making fine records that have steadily developed his signature style – dusty, off-kilter, cubist roots-rock, a sparse desert soundscape dotted with tangles of noise and vistas of acoustic beauty – while retaining a core of consistency and integrity of sound. This one is a little gentler on the whole, but the bottom line is, it’s another Giant Sand record, and that’s a great thing indeed.
Try 2, 7, 8, 15
6/1/15

Giant Sand, “Tucson: A Country-Rock Opera” (Fire, 2012)
These guys have been around since the mid-‘80s, and their dazed, hazy desert music still has a lot of its odd, lurid glow, if in a more formally c & w, more sedate setting.
Try 2, 14
7/29/12